Using a pacifier? (Clicky Poll)

meagan.pilkington · February 2012

I'm just curious how many of you mama's are planning NOT to use pacifiers and if you've gotten crap about it from anyone. My best friend didn't use them with her daughter and had no problems at all so I am seriously considering it!

[Poll]

genkidesu · February 2012

i'm going to give it a shot without them. we'll see what happens though. i do NOT plan on telling anyone IRL this though because i know all i'll hear is, "good luck with THAT" and it will be super annoying.

Alauren4 · February 2012

My son never used one, I don't know if it is different for exclusively breastfed babies, but my son never took anything artificial...

meagan.pilkington · February 2012

chipmunk112511:

I think myself and others might be confused about your poll....I clicked definately not because I plan to use them (if he takes to it) I am going to BF but after a certain time they say they are ok to use.

I think you should edit the poll though to say do you plan to use them, not do you plan NOT to use them as it is a double negative....just a though

Lol. Thanks! The title of my POST uses the double negative but the title of the POLL itself says "Will you use a pacifier with your LO?" But I can change the post title to be less confusing, that's a good point!

KM121309 · February 2012

I saw definitely, but that is assuming Bug will like it....Some babies just aren't pacifier babies.

peeper72 · February 2012

Best laid plans and all....we tried not to with DD but ended up using it. She spit it out before she hit 3 months and that was the end of that.

WeBelieveInMagic · February 2012

I used them with DS. He was a big pacifier baby. At eighteen months old we took them away and never looked back. It was a long two weeks, but in the long run it wasn't a big deal. I chose to use them because there is evidence that they may prevent SIDS. Also, my DS like them. Only the Avent brand though. If you gave him anything else he would spit it out.

WiFeY 4 LiFeY · February 2012

I voted NO, but I know every LO is different and if DS just has to have it to make him feel better I may. I bought a pack of two just to have. I worked in an Ortho office for years so I am not a fan of them.

MrsOjoButtons · February 2012

I'm not counting my chickens before they hatch. It seems like the more set in stone people are about things like this, the more they beat themselves up about it when things don't go as they planned. I have two kids on the way. I'll do whatever is mutually beneficial between me and each kid.

iheartnjdevils · February 2012

my mom was sort of against it but if baby wants it, i will try it. pacifier habits are easier to break than thumb sucking and i've read studies that they reduce the risk of SIDS by 61%.

bethCT · February 2012

LOL I was not sure how to vote. I desperately wanted DD to take one, she was very colicky and I thought it might help calm her, but she wanted nothing to do with them. She found her own pacifier, me! She would comfort nurse around the clock if I let her...

Stick Around · February 2012

We tried about 6 different kinds with DD and she never took a-one of 'em. We wished she did because she was so fussy, but alas, no such luck. She HAS taken to occasionally chewing on her thumb, but even that she doesn't do very much. She's 8 months old. So you can SAY you'll use one, but LO may not be on board, or you can SAY you won't use one, but may have to to stay sane.

caralck · February 2012

I'll offer it so we'll see if she'll take it. I was a big thumb sucker myself and did have a hard time stopping (I was well into elementary school but did it mostly only at night or when I was tired). So part of my motivation is to try to supplant any finger sucking (my bro sucked his finger and it also was awhile before stopping that). Can't take away fingers...

meagan.pilkington · February 2012

iheartnjdevils:
my mom was sort of against it but if baby wants it, i will try it. pacifier habits are easier to break than thumb sucking and i've read studies that they reduce the risk of SIDS by 61%.

These are the two main reasons I WOULD consider using one. I thought maybe I'll try without and see how it goes, and then if baby starts sucking his/her thumb, maybe do pacifier instead because it's easier to stop them doing than the thumb? But some kids never have problems even though they suck their thumbs so who know...!

I especially love the comments from second+ time moms! Just goes to show you how different each child can be and that it's important to keep an open mind in case baby disagrees with your decision!

Danaz1 · February 2012

DD never liked hers and never really needed it. I will use it if this lo needs it. I hope he/she doesn't want it one less thing to deal with later

jersangl · February 2012

did it with the first baby defiantly not the second. it was a pain. when it fell out in the middle of the night she would cry until i went in and put another one in her mouth. also, she got bad ear infections and always had colds from it. she was at daycare and it falls out or others kids took it.

flyer23 · February 2012

I answered "definitely," but I think there are a lot of shades of "definitely " Smile

For starters, as others have said, it depends on the kid. DD was never a huge fan of pacis and stopped taking one completely at 3 months old. DS liked them and took them until about 18ish months.

Also, even with DS, I was really careful about using them as a substitute for parental interaction. For example, if he was crying and I knew it was because he was hungry, I fed him, rather than popping a paci in his mouth. If he was crying because he wanted to be held, I held him, even though he might have calmed down with a paci, too. Etc. I really have no problem with using pacis in that way and I think they're a very useful parenting tool, especially in the early months when babies have an innate NEED to suck on something. Breasts aren't always available, fingers (baby's or parent's) aren't always clean, and so pacis have their place.

I do have to admit that I give the side-eye when I see a much older child (say, age 2 or 3) with a paci in their mouth while just out and about. I try not to judge those kids/parents because I don't know their whole story. But with my own kid... I was very conscious about limiting DS's paci usage to just sleep times by the second half of his first year, and then about stopping the paci completely before he got old enough to know he could protest Wink

daisy770 · February 2012

Alauren4:
My son never used one, I don't know if it is different for exclusively breastfed babies, but my son never took anything artificial...

This actually...both my sons never used one.

meganroselee · February 2012

I did this with ny first and at 6mth haven't had any issues, he has never used one. My sister told me the concept was good but hell for breaking my niece of the habit or trying to track down one when you needed it. Debbie downers will say good luck for everything from cd to babywearing to using a co sleeper. I told them and myself I would be flexible with my plans but things have worked out as I hoped. GL!

KissyFishyLips · February 2012

I don't see anything wrong with using a binky with a young baby. DD1 had one at a few days old and loves it for sleeping. She doesn't use it any other time (with the exception of a long car trip, but then again, she tends to sleep for those). My plan is to fully wean her by 20 months (starting at 18 months and giving myself some leeway). I had her off the bottle at 9 months, so I feel pretty confident in my convictions :-)

With this baby, I plan to offer her a binky during the newborn phase if she's fussy like DD1 was (DD1 was colicky and required all 5 "S"es from the Happiest Baby on the Block in order to calm down). If DD2 isn't fussy, then I just won't introduce the binky.

LaurenCase89 · February 2012

We don't want to use them. I think that the temptation to over use them is a real problem. I hate seeing older children with them and I'd rather avoid them if we can. That's just how we feel about it though.

1111skye · February 2012

I didn't vote, but w/ DS I didn't use it the first few weeks because of nipple confusion but we did give it to him after that. When we sleep trained at 3 1/2 months we ditched all paci's because they are "sleep crutches" and it's been SO nice not to have to get rid of those from a 2+ year old. BUT, DS did pick up thumb sucking so I guess that's just trading one for the other.

AlfiesMOM · February 2012

I really want to try. I was a thumb sucker as a child and it got so bad I was still doing in the first grade. 100s of dollars later and after my parents tired everything they finally had to have this thing put in my mouth that made it really hard and uncomfortable for me to suck my thumb. I really don't want that for my child and it seems like pacifiers are easy and cheaper to get the child to stop using!

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