Best strategies for weaning from pacifier?
In the question about pros and cons of pacifiers, a few people mentioned their kids had more or less weaned themselves. Our girl is nearing two, and does not seem to be weaning herself off pacifiers any time soon. We have restrcited them to crib and sleep time only, but at night they sometimes get lost, which is a nuisance.
So we're thinking of weaning her off them soon. Any suggestions on what has worked for you? She doesn't have a blankie or a regular soft toy she's dependent on. She doesn't suck her thumb. She just really likes having a pacifier or two when she falls alseep. Suggestions?
3 Answers
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We're in the same boat. It seems like there's always two options:
1) Gently transition - maybe on days when all else is going well, nothing critical later in the day, don't offer pacifier for naps; or naps in the car, etc. Later, eliminate for all naps. Later, eliminate at night.
2) Cold turkey - hide them all. Or throw them all away. Or show her that you're throwing them all away, or putting them in a drawer, or saying bye bye to them, or giving them to a baby she knows.
I think we'll do #1. Remove the pacifier from naptime on the road / on the go. Then naptime at home. Then bedtime at home. But I don't think we're in a big hurry. Ironically enough, since we weaned our first at around 12 months, and our second is now 22 months :)
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With our first, we started limiting to just sleep - crib or anywhere. Then only sleep in the crib, so not for naps in the car or stroller. Then one day he saw some backups in a drawer and added his to the drawer and stopped using them entirely. I guess this is like the drawer method only it was self-initiated. He did start getting more attached to his blanket after this. So maybe introducing another object would make things easier.
Here are stories I've heard from others on how their kids were weaned:
- dipped in vinegar
- put a hole through it with needle which apparently makes it less satisfying to suck on
- put them under the tree for Santa (perfect timing for that now!)
- gave them to another baby
- forgot to pack them on a trip to grandma. I guess this makes it easier to stick to your guns. Also, I heard that it's easier to transition in a different location or when you've returned from a long trip because set routines are less set. (agreed to buy a new doll next day instead of new pacifiers.)
Good luck.
(In case anyone is interseted: Our second prefers to sleep with a pacifier in mouth and hands. She's just turned 1 and we are not even considering weaning her yet.)
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We're trying the method described by Bye Bye Binky and it appears to be working so far! You have to click through to finally get to the PDF, but it's free, just ignore all the ads.
The gist of it is to remove the appeal of the binky and the first step is to poke holes into the end of it so it flattens during sucking. Next step is to snip the tip off, etc. You get the idea.
So far so good. She doesn't suck on them half as much as she used to!
