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Ever since Cakes got her ears pierced on Saturday, I have been waging a battle with Sue Sue. She really wants her ears pierced. She does not want to stop sucking her thumb.
In the beginning, I thought she would be the first to break the habit. She tried. She really, really tried. One night, she asked if she could stop wearing her sock mittens. I agreed. That night she sucked her thumb in her sleep. I gave her a second chance... she did it again.
After Cakes got her ears pierced, I put Sue Sue back in the sock mittens. I only put it on her thumb sucking hand. She sucked the other thumb in her sleep. I put a sock on both hands. She took them off in her sleep. Last night I had to work. I told Hubby to safety pin Sue Sue's sock mittens to her pajamas. Unfortunately, he chose a "short sock." She managed to get her thumb out of the sock and was sucking it when I came home from work. I would chalk this up to something she's unaware of while she sleeps... except when I related this story to her this morning she had a small smirk on her face.
I'm willing to continue this battle until I win. I give her encouragement and don't say or do anything to make her feel bad (even if I think she's aware of what she's doing). Eventually I'll win... and she'll get her ears pierced.
On Saturday, Cakes and I agreed she had finally given up her thumb sucking habit and was ready for pierced ears. She refused to talk to anyone at the store during the piercing, but she was clearly proud of herself when we left. She made me pull her hair back with barrettes this morning so she could easily show off her new earrings to her classmates.
Sue Sue is a tad disappointed. When I took the "sock mittens" off everyone's hands, she sucked her thumb in her sleep without even knowing it. She is really trying and has at least beat her daytime sucking habit.
Tortilla readily admits she's not ready to give up the sock mittens. When she's upset, she tells me "I really want to suck my thumb." I appreciate the fact, though, that she's aware enough to NOT do it.
Two down, two to go. I'm happy with the progress!
I've been battling three thumb suckers for quite some time now. I've tried applying pretty fingernail polish. The thumbsuckers ask that their thumbs not be painted. I've tried bribery. Roo, who doesn't suck her thumb was allowed to pierce her ears. The other three want pierced ears, but aren't willing to give up the thumb.
I've made a huge deal out of Roo's earrings. Everyone wants to be involved in watching her clean her earrings and, recently, change into brand new earrings. (Unfortunately, a stone fell out of the brand new earrings as I put them in, so the thrill of the new ones wore off fast).
Now? I'm making good on my threats of "sock mittens." That's right, sock mittens. The dentist recommended these awhile ago. You put a sock on the thumb sucking hand at night and, according to him, voila! No more thumb sucking. (OK, he did say it would take a few weeks).
I hesitated to do this on his first recommendation because it was summer. I know how hot I can get at night, so I wanted to try some other things. Which didn't work. So the other night, the socks came out.
The first night was a success. No one sucked her thumb. No one complained. Roo even asked for sock mittens, so I had to explain they're a punishment not a reward.
The second night, no one complained, but I noticed after bath time the thumb suckers were trying to sneak in some thumb sucking on the couch before bed time. My solution? The socks go on now as soon as they're done with baths. The only time they really suck their thumbs is when they're winding down for the night. They actually put the socks on last night after their showers without complaint.
So far we're on the right track. The thumb sucking is almost gone. I think. We'll see what happens when I attempt to take the socks off for good.
Well, I did it. Actually, I should say Roo did it. She is now the proud wearer of pierced earrings. If you'll recall, I'm desperate. The other three suck their thumbs and I've stooped to bribery (which is not something I'm against). I told them if they stop sucking their thumbs, they can get their ears pierced. Since Roo never sucked her thumb, she asked every day if it was time to get her ears pierced.
Sunday was the day. I called the closest chain-store that pierces ears (if you think about it, you'll figure out what store I went to). I made sure the store had two certified piercers working so both ears could be pierced at the same time. Then Hubby, Roo and I made the trek over. I made the other girls go to grandma's because I really wanted to play up the whole "specialness" of this event.
Roo smiled the whole way there, but didn't say much. She refused to talk to the two employees at the store. (For the record, this store employs "young" workers, but they were kind and professional through the entire experience).
The piercing "guns" aren't the staple gun sized contraptions I remember being pierced with. They were small and didn't make a "popping" sound. They counted to three... I didn't even realize it was over! Roo didn't flinch and didn't shed a tear. (It helped that I popped a lollipop in her mouth as soon as it was over).
She's very proud of herself and has been very careful with her earrings. She doesn't let anyone touch them unless we're cleaning them and she helps me mark off the calendar each day so we know how often to clean them.
For those who have asked why I'm concerned about the thumb sucking: I've never believed sucking thumbs causes crooked teeth. However, according to our dentist it can change the shape of one's palette. It elongates the roof of the mouth and causes "crowding of the teeth." We already know all four girls will need braces (yes, even non-thumb sucking Roo), but we're trying to avoid the palette cracking contraption Hubby had to wear. It goes in the roof of your mouth and you have to turn a "key" every day to separate your palette. I'm dizzy just thinking about it.
As for the others? They're trying, they really are. The problem with their thumb sucking is that it's a "comfort" thing. They ONLY do it when they're tired. However, I noticed Sue Sue no longer sucks her thumb in her sleep... could she be the next to get pierced? And for the record, any piercings beyond their ears will have to be paid for out of their own pockets!
I've frequently posted about my three thumb suckers. Roo has never sucked her thumb, the other three think their thumbs are made of chocolate. Or crack. Take your pick because they are addicted. I've tried chats about how we're "big girls now." I've talked to them about what this will do to their teeth. I've threatened to cover their hands with socks at night. That was the dentist's suggestion. It sounded good, but then I thought about how uncomfortable I would feel with my hands covered all night, so I don't know if I'm willing to go that route. Nothing has worked.
The other night, out of sheer frustration, I came up with something that might actually work. Roo is going to get her ears pierced this week. That's my new rule: if you don't suck your thumb, you get to have pierced ears. She is really talking it up and her sisters are jealous! They're trying to stop sucking their thumbs because they want earrings. I think the real motivator will be when Roo comes home this week sporting her earrings. I had always planned to wait until they were a little older, but if it means no more thumb sucking, then bring on the piercing gun!
Once upon a time there was a woman who had four little girls, all born on the same day. None of the babies liked pacifiers. They used pacis briefly in the hospital, but rarely used them at home. They just weren't interested. Then one day, Mommy made a startling discovery: Three out of her four babies sucked their thumbs. (Why the fourth baby never sucked her thumb is a mystery that will likely never be solved).
Mommy appreciated the fact that her babies self-soothed. She knew they would outgrow their thumb sucking habit before their adult teeth grew in.
Eventually, Mommy took her little girls to the dentist. He complimented Mommy and Daddy on how clean and pretty their little girls' teeth were. He then warned Mommy and Daddy that their adorable little girls will all likely need braces. In fairness, the braces will be necessary because their mouths are crowded, not because they suck their thumbs. BUT.... the thumb sucking isn't helping. It is causing the shape of their mouths to change and effects how their tongue sits in their mouth and, thus, how it touches their teeth.
Mommy tried bribing her thumb suckers with special treats. They didn't care. She tried gently reminding them not to suck their thumbs. It didn't work. Her three thumb suckers would go all day without putting their thumbs in their mouths, but by the time night rolled around, the tired little girls would give up their quest to go thumb free.
One day, Mommy came home from the store with the brightest, prettiest, pinkest nail polish she could find. The deal? No thumb sucking with fingernail polish on. The thumb suckers readily agreed to go cold turkey. The fourth little girl also got to have her fingernails painted. Then bed time rolled around. Two out of the three thumb suckers had picked the polish of their "sucking thumb." The third thumb sucker dissolved in tears. "Take my fingernail polish off," she cried "or the tears will keep coming." After listening to this for awhile, Mommy caved. She removed the polish from the third thumb sucker's thumb. Just the other day, all four little girls asked to have their fingernail polish re-touched. Three of those little girls requested to leave one thumb polish free.
Thumb suckers: 1 Mommy: 0
I received an email about my recent thumb sucking post from someone who regularly reads my blog. She had a pretty interesting solution and since there were a lot of comments from parents of thumb suckers, I thought I had better share. (To protect the identity of the thumb sucker in question, I won't reveal his/her identity).
The mom who emailed me told me that when her child was about the same age as my girls the dentist gave her the same "give up the thumb" lecture. She decided to start putting socks on the child's hands at night. For the first few nights the child protested, but it quickly worked.
I'm going to give my girls a few more days before I resort to socks... but it's a solution I never thought of and one I'm willing to try. Now my only concern is this: at least one of my daughters likes to chew on her blankie. What happens if she decides she likes chewing on socks, too?
It has never bothered me that three of my daughters are dedicated thumb suckers. For whatever reason, Roo has never ever been interested in sucking her thumb, but her sisters pop their thumbs in their mouths at the first sign of stress or sleepiness. My thought has always been "well, they've found a way to self-soothe." I've never bought into the notion that they're messing up their teeth, since these teeth will eventually fall out. Plus, Hubby and I both needed braces and know all four of our girls will, too. Even my most recent edition of Parents magazine quoted a doctor who said thumb sucking is a natural reflex which most children will give up before age four.
So, here we are approaching our 4th birthday and our dentist says it's time to ditch the thumbs. Why? It's actually pretty interesting. According to our dentist, the way your tongue sits in your mouth affects your palette. As a child, when your palette is still developing, your tongue helps spread the roof of your mouth. When a child sucks her thumb, she's affecting where her tongue sits in her mouth and her palette may not spread/develop the way it should. Considering two of my daughters have "severe crowding" of their teeth, well, they need those palettes to spread. (Do you remember the kids in school who talked about having to wear a "bridge"? It was some medieval contraption in the roof of their mouth involving a key. Every night they had to turn the key to spread their palette. Yeah, not something I really want my girls to suffer through, although Hubby claims it didn't hurt.)
Our dentist appointment was last week. Since then I've really been trying to work with Cakes, Tortilla and Sue-Sue to encourage them to give up the thumb. It's easier said than done. The first day they were really good about taking their thumbs out of their mouth with a gentle reminder. By the time I put them to bed, though, you could tell what a challenge the day had been. As soon as they closed their eyes, their thumbs were firmly positioned in their mouths. The other day Cakes was sitting next to me on the couch. When I casually reminded her to take her thumb out of her mouth she moved. I found her sitting on the floor next to the couch, covertly sucking her thumb. Great, now I've created "closet thumb suckers."
It's not going to be an easy habit to break. We'll keep working on it and eventually we'll be a thumb-free family.
