Is there a way to stop a 13-year-old from sucking her thumb?

Question

But she likes hot sauce!!!!

Answer 1

When and why is she sucking her thumb?

It may be a difficult habit to break simply because of her age and that teenagedom is a struggle enough.  Not a judgemental call on her or you as her parent.  My habit was a Snoopy dog I had on my bed, which I still own by the way...

If she is sucking her thumb to go to sleep, maybe a teddy bear will work.  Is it when she's stressed?  Get her to keep a diary and teach her coping methods.

DO NOT make her feel like a freak.  This will only make it worse or push it underground.  You need to be on her side.  Talk to her about it.  Just say you're concerned about how she is travelling along in life and want to make sure she's okay...

Answer 2

Ask yourself why you want to stop her. Is it so you feel better that your child isn't being "babyish" Now ask yourself who has decided that thumb sucking is babyish and why. Cause babies do it? Well babies laugh too so is that babyish also?

I am an adult thumb sucker. I have sucked my thumb for many many years, I am a perfectly well adjusted member of society and no my teeth are not malformed. Perhaps I am slightly more laid back than some people, more relaxed as I have a habit that gives me relaxation without  having to fork out a load of cash.

Of course if your really want to force your child to do something in order to meet societies views on how your child should act then why not try switching her habit to one more socially acceptable. Try smoking, alcohol or drug abuse. Then at least she'll be cool.

Or even more absurd... why not try talking to her about it in an adult way, asking her why she persists and how you feel about it. :)

EDIT: In response to the post showing malformed teeth. As I have already mentioned I am a life long thumb sucker. Do I look malformed to you?

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v157/S...

Answer 3

I am engaged to marry an adult thumbsucker.  I knew, before I proposed, that she sucked her thumb and I find it endearing and adorable.

I have immense trouble understanding peoples' objections to this habit which is comforting, harmless, innocent and free.  It has done no damage to my fiancée's teeth (which she tells me is a common misconception) and it helps her to relax, which is probably one of the factors in her laid-back attitude in all things.

Many of my friends have dismayed me in their smoking habits; inserting into their mouths a cylinder of paper filled with tobacco which, when burnt and inhaled, may cause serious or terminal illness.  My fiancée (and your daughter) sucks instead her thumb; a cylinder of skin with flesh and bone inside which is not burnt and causes no illness.  There is no risk of withdrawal symptoms and associated stress.

In any case, at 13 your daughter has probably decided that sucking her thumb is too comforting to give up and she has probably found a comfortable point (for her) between secrecy and publicity.  As she is now a teenager, any attempts you make to stop this will probably lead only to resentment.

You may instead hope that when she is our age (mid twenties) she will have someone who adores her not in spite, but in part because of the fact that she sucks her thumb and refused to be swayed by society's closed-mindedness.

Adult thumb suckers can be remarkably free spirited.  More power to them.

Answer 4

Take her to a Ball game at a huge stadium and pay the camera crew to put her on the big screen while she is doing it so everyone there and in America can see her on TV. She will see how stupid it looks and stop.

Answer 5

that nasty nail polish stuff tell her to wear it

Answer 6

Say...." Kids are gonna tease yo about this in High School and Junior High!! THey'll be rumors about you!!!!" If she is in Junior High..dont say that. What I said for a 6 year odl was to dip fingers in lemon juice and like chile pouder.

Answer 7

Put nail varnish remover on her thumb cos it tastes nasty :)

Answer 8

Dip salt on the thumb and i mean the really strong kind or bakeing soda. It  worked with me when i was 4.

Answer 9

Remove the offending thumb with a pair of bolt croppers.

Answer 10

put  band-aids on her thumb

Answer 11

nope let her do it, its been a habit for this long she will probably do it till the day she dies, my boyfriend is 28 about to b 29 and he was BORN sucking his thumb and i cant get him to stop doing it. its usually when hes thinkin or laying down or watching a movie he dont do it in public (and my son is already sucking his thumb in the womb gr8)

Answer 12

IF IT'S AT NIGHT TIME:

Wrap a massive bandage around the thumb so it is too big to fit in the mouth.

sticky-tape the thumb and index finger together.

DAY TIME:

I'm not sure but I think you put Vaseline on the thumb so it tastes really bad.

Put something that tastes like ear wax on the thumb.

wear gloves

P.S: sorry if it sounds stupid, I don't know anyone that sucks their thumb so I don't really have any good suggestions!

Answer 13

Put some of that stuff on her fingers that stops people from biting their nails. The taste is soooooooo bad, she wont want to put her thumb in her mouth at all! It can be purchased at any drug store (Walgreens, CVS, etc) or Walmart!

Good luck :)

Answer 14

show her pics of thum suckers when they ar older here are som (warning kinda gross) http://your-doctor.com/patient_info/dent...

http://your-doctor.com/patient_info/dent...

Answer 15

everytime you see her sucking her thumb , put a drop of hot sauce on her thumb, to make her stop.

Answer 16

bring her to the mall with a group of her firends and say something about it and shell get embarassed and mgiht end up stopping.

goodluck.

=]

Answer 17

I think it is important not to make an issue out of this or it could become a real issue - is she sucking her thumb in public? If not you need to ask is this a battle worth fighting because she obviously understands social norms, this in turn is a sign that she is developing normally.

If she is doing it in public then talk to her about it, it may just be that she is struggling to come to terms with growing up and as a result sucks her thumb in an attempt to stay a child for just that little bit longer. I wouldn't be confrontational and demand that she stops, once you find out why she does it you will have a better understanding of it.

Look at it this way - In the next few months and years she is going to be developing in all areas of her life - all it will take is one friend to say "why you doing that?" and peer group pressure will probably do all the hard work for you.

Answer 18

Tabasco sauce works well especially the new one that has habanero (spelling?) in it.

Answer 19

She's wwaaayyyy too old to be sucking her thumb. Not only is it awkward beyond explaination, but it's also very bad for her teeth!

First, you need to explain to her that sucking your thumb is very immature and most 13 year-olds would find that weird. Explain to her that her teeth could be all crooked for the rest of her life.

Then, you could try putting vinegar on the offending thumb, so that she will not want to put it in her mouth.

As a mother of five, I teach my children to stop around the age of 4 or 5, and I've always found the vinegar solution to work. But, with her being 13, she may have the sense to wash it off. So, you may have to thing of something else. It looks like you've got some other great answers=]

Hope I helped=]

~Lyddie~

Answer 20

Is it really necessary to do battle with a 13 year old over this?  Why?  If it isn't hurting you I can't imagine what your problme would be.  If she is using it as a comfort then leave her be.

Answer 21

Put some of that stuff they put on peoples fingers on her thumb and tell her that she is to old for that. Also sak her nicely to stop and hey,maybe she will! Hope this helped!

-Tara