Thumb Sucking.

[Jemisa]

My G/daughter who is 4and a half still sucks her thumb, She started school in sept. and loves it, we thought perhaps with other children and learning things it would take her mind off it. But NO. The teacher has mentioned some of the other kids are teasing her
but this doesn't seem to bother her.

Did your child suck its thumb? have you got any good tips to get her to stop. Dooes putting bitter aloes on really help? it seems a bit cruel.

jem

[alexanderd]

My neice, 19 still sucks her thumb when she is reading or doing her homework

[annie0000]

She may be less keen on the teasing when it is about the fact that her teeth are sticking out. The problem with putting something on it that doesn't taste nice is that once you suck it off, the thumb tastes good again and you can get accostomed to the taste of anything! I was at high school with a boy that still sucked his thumb in class, it's a hard habit to break becasue you cant take the thumb away! You can only appeal to the part of her that wants to be grown up and see if that will discourage her.

[Jemisa]

Yeah! alex thats what I'm afraid of. Watching BB a few weeks ago a girl on there sucked her thumb, she must have been all of 25.
My daughter wouldn't listen to me when I sugested giving her baby a dummy, she said they are filthy things & she'd rather not give her one.
All mine (3) had dummies, at least you can throw a dummy away.

jem

[vivandorron]

Nothing wrong in my opinion. Some children are still sucking dummies at her age and I must confess that I smoke cigarettes. Let your G/daughter suck her thumb and just hope that at nineteen ( age mentioned by alexandered) she not smoking or other forms of drug taking.

Ron.

[alexanderd]

I agree vivandron my neice cant stand to be near anyone smoking

[annie0000]

As with all behaviour that you want to discourage, you ignore the bad as much as you can and reward the good. A sticker chart is good at that age and she could get the reward of getting her nails painted at the weeken if she manages not to suck her thumb. It's not something that she should get punished for doing, but that doesn't mean that you couldn't reward for not doing it.

[vivandorron]

pinkilady..... I sometimes feel that at my old age I would be better sucking my thumb than using cigarettes as something of a dummy. Sucking one's thumb is not causing any form of ill health to the person concerned or others around them. :-)

rON.

[Meg]

My youngest son breast fed till he was two, heaven for him, torture for me!! They give up in they're own time, don't worry about it.

[Jemisa]

It is to the thumb tho Ron. Its crinkled like a prine and is not healthy looking like the other one.It sometimes cracks and is sore.

jem

[boxtops]

I sucked my thumb until I was 12, it was a security thing - it didn't make my front teeth stick out but it pushed back my bottom teeth, I've had occluded front teeth for the rest of my life.

[DEN53]

Jem - I was a thumb sucker when I was younger - I remember my Grandad saying I would suck all the goodness out of it, but that never stopped me. I also wet the bed up until I was around 8 years old, both of which I grew out of.

I am sure now your grandaughter has started school, she will gradually move on and to be honest the teacher should try and distract her with activities. She obviously finds the thumb sucking a comfort and perhaps is still finding her feet and confidence in school.

I do wonder how much, if at all, the kids are teasing her, or if the teacher has the problem with it..........its worth a thought.

[vivandorron]

boxtops...It's because I regard you as a personal friend that I can't resist saying "You've said a mouthful there." :-) lol

Ron.

[boxtops]

Cheers Ron, ;-)

[vivandorron]

Jemisa...Please don't think that I am not being serious on this issue. Ignore any banter I may have with friends I have found on AB.

It's now my understanding that children get out of the habit of thumb sucking by five years of age. Please click the following for further info:-

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thumb_sucking

Best wishes...Ron.

[boxtops]

That's a very general rule, ron, I know several who haven't - one is 35.

[vivandorron]

It is boxtops; but it's worth reading the article in wikipedia.

Ron

[boxtops]

Cheers Ron - grateful that my teeth don't look like that....

[Jemisa]

Mornin folks, Thankyou to you all for your opinions and advice. Perhaps I AM being a bit over worried about it, I've got an old fashioned view about it I suppose.

Ron thanks for the Wiki link it was interesting.

Den, you may very well be right.

jem