Thumb sucking and how to stop it!
Written by Claire Burgess, Family Consultant
Following on from my blog about helping your little one to give up their dummy we had lots of questions about how to stop thumb sucking and so we decided to write a blog on this topic as well!
According to the British Orthodontic Society, one in every eight children in the UK (aged 7 to 11) has a thumb sucking habit. Babies have a natural sucking reflex and thumb sucking can start very early on after birth and can sometimes even be seen in the womb!
So, when does it become a problem? Many children will stop sucking their thumb by themselves before they reach 4 years old, but if they don’t stop thumb sucking before their adult teeth come in (at around 6-7 years), it can affect the position of these new teeth. If however thumb sucking stops before this age, the teeth can often correct their position with normal growth.
Thumb (or finger) sucking has a calming, soothing effect on your child and can therefore quickly become a habit. Of course, thumb sucking can be a much trickier habit to break than sucking a dummy as you can’t take a thumb or fingers away (!), but I hope that this blog will give you some tips as to how to approach it.
My top tips for getting your little one to give up sucking their thumb or fingers:
Because children depend on thumb sucking to relieve stress and, in the same way as giving up the dummy, make sure that you pick a time to break the habit when neither you nor your child are experiencing any change in your lives such as moving from cot to bed, the arrival of a new sibling, starting nursery, moving house, illness etc. Be aware though that a child who has successfully stopped sucking their thumb might go back to it during times of stress and it is at these times that you very carefully need to manage the situation. Don’t tell them off for doing it, but go back to basics, for example offering an alternative comforter, so that they don’t go straight back into the habit.
If your child is old enough to understand, the first thing to do is to talk to them about their thumb sucking and the reasons that you would like them to stop doing it e.g “it will make your thumb sore”, “it can affect the way that your teeth grow which might make it difficult to bite when you grow older”– this will help them to understand why you don’t want them to suck their thumb any more. You could also ask your dentist to speak to them about it (as long as they are experienced with young children and would know how to discuss this appropriately and at the child’s level). Sometimes hearing it from someone else can make things clearer.
With younger children, you could use books to help you talk about giving up their thumb sucking - there aren’t a huge number of books about thumb sucking, but here are a couple you could try:
Offer positive encouragement and lots of praise to your child for any reduction in the amount of time they spend sucking their thumb. However, don’t criticise your child if they do suck their thumb, instead offer gentle reminders to stop sucking it - often a habit is so ingrained that your child might not even realise they are doing it! Gently pointing it out to will help them to become more self-aware.
As with the tips in my dummy blog, always discourage your child from talking whilst sucking their thumb and identify triggers that may cause your child to suck their thumb more. For example, if you notice that your child sucks more when they are anxious or tired, there may be ways for you to address these issues by helping them to find an alternative source of comfort (without them knowing you are doing it!). Pre-empting these times and having another comforter (such as a teddy) to hand that you give them to hold while you sit with them and stroke their hands or arms (for older children you could even offer to do a hand massage!) - the key thing is that having awareness of these times can help.
Be consistent with the way you approach the thumb sucking. It is OK to put boundaries in place such as “not when we’re out and about” or “only at bedtime”. Try to see this as a gradual thing and start putting the boundaries in - don’t stop it all the time right from the start, build this up.
Don’t put too much pressure on your child to stop sucking their thumb or get frustrated or cross with them. This can increase anxiety in your child which may then lead to increased thumb sucking as a source of comfort.
If night-time thumb sucking is the biggest issue, try offering a different source of comfort for your child to associate bedtime with, for example a new cuddly toy, or for older children some relaxation exercises / music.
Try having things around which your child can hold or fiddle with to keep their hands busy. Often when children are in the car, watching television, in the buggy etc you will find that they will suck their thumb, but if they have something to play with in their hands this can stop it from happening.
Another option, which has had good reviews and parents have told us does work, is the Thumbsie – They make fabric thumb and finger guards, to help children to stop thumb and finger sucking. The Thumbsie fits over the thumb or fingers like a glove and is secured with Velcro around the wrist. They are suitable for children aged 3-14 years.
There are a number of other suggestions which you may have seen on social media and have wondered about trying. For example, some people talk about putting plasters on their children’s thumbs or fingers to discourage them from sucking them – if you do this please consider that the plaster could be a choking hazard if it comes loose – the Thumbsie (as above) would be a good alternative to this. Another suggestion I have seen is to put horrible tasting things on the child’s thumb – this needs to be thought about carefully; if they are dependent on their thumb for comfort, often the child will just suck the flavour off – my advice is to always look at offering alternative methods of comfort so that they have something as a substitute.
What if my child is too young to understand? It is important to remember that trying to get a child who is under the age of 2 to stop sucking their thumb could be very difficult as they won’t be able to properly understand why. In fact you could actually make your child feel anxious which may encourage them to suck their thumb even more. If you do wish to try and wean your child off their thumb before the age of 2 my best advice would be to consistently offer another comforter which they can then form an attachment with to help replace the thumb and also try to use distraction (a toy to occupy their hands for example) every time they go to suck their thumb. Try not to say that thumb sucking is a bad thing or keep saying “no” when they go to do it as this will be difficult for your child to understand and could be upsetting for them.
Finally, don’t expect your child to stop sucking their thumb straight away and treat any decrease in the amount of thumb sucking as a win! Start by using the tips above to decrease / stop the thumb sucking in the day-time and then build up to helping them to stop overnight.
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