My son will be 3 in February, how do we rid him of the paci at nap/bedtime?

Question

He only uses it at naptime and bedtime and has since he was one. I'm concerned about getting rid of it because we have another on the way....due in March, right after my son's 3rd birthday. He will wake up in the middle of the night if the paci falls out of his crib or he cant find it in which my husband or I will have to get up and give it to him for him to go back to sleep. My son and baby will be sharing a room once the newborn starts sleeping thru the night (in bassinet in our room til then). So I would like for my son to be able to sleep thru the night w/o a paci by then. Help please?!

Answer 1

well u might want to wait becuase having the new baby may make him jealous and if the baby has a pacificer he might want one too...... i never had a pacificer till is was two and the doc told my mom i could have one becuae i was jealous of the baby and i had it until i was 4............ but if u would really like to get rid o the pacoficer everynight before bed u should have him put his pacificer outside and and tell him a bird will come take it and have a treat left for him my parents called it the paccy bird but i also had 5 paccys......... but if u do that ull want to keep one he dosnet know about incase he is dire need of one.....

Answer 2

You have a 3 year old that is still in a crib, has a pacifier. I did all these things for my 3 year old probably 2 years ago. I don't even remember the last time my son had a pacifier. He was climbing out of his crib at 1 year old. I can't believe your 3 year old doesn't climb out. Get him in a toddler bed and throw the pacifier in the trash. He'll live.

Answer 3

Throw them out and tell him that they were all lost and there are no more.  3 is way past time to get rid of these things. Find him a special stuffed toy he can sleep with instead.

Answer 4

Put somthing thats not so tasty on the paci.It worked for my son at 1 but it wasn't on purpose.His paci feel in his beans that he hates and he threw it down and didn't want it again. It doesn't have to be a food,just somthing yucky.

Answer 5

you have to excite him about being the big boy and the older brother replace it. Try giving him a bear or something soft that promotes him as abig boy or older bro. BUT what ever you do he might relapse when the baby comes from the attention the baby will get not him. There are big brother books just like a baby book to help lil kids deal with the change GL

Answer 6

My daughter was attached to her pacifier until she was almost 4! I tried pretty much all of these other suggestions people have given you, none worked for me. Finally I invented the binkie fairy, we put all of her pacifiers in a baggie and put them under her pillow. The binkie fairy brought her a new doll to sleep with and wa la she was fine without the pacifiers. I have told several friends about this and it worked for them too! Good Luck!

Answer 7

Throw it away and forget about it. he'll cry, but it should only last for about a week.

Answer 8

I took mine away from my daughter right after her first birthday.  She only cried for it for a night or two and then she was fine.  Also, I saw on TV where they told the little boy that if he put the paci in an envelope and gave it to the paci fairy, she would find a good home for it.  The next morning, the paci fairy left confetti, glitter, candy and such in the mail for him.  (I think maybe even a little toy?)  The point is, a little bit of imagination can go a long way!

Answer 9

Just plain old cold  turkey!

Answer 10

some people have told me to go to rite aid and but some stuff called no bite. it is a liquid for kids biting thier nails. you can put it on his paci and it is completely safe.it taste really bad so that they wont try to put it in there mouth and i have also heard that you can cut the niple part off of the paci and give it to him and there will be nothing there for him to suck but he still has his paci to play with. good luck

Answer 11

Unfortunately, there is no magic cure.  Just take it away.  I put holes in my daughters paci and told her they were broken and when the last one broke, she wasn't getting anymore.  The first week was horrible.  The second week was manageable, the third week was good and by the fourth week, we could actually mention what a big girl she was for not using the paci anymore.

Do it now before the baby comes and your son won't even remember that he used one when he sees it in the babies mouth...as that will be 8 months from now!!!

Good Luck and remember, do not give in, as much as it breaks your heart.  My husband wouldn't let me give in and hid the extra pack I still had so that i couldn't give in!

Answer 12

My pediatrician suggested to "lose" all but one, and then find a time that he is not looking to clip off the nipple, entirely. You don't want to leave anything he might pull off and choke on. Then he finds it and it is broken. You can be very sympathetic, but there is no real reason for him to cry, though he probably will a little, and there is no way you can give it back.  (Yes, I had pulled it out of the trash once before)

When I did this with my daughter at about 15 months, I had clipped it and left it under her crib, where they usually fell, since she was only allowed to use it at bedtime. She came, and we found it, and she tried to put it in her mouth. I let her try a couple of times before I asked her what was wrong. She brought it to me and I said, "Oh, no, it's broken." She knew what broken meant, and she was very sad. We "talked" about it for a good twenty minutes before I suggested that we put it in the trash, which she readily did. There was another 30 minutes after that where she would ask for it and I'd just say, in a very sympathetic voice, that it was broken, and she accepted it with very little fuss, only crying right before she fell asleep. The next day she asked for it a few times, but I just reminded her, and that was the last of it.

My other child was about 18 months, and we had her put it in a goodbye box, which was then locked and put in the closet.  She wasn't really attached to it, and didn't really seem to miss it - just needed a few reminders that it was gone.

I have also heard that for older children a pacifier good bye party works pretty well, where you make a big deal about what a big boy he is and a real big ceremony on dumping all the pacifiers in the trash.

Whatever you do, you will have a few nights where you have to remind him that it is gone, and I would suggest that you make it so that there is no going back, both for his understanding and so that you don't cave when you just want him to go to sleep so you can.  And do it as soon as possible, so he doesn't connect it with the baby coming.

Answer 13

Tell him only babies use paci's or tell him that the new baby needs it.  Cut a hole in it so it doesn't work anymore.  If he gives it up voluntarily it'll be easier on both of you.  He needs to learn to sleep without it so he won't be waking up in the middle of the night.  He's more than old enough to learn how to do that.