How can I stop my 3 year old daughter from sucking her thumb?

Answer 1

Try applying a small proportion of any health tonic (recommended and safe for tiny tots) on her thumb which tastes a bit sour. Automatically she will stop sucking her thumb due to the "unpleasant" taste.

Answer 2

If it is any help, I did not stop sucking my thumb until I was 16! My parents tried everything - I just used to suck off the gunk they painted on my thumbs! However, I just stopped when I wanted to! Oh, and my teeth are straight (and I have never worn braces!) - and my thumbs look the same as each other.

My daughter sucks her thumb (she is 7) and I have realised that she does it when she is tired so tell her it is time for her to go for a lie down/go to bed early when I catch her doing it.

Do not worry about it - she will grow out of it herself when she is ready. The way I look at it, there are lots worse things your daughter can do than suck her thumb! She needs to have control over some things in her life and this one does not hurt anyone else! A friend of mine has a daughter who insists on putting paper/sticks/leaves/mud (!) in her mouth - I know which of the habits I am glad my daughter does! All you need to do is teach your daughter to make sure she washes her hands after she has been to the toilet, and so on. And that is a habit that will last longer than her thumb sucking!

Oh, and her thumb is like a comforter to her, in the same way that some children use teddies or blankets - but she cannot lose her thumb, or leave it anywhere

Relax - she will give up when she is ready!

Answer 3

Wow some of these suggestions seem mid evil and others seem that you must nothing but free time to devote to this little problem. The best way is to always correct it when you see it wether that is 5 times a day over 500. Never let it be ok. Even if it is correcttion every few seconds. Using sauces or powders or nose plugs could work and often do but if you dont have success in the first couple days with it then you have to try something else and soon you and the child grow more frustrated. If you want it done with the greatest of ease simply ALWAYS correct the child and in 3 to 4 months you and child will have success and there wont be any stress about it.

Answer 4

Start pointing it out to her when she does it. I can tell you from experience that 70% of the time, she doesn't realize she does it. Are there stressful things in her life, like parents fighting or siblings that get rough? A thumb is usually used as a comforting mechanism, but later is done just because. I started out by telling my daughter to take t from her mouth when I saw it in. She is much better about it now. I never put paint on nasty stuff on her thumb because I sucked as a kid, and just chewed it off. I was so bad, my Mom would tape socks on my hands at night. It eventually became a power struggle instead of trying to break me of a habit. I stopped on my own (in my teen years), and I have to hope my daughter will too. But I know the bigger deal I make of it, the longer she might continue, because she is stubborn like I am. So point it out to her and try to give her a normal happy childhood without yelling in the home. The less she needs the thumb for comfort, the sooner she'll stop. (Not saying there is yelling, just using my own past as a basis for my answer).

Answer 5

We accidently ended my son's thumb sucking career. He had actually sucked his thumb to the point that it had cracked and had a sore so we obviously had to bandage it for a few days. After having the bandage and not being able to suck his thumb he never went back to it.

You could try bandaging it. Don't know how it'll work on a three year old. He was just shy of 2.

Answer 6

For some reason people view thumb-sucking as a sign of weakness, but as she grows you will undoubtedly see that she is more self dependant than other people and somewhat less likely to follow her peers without considering the consequences.

Look also around your work environment and you will undoubtedly notice many people chewing their nails, sucking on a pen, or other such vices that make them feel more self secure.

Perhaps you could influence inappropriate times to be avoided such as when your boss comes over for dinner etc. but if you take this protection away entirely you will be removing her safety blanket and she will both look for other ways to satisfy this nurturing experience and may protest in many other areas of her life that she would otherwise cope with quite well.

As long as she is reasonably intelligent for her age, has no underlying medical conditions, and nothing else really changes, she will be far better off if she choose on her own from your gentle guidance.

Answer 7

Don't, it's better for her to stop sucking on her thumb in her own time. Most kids do suck their thumbs for years, usually until they are around 5, but if it worrying you or you are seeing a pattern in the times that she does then you may want to consult a doctor or maybe even a psychiatrist(which I don't think is the best solution.)But, the best way to stop her is to not stop her, let her do it on her own or until she well into grade school (grades 2 or 3), whichever comes first.

Answer 8

Well the reasons for sucking on your thumbs are always different, but in most cases it stops before they get to the age of 3 where-as nail-biting can be a life-long habit that I myself is addicted to.

Best thing is to wait for your child to grow out of it but whach out for thumb angle sometimes while sucking for long periods of time over the years can cause your childs thumb to get into a different shape or position so be careful and very observant. ;)

Answer 9

They sell something in the drugstore to help with this. I can't remember the name but you brush this liquid on her thumb and when she puts the thumb in her mouth, the bad taste will make her stop! I did it with my son when he was 2 or 3 and he stopped in a matter of days. I tried it once just to see what it was like...and it tasted like dirt (although I never tasted dirt, it's what I imagine it would taste like). This whole method would be aversion therapy as they will avoid the action which had an unpleasant result.

Answer 10

when does she suck it? because it is a comfort thing and if she is doing it when scared it is different to her just sucking it when bored....

try and explain to her that she is a big girl and big girls dont suck their thumbs, mind you i am a hypocrite as i still suck my thumb now and i am 22! but i do it when i am tired and never infront of my daughter!!

my daughter is 2 and thankfully i have never seen her sucking her thumb, she went through a phase of sucking her fingers few weeks back but each time i told her she wasnt a baby and babies suck their fingers, shes a big girl now.

but if its only occassionally leave her be unless you really dont want her to do it, on which i say why didnt you stop her before?

Answer 11

you can stop your 3years daughter from thumb sucking by the following method;using a thumb guard/pacifier.
At worse,rub a pepper liquid on the particular hand.
Children should try to stop this habit to avoid teasing