Giving up the Pacifier - long

DS has taken a pacifier since the minute he was born.

He is so attached to his 'dado' as he calls it - that DH & I were saying that we need to start to ween him off of it.

We are both scared to go cold turkey - none of us will be happy DS is very strong willed when it comes to his dado. When he says he wants it there is nothing that will sway him from it.

He will be starting nursery in September and I don't want him walking around with one.

He definately looks for it when he is tired and when he wants to relax.

So have any of you done with a weening process - where your DC just takes it at night? Both DH & I are fine with that scenario, we know he isn't going to be 20 years old using a pacifier to go to sleep.He'll give it up at some point on his own.

I just want to reduce the amount he uses it during the day.

Giving up the Pacifier - long

We were in the same boat as you about a year and a half ago. My son was completely addicted to his binky. We finally just made a rule that it was to be put up on our hutch when he woke up and he could have it for his nap and then again at bedtime. We did this for about 6 months and then last year before easter we told him that the easter bunny would take his binky and leave a basket of toys. He left the binky on the coffee table that night before bed and in the morning the basket was in its place. It went surprisingly great. He did ask about his binky the first few nights at bedtime, but we just reassured him that he was a big boy and that we were proud of him for giving it away. Good luck!

Re: Giving up the Pacifier - long

We just finished weening DD off the binky. She started school in september 2 days a week. She was 2 in Sept. I would hide a binky in side pocket of her backpack and asked the teachers to not give it to her unless she she really whined and needed it for her nap. For the week before school statred I explained to her that we dont use binkys at school. She would ask me for it in the car on the way there I would remind her we dont use them at school and the teachers said she was fine going down for the nap. I think it helped that it was part of the transition to school bc it was all new for her and she didnt see other kids with the binky there either so it was a reminder. At home she did still get it for her nap and for nighttime. She learned to really bite holes in them and got to a point last month where I would need to open a new pack every 2 days bc the holes would come immediately. After that I just said binkys are all broken and we have no more. she would still ask, but I would sidetrack and entertain her with something else that she loved and it would take her mind off it. She has been binky free for a month.
FYI i dont think there is anything wrong with a binky at whatever age, but the doctor reccommened we take it away at her checkup so I figured why not try. It was a long process when you think about it, but she is great without it now.
Sorry so long.

Re: Giving up the Pacifier - long

I weaned it very slowly with my older DS and do similar now with DD. If she wants her paci, it is only in the crib. As soon as she wakes up and wants to get out of her crib, I'd say pacis in the crib. If she isn't ready to give it up - she lays back down. If she wants to get out, she throws iit down and gets up....she is trained now. I started doing this between 12-18 mos and she is almost 2 now. She does sneak in her room and grab it out here and there. I use to just leave it because with 3 kids it isn't worth my battle. But now when she does, I say pacis only in the crib and put her in the crib (doing this more consistently lately). I do make exceptions when she is sick or teething. With my older son, he stopped napping between 2.5-and 3 so by then he only used it for sleeping at night. After he got his 2 yr molars (which was around his 3rd bday), we made the pacis go away . First we'd "lose" one here or there and then he was down to 2 and the easter bunny turned them into choochoo trains. It was torture for us because his personality still to this day is save everything. He screamed for about a week but eventually it got easier. He even began to really hate the choochoo trains that the bunny turned them into. He was so mad at the whoe situation.

Message edited 2/14/2013 2:53:34 PM.