I have slowly been weaning my 10-month-old daughter from the pacifier, but recently I’ve noticed she has started sucking her thumb. Since the thumb is a harder habit to break than the pacifier, my thought is to let her have the pacifier.
Your 10-month-old is in an in-between stage of development, as she is crawling but not yet walking. Once she begins walking and exploring, she will occupy those busy hands so much that she will have less time and interest to suck her thumb or use a pacifier. You are correct; it is easier to lose a pacifier than a thumb. Suggest you keep her hands busy with hand toys and crawling games until she reaches the magical one-year age of walking. It’s easier to lose a pacifier when she’s a toddler and can understand games like “trading in the pacifier.” If she still wants her pacifier within another year, take her to a toystore and trade it in for a more desired toy.
My son is four-weeks-old and is showing no signs of wanting to give up his binky. I work full-time, so he is in daycare all day. I feel in one sense that he has so little control over things in his life that maybe he should be able to keep it until HE is ready to give it up. What do you think?Your intuition is absolutely right – he does have so little control over things in his life, and the pacifier is one thing he can control. The only problem with pacifiers is when they damage the teeth. If his upper teeth are not protruding due to the pacifier, then you don’t need to worry. He will give it up. There are so many habits that children can get into, and certainly prolonged use of the pacifier is one of the more harmless ones, as long as there are no dental problems associated with it.