Catherine Baluyot

Tondo, Manila

Suzi says

Hello there mommy!!!

There are indeed many habits and practices that we do with our children that must eventually end. Bottle feeding for instance must cease when a child reaches a specific age.

The time will also come when your child will have to sleep in his own room. Aside from the stress a child goes through to accept the changes, so goes the same for you.

Actually a lot of the stress goes to the parent because you have to be the one to think of creative ways to get your child to adhere to the new situation, whatever that may be.

There must be pre-planning, gentleness, creativity and follow through in order to be successful. And I know you will be mommy. Think of this as practice for even more challenging times ahead.

Some parents believe in pacifiers while others don’t. Some parents think that the pacifier is there to soothe the parent and not the child since mommy or daddy gets a few minutes of silence from a satisfied baby. But obviously the pacifier works for your child and for your family so let’s go with that. The challenge here is how to get baby to give up his "best friend"and let you keep your sanity at the same time!

First, be ready. Do this during the weekend so that you don’t have to stress out about getting up early the next day to go to work. At least even if you don’t get to sleep well during the night, you might be able to take a nap during the day.

A lot of parents believe that cold turkey is the best way. It’s good that your child seems to have limited his pacifier use to before and during sleep; although honestly this is the toughest habit to break.

Even though your child is only seven and a half months old, try to talk to him in a soothing tone and let him know that you will not give him the pacifier anymore. When it’s time to sleep, rock your baby and sing to him.

Hopefully his crying fit (inevitable I’m sure) will take less than ten minutes or so. If it goes on longer, chances are he will eventually tire out and fall asleep. You have to prepare yourself to remain calm even though you know your child is getting tired from crying. Once you’ve decided to really wean him, follow through.

As for your concern regarding the formation of his teeth or lips, pediatric dentists in the U.S. believe that a child can still use a pacifier until age 2 without harming the development of the teeth. But it is best to wean earlier rather than later. As with everything that we’re used to (even us adults) it’s harder to kick a habit the longer we’ve been at it.

Good Luck mommy! Get ready for a couple of sleepless nights but as you know, nothing lasts forever; not even fussiness and sleepless nights! Good Luck!

Paolo says

We never used a pacifier with our kids, so I’m afraid I’m not gonna be talking from actual experience here... That being said, experts seem to agree that concerns over poor dental development start to become an issue from prolonged pacifier use, and I’m talking about 3 to 4-yearolds still using pacifiers here, a far cry from your 7 1/2 month old.

For older children, experts suggest gradually restricting pacifier use to naptime and bedtime as they usually use the pacifier to calm themselves. As they get older and see that many other kids don't use them anymore, they usually outgrow them. Doctors also suggest letting them have it when they want it and then "trading" the pacifier for a "reward", a favorite snack, a favorite toy etc. so that they will come to associate giving up the pacifier for better things. That way, it becomes easier to wean them from it.

Even discussing a set time in the future (a month or so down the line) when he becomes "a big boy" and will have to give up his pacifier. Constantly remind him that the time is coming soon and reward him when the time does come and he gives up his pacifier.

For a young child like your 8-month old, it may be a little hard to "discuss" these things. Unfortunately, some doctors suggest a more direct approach if you want to wean a younger child, and that usually means a bit of crying and a couple of sleepless night for you. The "cold turkey" approach does work but as children use the pacifier to "self-soothe" be sure to provide extra love and care to during this tough time. Good luck!