Pacifier - Should It Stay or Should It Go?

Hi S.,
My son is going to be 3 in June and we just gave up the binky 2 weeks ago. I had a very hard time getting him to let go but we kept losing them and we were down to the last one and it broke. Everytime he would put it in his mouth he would get upset so I said okay...we need to throw it away. I told him to put it in the garbge and he did it on his own. We said bye-bye bink. He has asked for it a few times since and I say "remember, you threw it away cause it was broke" I tell him he is a big boy now and he does not need a bink and then I distract him with a special treat. My 11 year old took his bink until he was 3 and I was very concerned about his teeth but he has perfect teeth now so I didnt worry this time. I think you have plenty of time, with him only being 1 and using it only for naps is great. If you can get him to throw it away on his own....he will remember! I hope my story helps. Good Luck!

My son is 2 and unlike your son he has been very dependant on the binky honestly he is still on it but that is because he is still very dependant on it. If your son only uses it as a soothing thing at bedtime and naptime i would say go ahead and let him have it at those times but to take it away sooner than later because he will get so attached like my son is that i don't think he will ever get rid of it good luck

Hi S.,
I wanted to see the other Mom's responses too! I am wondering about the same thing with my 15 month old son. I've heard many different opinions but I don't see a huge problem with having the pacifier at nap and bed times for comfort.
J. S

I have 3 kids 14,4,and 9months.My 14yr old lost her last bink one day when she was about 1 and she didn't seem to care so I didn't buy her another and she was fine. My 4 year old was differnt i stopped nursing him at 13months (he wouldnt take a bottle)and as much as he depended on his bink I didn't want to take everything from him at once but when he turned two I took it from him and to my suprise as much as he depended on that bink it went really well.Now my 9 month old as soon as he cut his first tooth he wanted nothing more to do with it.I think if your son uses as comfort it won't hurt to let him have it a while longer .MY advise would be set a age that you feel comfertable with and say if by this age he doesn't give it up THEN I will take it.

I took my daughters "night night" away from her when she was 2yr 4mo. She was old enough to understand that it was "missing" and we will find it tomorrow. She never asked for it after that night. She had a hard time falling asleep the first few nights but never fussed or cried about it. From day one like you, it was used at nap and night time. I have also seen the ABC Nanny method of losing the binky. You tell your son you need to send it to fairy land. You buy balloons attached the binky and let your son let the binky go. Also have heard, snip the end little by little everyday. And if you know someone having a baby and needs a binky your son may be willing to give his binky to the new baby who needs it more. If you think sucking on a binky may lead to braces, think again. My sister sucked on her fingers until 5 and she never needed braces. I belive that is a myth. good luck

My husband is a dentist, and no matter what a paci is much better than the thumb. If you take it away now he will suck his thumb.. and you cant take away a thumb. Having it at nap times and sleepy times is fine in my (and my husband's) opinion. Slowly take it away during the day, and jsut let him have it when he sleeps. Chances are he wakes up without it in his mouth more than he does with it in. Also at this time give him a toy every night that can help be a comfort object too. When he is older you can "bargain" with him and bribe him for it. It is harmless, my daughter is the exact same way.

I let my son keep his til he was 2 years old. I felt the same way... take everything away? You shouldn't take it away until you feel that he's ready. With my son we talked about it. I told him that there were babies that needed his passies, that he was a big boy now, and that we would bring them to the doctor so that she could give them to the babies that need them. We found them all put them in a gift bag and I let him do the rest. He totally gave them all up... he asked about them a couple times but that was it. I also went into it thinking that if he didn't want to I was not going to force him to... he did it all on his own.

Ihave two sons, and both were pacifier users. When my oldest turned two i decided to take it away. The best way i found was to cut the end off, so they have nothing to suck on. My son got so frustrated that he gave up with in about two days. As far as when, i would give it a little while, your son is still young, and as you said, having alot taken from him right now. Don't worry, when it's time you will know.

I wouldn't say that it would hurt as long as he's not constant with it. Wait for a while. Not too long though, it could make his teeth come in crooked. One is still young though, by two I would say he definitely should not have it. Give it a couple months, maybe he won't even want it anymore.

Hi S.,

We weaned our son off of a pacifier over time. We gave it to him less and less frequently each day and eventually, about 10 days later, he was fine without it. He was just over 1 yr old at the time. I think thou ultimately you should do what you feel comfortable with. Good luck and I hope it works out for you.

Taking everything away at once could be a little to stressful for him. Try waiting a couple of months then maybe try what my aunt did. Her older son never wanted to go to sleep without his binky so she slowly introduced a blanket that he loved. One day after a couple of weeks she told him she couldn't find his binky it disappeared but his blankie was right here. He took that wnet to sleep and never needed the Binky again. Or you could try what I did for the Binky and Bottle. I took them away on easter told my son the easter bunny had a boo boo and needed a bottle and binky to feel better. So he took his but left him lots of toys and a new big boy cup. he was only just over one at the time so this made perfect sense to him. Got rid of them both at once with no fuss. My parents did it to me thats where I got the idea.
Old methods still work. lol. Good luck