how do you stop a child from thumbsucking?

Question

8 year old girl still sucking her thumb

Answer 1

Ever heard of Neem oil? The bitterest thing on earth. Apply it, or something equally distasteful, to the thumb.

Answer 2

As a former thumbsucker whose parents tried to get her to stop that (and nailbiting) without success, perhaps I can shed some light.
It's a compulsion, a need, an unquenchable thirst just like any other addiction. Nobody can make you stop wanting to do it. But others can help you stop wanting to do it, and others can keep you from doing it temporarily.
I had a college roommate whose parents solved her nailbiting./thumbsucking problem simply: they tied Life magazine around her little arms, thus preventing her from bending her elbows to reach her mouth. She still had full use of her hands, but she couldn't get them within biting distance.
Once her nails were grown out, she didn't want to bite.
Once she saw she could live without sucking her thumb, it was convenient to stay quit.
Because, believe me, nobody WANTS to keep doing something that all the adults frown upon. Nobody wants to hear how much better their hands would look if only, or how badly their teeth are going to stick out if, or how that's the only thing that spoils the look of, blahblahblah.
I still remember the shame of opening an elaborate manicure set as a birthday gift. It was given as "incentive," but it was a humiliating spotlight on my "disgusting" habit.
Your girl is sucking her thumb because it tastes good, feels good, is comforting, is a habit , is as close as the hand at the end of her wrist, there's nothing satisfactory with which to replace it, and she has no desire to stop.
Accept it. Tell her it's a private decision which you now understand, but tell her that it's like touching herself - something she should do privately because it's not appropriate behavior in front of others at her age. That's all.
She'll quit when she's ready and the more you try to force the issue the more she'll need the comfort of her thumb.
Trust me on this one.
If you don't do it correctly, the next thing she'll look for to self-soothe may be considerably less benign.
The shrinks who have never sucked or bitten HAVE NO CLUE about this.

Answer 3

Give her a reward for not sucking her thumb. Start with small amounts of time (like an hour) then give her a reward (small prize), then slowly move up to if she goes all day without sucking her thumb then give her a bigger reward. Then when she quits completely reward her by buying her a toy that she has wanted for awhile. Of course you will want to explain all of this to her first so she will be excited to quit. Also don't forget to teach her something else to do rather than sucking her thumb, like a replacement behavior like brushing her hair, snapping her fingers, or something else.

Answer 4

At that age, she could be damaging her bite (might need braces in the future). Bitter apple spray (hate to say this, but you buy it at the petstore). And a good "NO, stop DOING THAT" will work. Along with, since she's 8 and can reason, taking away privileges, toys, etc.
How about "for every day (or hour, depends on how bad she is) you don't suck your thumb, you get..(x amount of money, a trip to mcdonalds, etc). ???
Good luck with that! I think she's too old and will be teased if kids see her doing it in SCHOOL!

Answer 5

this is a difficult question to answer but most children will grow out of it. Sucking as an infant induces soothing hormones and sometimes it carries on into school age children as a comforting way to get to sleep (I went through it as well). At eight years old you could probably talk with her about it, but if she's not receiving any negative effects from it then let her make the decision. Eventually she will have the desire to change.

Answer 6

I don't know offhand, but I can say this. They make a variety of product to stop animals from gnawing on themselves, I'm sure there is some disgusting flavored stuff you could spray on her thumb. If you can make the act of thumb sucking an unpleasant experience then a person will avoid it.

Answer 7

go away them by myself. do not forget that this warm stuff receives into their eyes also. moms and dads only get too uptight about thumbsucking. they're going to often supply it up by using kindergarten because the different youthful toddlers will snigger at them. At that element, it is going to develop into their determination to end it. even as that takes position, it fairly works.

Answer 8

thumbsucking is a sign of regression when children are stressed. better to divert the child's attention by giving her activities rather than nagging or telling them to stop because it will result to negative impression of self when they are oftenly reprimanded.

Answer 9

Put something on her thumbs... like soap or hot sauce! That should work, then give her suckers so she has something else to suck on. THat should slowly but surely get her to stop.

Answer 10

Many kids have habits that can be downright annoying. The five most common ones that children develop and parents complain about are:

nail biting
thumb sucking
hair twirling
nose picking
breath holding

Thumb Sucking
The popularity of the thumb as the preferred digit to suck might suggest that it's more flavorful than, say, the index finger. But the preference for thumbs appears to be an accidental choice, resulting from the thumb coming into contact with the mouth during random movements made by an infant.

Some children also suck their fingers, hands, or their entire fists in addition to, or instead of, their thumbs. Most thumb suckers are younger children. In fact, anywhere from a quarter to half of 2- to 4-year-olds suck their thumbs.

Many children suck their thumbs to calm and comfort themselves. But frequent or intense thumb sucking beyond 4 to 6 years of age can cause problems, including dental problems, (such as overbite), thumb or finger infections, and being teased.

Coping With Your Child's Habit
The good news is that most habits disappear. They drive some parents crazy, whereas others are more tolerant. In many cases, if a parent ignores a habit, the behavior will eventually stop because the child no longer needs it or has outgrown it. Many habits, in fact, do disappear by the time a child reaches school age.

But if you think it's time to help your child break a habit, you may want to try the following steps:

Calmly point out what you don't like about the behavior and why. This approach can be used with children as young as 3 and may help increase your child's awareness of the problem. Say something like, "I don't like it when you bite your nails. It doesn't look nice. Could you try to stop doing that?" Most important, the next time you see your child biting his or her nails or twirling his or her hair, don't scold or lecture. Punishment, ridicule, or criticism could cause the behavior to escalate.
Involve your child in the process of breaking the habit. If your 5-year-old comes home crying from kindergarten because the other kids made fun of his or her thumb sucking, understand that this is your child's way of asking you for help. Parents can ask their children what they think they could do to stop the habit or if they want to stop the habit.
Clearly and positively state the alternative behavior you desire. For example, when you catch your child biting his or her nails, instead of saying, "Don't bite your nails," try saying, "Let's wiggle our fingers." This will increase your child's awareness of the habit and may serve as a reminder. To occupy your child's attention, you can also try to give your child something else to do such as helping you in the kitchen or working on a craft. (Using foul-tasting - but safe and nontoxic - substances applied to your child's fingers may help discourage nail biting or thumb sucking, but continually using them diminishes their effectiveness.)
Reward and praise your child when he or she displays self-control. For example, allow your little girl to use nail polish if she lets her nails grow. Or every time your son refrains from sucking his thumb, reinforce the positive behavior by praising him and giving him a sticker or other small prize.
Be consistent in rewarding good behavior. If you notice the bad habits but fail to notice good behavior, it will disappear through time. The new, positive habit must be firmly established before the old one will disappear.
For the best success, it's important that your child is also motivated to break his or her habit. And because habits take time to develop, they're also going to take time to be replaced by alternative behavior, so be patient.