are pacifiers okay or not?

[kehliouise]

basically that is my question we never gave one to ds but now i don't remember why.

[riverundine]

i can't justify letting my lo suck on plastic.
and i have a boob. actually, two.

[vlasta216]

I'm wondering the same thing. I let ds have one if he's having trouble going to sleep at night and I'm getting sore from him being on me. He'll want to comfort nurse before sleeping but then, once asleep, he'll wake up and get mad if he finds that i've put the goods away. Other than that I don't give him one b/c I find no need to.

Personally, i think they're ok if limited.

[mama_y_sol]

hbak
i only use them if dc is screaming in the car, after dc has already nursed, and i am desperate.

[PoolSide]

She gets it when i'm out to dinner with DH.

she also gets it after nursing, but not quite asleep

[kittywitty]

Busting in here...

My kids never took them. With my 8week old, I tried giving her one a couple weeks ago to see if it would help since she was colicky. I was at the point of desperation. She took it for a minute and her latch has been HORRIBLE since. She hasn't even had the paci since then, but she suddenly has forgotten how to breastfeed.

I told my mom, and apparently the same thing happened with me when I was ~6 months old. So I am now a full fledged believer in nipple confusion.

[southernmommie]

I personally do not use them because I do not want my supply to dwindle. I take thyroid meds and that affects my supply so I am trying to do everything I can to not mess with my supply. I start out with a fight for my supply. So I choose to do things that are known to NOT affect it. I have even bought a breast pump the other day because baby girl sleeps through the night until late morning and I do not want to be fertile so soon.

But every mom is in a different situation from the rest of us and has to find what she is comfortable with and what works for their particular family. I do not look down on people who use them. I used them with my second one after she was a little older. But that is a whole other story there.

[kehliouise]

i bought two the other day...i was also concerned about the plastic issue. i bought playtex ones because i had read that they don't use PVC in there products or something. but anyways...i've only offered it to him a couple of times, but he has these periods where he acts like he wants to nurse but when i offer it to him he just trashes around with the nipple in his mouth, screaming like it isn't even there or like he doesn't want it. i'm not sure what to do...i'm wondering if this possibly indicates some other problem.

[ollineeba]

My first had one. My second always refused it.
I wasn't planning to give this Jan babe a pacifier, but when she was in the NICU and had to endure IVs, etc. I wanted to do anything that I could to calm her- that was the most important thing. It did seem to soothe her.
I don't think there is anything wrong with limited use of pacifiers, as long as the baby is gaining weight as he/she should and there is no supply issue.
Now we mostly use it in the car and during dipe changes, because those really make her mad

[mytwogirls]

My oldest is almost two and I have to admit : she is a binkie addict. I am thinking of enrolling her in a 12 step program ..lol. My youngest HATES them and I am glad cause once my oldest turns two (very soon!) they are leaving the house. I am TIRED of searching for them all. the. time. But, all in all, I don't see any HARM in them in the long run really. It just depends on your beliefs and your opinions on them.

[J-Max]

My oldest never used one (thought I was agiantst them)- she sucked her fingers untill 6 . Then #2 was born aand had really bad reflux - was was just an an happy baby-, she had to be constantly sucking to be even partially content, she we introduced a pacifier at about 3 weeks, it never effected her latch at all she nursed untill 6 weeks before #3 was born. She was only 19 mo when #3 was born and thought every baby needed a "nuk" so baby got one right away. DD#4 was never without her and I thought she would always have it. We tried several different time adn ways to get rid of it but it was her emotian comfort item so we gave up . Two days after her 4th birthday she decided that she did not need it anymore (completly on her own) and never used it again. DD#3 still uses one at night and in the car, but is really cutting back. She only weaned @ 2.5. DD#4 (new baby) is not interested in taking one at all - she sucks her thumb!

So, if you think it would help you, try it, IMO. Try nursing first, but it you - and he- needs it try one. We used the avent ones.

[zenma]

Originally Posted by kehliouise

i bought two the other day...i was also concerned about the plastic issue. i bought playtex ones because i had read that they don't use PVC in there products or something. but anyways...i've only offered it to him a couple of times, but he has these periods where he acts like he wants to nurse but when i offer it to him he just trashes around with the nipple in his mouth, screaming like it isn't even there or like he doesn't want it. i'm not sure what to do...i'm wondering if this possibly indicates some other problem.

i'm right there with ya! we've finally got a handle on breastfeeding, so i'd banished pacis for over a week. then, yesterday, i apparently did NOT have a "perfectly good boob" to provide. after several hours of cluster feeding that devolved into ds screaming, sucking on his hands, latching on, growling, then pullllllllllllllllllllling way hard on my nip until he popped off, and screaming again... on repeat, plus being inconsolable through all of our other efforts, he and i both needed a rest. the paci provided it. (and i guess i didn't have perfectly good arms to rock him either, because, after trying those, it was the swing that did the trick. this kid defies several of my previously held conceptions about what "should" be right.)

i think he had some bad gas pains yesterday. he slept and ate well last night, and is doing well so far today. nak, of course, and i thought he might have some nip confusion, but it's ok now.

[To-Fu]

Originally Posted by zenma

i'm right there with ya! we've finally got a handle on breastfeeding, so i'd banished pacis for over a week. then, yesterday, i apparently did NOT have a "perfectly good boob" to provide. after several hours of cluster feeding that devolved into ds screaming, sucking on his hands, latching on, growling, then pullllllllllllllllllllling way hard on my nip until he popped off, and screaming again... on repeat, plus being inconsolable through all of our other efforts, he and i both needed a rest. the paci provided it. (and i guess i didn't have perfectly good arms to rock him either, because, after trying those, it was the swing that did the trick. this kid defies several of my previously held conceptions about what "should" be right.)

i think he had some bad gas pains yesterday. he slept and ate well last night, and is doing well so far today. nak, of course, and i thought he might have some nip confusion, but it's ok now.

My guy does the thrashing/pulling/screaming thing, too. It's a relief to know I'm not the only one! My theory is that something is wrong/painful (gas, maybe?) and he doesn't understand how to fix it so he tries to nurse (cure all for everything!), but then that doesn't do the trick. He keeps trying and getting madder when he doesn't feel better.

I had a rough start with breastfeeding so I don't want to do anything that might even remotely possibly put our BFing relationship at risk, and that includes pacifiers. My guy is starting to learn how to suck his thumb though!

[StrawHatBrat]

I use them. Marisol will want to nurse for comfort, but she'll be so full that it starts making her mad. She wants to suck, but doesn't want more food, and the binkie works to satisfy her.

[zenma]

Originally Posted by StrawHatBrat

I use them. Marisol will want to nurse for comfort, but she'll be so full that it starts making her mad. She wants to suck, but doesn't want more food, and the binkie works to satisfy her.

i think that's what's going on w/ my baby sometimes. he'll comfort nurse and cluster nurse throughout the days, but sometimes he wants to suck w/o the milk it seems.

[mama_y_sol]

Originally Posted by To-Fu

My guy is starting to learn how to suck his thumb though!

Nico just found his thumb today! Seeing him suck his thumb is so cute!

Yeah, nico does the trashing/pulling/screaming thing too. ITA that it might be him wanting to feel better (suck) but not really wanting the milk (if he is full, that actually makes him feel worse). I recall Eva doing the exact same thing...nothing to worry about IMO, but a paci might indeed help...

As for those who do use them, what brand do you use?

[StrawHatBrat]

Mari wouldn't take the mam or nuk... so we got the ugly greet soothie!

[*knittingmomma*]

Dd is also one who needs to suck a lot. She was getting furious at the boob because there is always a lot of milk. So we introduced the paci, also for in the car which has helped tremendously with her screaming everytime we have to go anywhere. I think that if not used as a substitute for the boob, there's nothing wrong with them. We use natursutten rubber pacis.

[ollineeba]

Originally Posted by mama_y_sol

As for those who do use them, what brand do you use?

We have the gumdrop from Hawaii Medical. It's what she liked best in the NICU, so they gave us a few to take home. They also have them on amazon.

[DoulaLMT]

Originally Posted by StrawHatBrat

I use them. Marisol will want to nurse for comfort, but she'll be so full that it starts making her mad. She wants to suck, but doesn't want more food, and the binkie works to satisfy her.

Same here, and I actually regret not using it sooner. I ended up with hideous oversupply/fast let-down issues that make it so he's fussy at the breast a lot now, and i've been struggling for WEEKS to get things under control. I believe that if I hadn't comfort nursed so much in the beginning, maybe things wouldn't have gotten so out of hand.

we use the green soothie too.