Need HELP WIT STOPPING THUMBSUCKING! :P?

Question

I hav a 5yr. old sis....n she luvs 2 suck her thumb...wat r som good techniques 2 make her stop? Iv tried tellin her her teeth r goin 2 b messd up n she doesnt care....good ideas?

Answer 1

Put your scarf on your thumb.

Answer 2

http://www.ehow.com/how_2086362_stop-thu...

Answer 3

when i was younger, i used to suck my thumb all the time.

dont worry about it, she will grow out of it...

Answer 4

why would her teeth get messed up?

give her chewing gum =]

Answer 5

put somethin on her thumb when she isnt lookin.

Answer 6

Her teeht will not get messed up from thumbsucking.  The jaw and allignment of teeth are determined by genetics not thumb sucking.  Why not try telling her the truth, that YOU are afraid that people will view YOU as a lazy mother because your child wants to do something that gives her comfort...Because it is all about YOU.

Answer 7

A LOLLIPOP

Answer 8

i know all about this i sucked my thumb till i was 4 and ended up wearing braces twice the way my mom got me to stop was every time i would put my thumb in my mouth she would tell me to take it out because in my case it was all habit kind of like when people bite there nails so once i broke the habit i no longer sucked my thumb

Answer 9

There's special nailpolish that you can buy that has a horrible taste everytime they try putting their thumb in their mouth. I'd know..my mom used it on me ;) You can also try duct tape on their thumb..idk why that works sometimes but it does.

Answer 10

when i was little i did aswell, my mom tried putting hot sauce on it, she also put mittens, then one day my aunt told me a story that scared me, it was like a monster who will come and get you if you suck your thumb. i did one night, they saw me and my older sister (tori) dressed up as a monster. i got over it imeditely.

Answer 11

I sucked my thumb when I was little to! I used to wear a glove a night to stop me, my parents would watch me and make sure i didn't suck it.

Answer 12

Tell your mom.

Answer 13

When she falls asleep put hot sauce or vinegar on her thumb. So it will taste bad. I dont think it will "naturally" stop when she gets older. I know a girl who goes to my school, she is 19 or 20 she said she still sucks her thumb. and she never grew out of it.

Answer 14

Mine had been sucking her thumb since she was born, then continued with her index and middle together we thought it was so funny... because it was both at the same time.  She would do it specially before taking a nap or before going to bed, I think it comforts them.  She will stop when she's ready, we would embarrassed her, put chili on it, put tape and all kinds of things but did not work.  She stopped once she started school because she was shy to do it in front of the all the other kids, soon it became a habit to not do it.  Just give it time!

Answer 15

soaking thumb in vinegar, or theres nail polish that's clear and it tastes disgusting. She wont ever want to put her fingers in her mouth again. (:

Answer 16

When she is sleeping soak her thumb in lemon juice.

Answer 17

put some pepper on her thumb with a band aid on it

>>>it'll make her stop quick : )..i know it did for my sister when she was little...

GOOD LUCK WITH THAT

Answer 18

I agree with Karla, people have put hot sauce on their babies thumb, and they stop immediately and my mom is a dental hygentist and I've seen pictures of kids who sucked their thumb too long, trust me, that is not pretty, maybe you could also google some pictures of what her mouth will look like if she doesn't stop as well.

Answer 19

put something on her thumb

that makes it stink so she won't do it.

=D

Answer 20

Two thing that came to mind.

1) Maybe she uses the thumb for some kind of a psychological problem which you can not fix.  Only a professional.

2) Maybe she needs to be stimulated.  Have her do an activity she can do to keep her busy.  Coloring, playing a video game, or she can learn a musical instrument.

Answer 21

2 things come to my mid

#1. Put something on it

#2. Scare her out of it. say something like "did you see the news this morning?" she says no continue she says yes say what channel whatever channel she say tell her no on other channel. Tell her about a monster that steals only 5 year old girls who suck their thumbs then say something about a little girl named (something)that has been missing for 12 years.

me and my sis did that to her daughter at first we thought it would be mean but she stopped then we gave her  ice cream and a big congradulations balloon bouquet

Answer 22

I never had that problem with either of mine, but what my girlfriend did. She would do is put a brightly colored band aid around her thumb. 1st the band aid didn't taste very good and also it would cause attention to her thumb. People would ask her "what's wrong with you thumb" and she would have to answer that nothing was wrong that he just has to have it on because she sucks her thumb. If the daughter didn't suck on her thumb for the whole day she would get a reward. It took about 2 weeks, but it finally worked for her.

Answer 23

Putting nailbiter on her thumbnail is a good idea, its a bad tasting nontoxic clear polish that should make her thumb less appetizing, it works better than say Tabasco or something like that because you can't just suck it off.  If she is especially stubborn, you may just t\have to wait for her to be ready to stop.

Answer 24

pepper sauce, that nail bitting stuff(ugh taste like ear waxes)  but put it on there.  My momma is 38 and still sucks her thumb to bed LOL.

Answer 25

It should naturally stop as she gets older.  Don't worry about it.

Answer 26

When we ween a child from the Binky they often go for the thumb to fill a void. If this is not corrected fast the thumb becomes a security blanket.

I bet that she is shy and she does this more in public places when she feels most insecure. She may also do this more when she is really tired.

Try this and it may take a few times. Talk to her about how to handle public situations. Remind her that adults have feelings too, and they might get sad, and think she didn't like them if she didn't talk to them. Go on about how to answer questions people might ask. Tell her that her answer can be "No Thank you" or "I don't want to tell you that"  Give her some questions she can ask people too. The more you talk to her the more questions she will start asking you. Tell her the truth to the best of your ability. NEVER LIE TO HER AGAIN!!! She will start wondering when your telling the truth and when your not.

Remember she is "hiding" behind the thumb. Ignore it for a while. Try instead to get her talking and having a good time. Soon the "security blanket thumb" won't be needed.

Answer 27

I sucked my thumb when i was younger as well. My mom told me that if i went 1 day without sucking it, she would give me a prize (some small silly thing, but i know i loved it at the time), then she increased it to 3 days, with a bigger prize. Then 5 days, then a week, then two weeks. If at the end of the two weeks, I hadnt sucked my thumb, she would give me two beanie babies (which kids dont really care about anymore, so i would replace that with a "webkinz" or a dvd or something). It helped me. I never sucked my thumb again after that. You just have to get them to quit for two weeks, then they wont go back.

Answer 28

sun flower seeds and rub your thumbs in your shoes, that'll keep ya away

Answer 29

Tell her that you have MET peeps with no teeth from suking there thum

That is what my mom did

And put like somet thing on her thum at night or some thing so it will taste bad and she wont do itr again

We had Apple  for my dogs they never chewed on chairs or any thing again

Answer 30

My friend is 16 and still does, and she says "It's mint". She's not a yobbo or anything, it's just a thing we say.

Anyway, her teeth are good, so it doesn't really mess your teeth up (unless someone knows this for certain, but I dunno). I suppose there's the stuff you use for your nails that makes them taste bitter, but I think that's a bit cruel and over-the-top.

Answer 31

lol tell her her finger will shrink and when she grows up she will only have 9 of then

=) or is that too harsh