Has anyone NOT used a pacifier with their baby?

Question

I just wanted to hear if anyone has chosen not to use a pacifier for their baby and if so, how was your experience?

For parents that do use a pacifier, at what age do you stop?

Answer 1

I tried at first,but both of my boys just ended up not liking them,so i guess i got lucky. They would just spit it out.

Answer 2

Neither of my babies would ever take a pacifier. I think a lot of it has to do with the needs of the child. Some children are comforted by the sucking, some are not. Both my children were breastfed for a year, they both preferred to be comforted by being breastfed, and so they wouldn't tolerate a pacifier. I would say if all else fails and your baby is comforted and quiets with a pacifier, then why not? But I would wean the baby off it at around a year old....just my $0.02

Answer 3

I really hated the whole concept of a pacifier, but was given some as gifts with my first child. So, I used them a little bit to start with. She would take a couple of sucks and lose it (it would fall out of her mouth), so I gave up on trying them pretty quickly. Then with my next child, I just didn't use them at all.

By never really starting them on a pacifier, there was no pacifier habit to break and it made my life easier. I think they grew up just fine without a pacifier. No warped teeth or jaw lines! No impaired speech!

Answer 4

I've done both, just depending on what the child needed.

My high needs children needed more sucking it releases hormones that help calm them down. I weaned them down from using the pacifier, I didn't pull it cold turkey on them. When they were about 2.5-3 I would tell them that they could only have it when we were home, then after awhile only to go to bed, then after a while of that I would tell them they were big kids now and didn't need the pacifier. It took more patience than just making them go cold turkey but they were able to get use to the idea a little easier with less trama.

The children who didn't need it just wouldn't take the pacifier and were satisfied after being nursed.

Answer 5

my sisters baby never used a pacifier
but that was cuz the baby wouldnt take ANY kind of pacifier
let me tell u it was hard when the child started screaming and nothin would calm her
and i have a child that uses a paci and he has autism so i was told not to stop the use until 3 or 4 cuz it is the only thing that soothes my child
everyones different

Answer 6

I did not use a pacifier with my son. He never had a real comfort item. Well, he did like a bottle before bed, but never anything through the day. I guess, I was his comfort item. Rocking him, singing to him, and so on. I decided not to give him a pacifier, because my niece was 4 and still walking around with a pacifier in her mouth and it drove me nuts. I did work in a daycare though and I loved when other children had pacifiers, but I knew I wouldn't have to ween them away from it someday.

Answer 7

I used a pacifier with my oldest child, he was about 8 months old when he quit. (he had bad teeth as a teen, and had to have braces)

I chose not to use a pacifier with my girls.

My oldest daughter did wonderful, she didn't have any troubles at all. And she has perfect straight teeth.

With my youngest daughter, Oh after about 3 months of her wanting to nurse just to suck, not to eat, i tried to introduce a pacifier, which she hated, and never would use, she only wanted skin, she never had a bottle either, went from breast to cup. ( I did nurse her until she was 17 months, but she started juice about 7 months in a cup)

Answer 8

I didn't use a pacifier for either of my children. It wasn't a problem at all. I tried once with them and neither of them wanted it (most babies I see don't). I didn't have the trouble of weaning them off of it because they never started. I think it's a waste, a lot of babies don't take to the pacifier immediately, there forced to learn how to use one for comfort. That's just my experience though.
I'm not sure if me breastfeeding affected the pacifier thing or not.

Answer 9

My son refuses to use a pacifier. He's 10 weeks old and I tried at first but he wants nothing to do with it. I hear that is a good thing since it seems very difficult to break the habit.

Answer 10

My son NEVER had a pacifier. He was fine. He wasn't a fussy baby, and if you don't introduce it to them they don't know that they are missing it. I didn't want to have to break him of the pacifier later on as it is the hardest thing for a child to give up...so he never had one. Not even in the hospital.

Answer 11

I am currently expecting my third child, and we have never used a pacifier. We own several, but we do not intend to use one this time either.

My first child was given one by a defiant nurse in the hospital even though I requested she not be given one. That nurse insisted we would eventually give her one, and brought her back from her hearing test with one in her mouth. I believe that is the ONLY time she had one.

They are more of toys to my children, than something they suck on. We never had any problems with them sucking on their fingers, either-although I would have been fine with that. Sometimes their hand would end up in their mouth, just like sometimes their foot would, etc. Just normal!