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Dummies and sleep

Hi

My lo (3 months) is quite a sucky baby and if distressed or overtired likes a dummy. It really helps with naps in the day as a few sucks and she's asleep. I've not been giving it to her at night as I didn't want her to wake up in the night and not be able to get back to sleep without a dummy - so far she's gone to sleep either on us (then transferred to cot) and used to go in the cot awake and settle herself (although she's not done this for a long time now). Yesterday we withheld the dummy a little as were scared she was becoming dependent on it - result - no naps and when we put her down in her cot at night awake but tired she began to cry after a kick around. I picked up/put down a couple of times but she's not really comforted by being picked up (quite independent in that respect) so I took her out of cot and gave her a dummy - three sucks and she was fast asleep! So, my question after such a long ramble is...is the use of a dummy in these situations not advised (i.e. lead to bad sleep associations) - also, what about dummy vs thumb sucking - which is better? We don't want to depend too heavily on the dummy or thumb sucking due to teeth development, or having a two year old hooked on it! How do others use the dummy with their lo? x

Replies

  • My lo is 11 weeks and i let her have dummy to calm her down or to go to sleep. It it recommended that they sleep with a dummy now to prevent cot death. I do usually get up once or twice a night to put her dummy back in if she has woken up and struggling to go back to sleep.

    I would much rather her have a dummy now and have the fight when she is 1-2 than have her suck her thumb. If i catch her sucking her thumb i give her a dummy. I hate thumb sucking. The dummies they make now dont do any damage to teeth. As you cant take a thumb away often children will suck their thumb much later than they would have a dummy.

    I think most babies eventually grow out of having a dummy.
  • Archie only really has a dummy when he's crying (screaming and I can't get him to stop) or if he's overtired I use it for sleep. He always settles himself to sleep at bedtime.
    Like your lo he is quite independant and picking him up does nothing to comfort him in the night infact he thinks it's an indictaion to get up and play ! So I use the dummy in middle of the night to help him back to sleep. Hoping I won't have to when he sleeps thru but he's 14wks now so no idea when that will be !
    He is also very sucky baby and always has fingers or whole hand in his mouth. I'll deal with it if and when I need to. Again he might grow out of it, we'll wait and see. S x
  • Louise used to have her dummy for naps and at night. I wouldrather have a happy baby using a dummy than a grumpy tired baby which resultd in a lack of sleep for us mummys too!

    Louise has to have weaned herself off her dummy though, she doesn't use it at all at night and only uses it in the car during the day!
  • Theo has his dummy when he goes to sleep, whether its for a nap or to be put down for the night. But he wakes up loads of times in the night because its fallen out which is really annoying so tonight I might try what Katie said and take it out when he falls asleep.
    xx
  • Hi hun, i was very anti-dummy before i had evie, and gave in after just 2days and gave her a dummy. She's never been hugely attatched to it, can sort of take it or leave it. If she's tired or upset she has it, though i don't like giving it to her in public much.

    She is 13month and has learned to give mummy the dummy when i ask for it and she doesnt get upset, is very good and hads it to me! so she is weaning herself off it which im relieved about!

    I dont think theres anything wrong with them having it for sleep to be honest, i'd rather we all had a good nights sleep than a battle over a dummy every night X
  • hey hun, millie has it for naps and sometimes will at night although she will never wake when it falls out which is almpst straight away lol so i dont worry about it, she only has 2-3 naps a day and will not last no longer than an hour so she doesnt have her dummy very much so i dont think it would affect her teeth and that kinda thing, i will take it off her completely before she is 1. urs doesnt seem to have it very often so i think it will be fine i def prefer dummy to thumb as u cant take the thumb off them ever! xx
  • im probably going to start some big debate here cos it seems im the only one who lets cameron have his dummy whenever he wants it. he has it near him when he plays so he just pops it in whenever he wants it. if he drops it i dont give it him back but if he whines for it i will. he was a major thumb sucker in his early days so i would rather him have a dummy as this is controllable.

    babies suck for comfort so having it at sleeptime is good for them as it helps them to feel re-assured and settled. plus theres a conection between sucking a dummy at sleep time and the prevention of cot death so having it to sleep is actually a good thing. i will wean cameron off it whenever i feel its appropriate to do so for him. prob 1year for the day and 18 months for night but we will just wait and see.
    x
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