[dearmama22]

UGH. I hate it. DS Is 7 weeks old- I finally gave in to giving him a paci. It looks so ridiculous, I hate these things. But it really made him happy and helped him fall asleep, so I guess that's what matters.

I don't want to over use them so I am thinking just giving them to him for falling asleep. Should I take it out of his mouth when he is asleep so he can breathe out of his nose AND His mouth easier? What are the safest paci's besides BPA free?

Today is just a trial run. I really really hate them.

edit: I just went in to check on him ( 5 minutes after he fell asleep) and he has spit the paci out which I guess is a good thing. See, this is why I hate these. He won't be able to find it if he needs to suck again, unlike his thumb. HE has been trying for the last few weeks to find his thumb but has been unsuccessful. Maybe I should just let him practice with his thumb a little more till he gets it.

edit again: He realized it was out and started crying/woke up... I'm so frustrated.

 

[jempd]

We use the GumDrops pacifier because it really is more like a nipple than any other I've seen, and after trying several of the orthodontic kind that were given to me, it's the one dd likes best. I don't think you need to remove it while he sleeps; at least, I've never heard that babies have problems breathing. It always seems to slip out a little when my baby sleeps.

 

[Super~Single~Mama]

Oh I feel your pain!!!

Not about the paci's, but the sleep. It's taken forever for my son to find his thumb, and at 14weeks still almost never gets it

We used a paci for a while too (I too hate the things) b/c Lincoln would want to comfort nurse, would get milk and get FURIOUS about it - which defeats the whole allowing him to comfort nurse

Anyway, now he hates them with.a.passion.and.refuses.to.use.one. So, even if he likes it now, he won't necessarily want it forever. Lincoln has always liked it when I nurse him to sleep, and then after he spits out my nipple doesn't usually need it to stay asleep. I always lay there for a few minutes after he falls asleep, and then put pillows on either side of him so that he feels like we are in bed with him though.

Good luck! I hope things get better!!!!!

 

[dearmama22]

twice I've gone in there and put it back in. He is happy, sucks and doses off then spits it out again. starts crying. repeat. repeat.

I am also using a nipple shield ( nipples are flat) so That is another reason why I hate this so much. MORE Plastic.

 

[bubbamummy]

My son has/had a paci and yes, I hate them but he loves them and life is too short for me to be worrying about something like that now.

I feel they were responsible for a lot of our breastfeeding issue, but oh well, you live and learn! You waited so thats awesome, I gave one at 2 days old

 

[ainh]

we use a paci for the 15 week old too. i think babies need to suck a lot and i have an oversupply so my babe gets too full and burpy if he nurses as long as he needs to suck, you know? (plus, i have a toddler to run after, so we have short nusring sessions anyway.)

my first guy used his in the car and for sleep and he gave it up at 8 months. i like to think that i will get rid of it for this little guy before he's a year old ...before he can ask for it

we use one of the brown rubber bpa free kinds:
http://www.amazon.com/Pacifier-Sculp...0336659&sr=8-2

 

[dearmama22]

thanks guys.

I know that he likes to suck, because I can tell the difference in his sucking for milk and just plain sucking on my fake nipple. ( nipple shield)

 

[ZippyGirl]

The Natursutten pacifiers are really popular.

 

[momma-molly]

This probably isn't very encouraging, but I had to HOLD my DD in my arms in addition to giving her a pacificer to keep her asleep for the first few months. I'm serious, she literally would wake up immediately if I laid her down.

At 14 months, she still uses her pacifier and I don't see her giving it up any time soon. She just recently learned to say "paci" and asks for it when she's tired, hungry or upset. I usually nurse her instead, but she gets it when she goes to sleep.

We use the nuk pacifier, she couldn't keep anything else in her mouth. You might need to experiment with the brand to find one that he likes.

I know you hate them, but maybe just set some ground rules for yourself(e.i. - he only gets it when he's going to sleep, etc.).

 

[Starfish11]

I wasn't a fan either but when it was the only thing that calmed down our girl we did it. She's not constantly using one but they provide her with comfort and allow her to go to sleep.

I did some research and pacifiers are recommended now to help with SIDS and our daycare director told me that they also help a child keep their ears/tubes clear b/c of the sucking motion; they are recommended to 2 years for this reason.

So I do feel better about it but still offer my own finger as an alternative when I can.

 

[mnm4242]

It's a lot easier to get rid of a pacifier than a thumb. I would rather my baby use a pacifier than their thumb. (This is coming from someone who sucked my thumb till I was seven - granted by then it was only when I was going to sleep or watching TV, but still, that's bad).

If I had gotten attached to a pacifier instead, my mom could have taken it away from me. What was she going to do, put tabasco sauce on my thumb.

I don't know if this is true or not, but I did read somewhere at some point in time that babies who suck a lot have a reduced risk of SIDS.

But then I think it does increase the risk of ear infections.

I wouldn't worry about it so much. It's not that big of a deal and if it soothes your baby, it's doing an important function. As long as you don't use it as a replacement for nurturing your baby yourself, I don't see the harm in it.

Before my baby was born, I didn't buy any pacifiers because I thought they were terrible too. But my baby had colic, acid reflux, and a few other issues. The pacifer helped her sleep when she wouldn't have slept otherwise. It made her feel better. And when I couldn't breastfeed, she got her sucking desires taken care of.

My baby is 11 months now and only occasionally uses the pacifier. She uses it sometimes to fall asleep. She is slowly self-weaning and doesn't want it 1/2 as much as she used to want it.

So go ahead, give the pacifier, and don't beat yourself up over it. As long as she is breastfeeding well, it shouldn't be an issue.

 

[hdmum]

We gave our son a pacifier at 3 weeks. He needed to suck and I was worn out with all the long comfort nursing sessions. He has used it on and off ever since. Now at 7 months, he doesn't depend on it at all as far as I can tell, but I can tell when he would like to have it for the comfort it provides, so I hand one over and he plays with it and then puts it in his mouth himself if he really wants it.

He went through a spell at the beginning when he was doing the same thing as your baby- spitting it out in his sleep and then crying. We sort of taught him to keep it in his mouth by sometimes half pulling it out so that he would pay attention to it and suck it back in. Soon he was keeping it firmly in his mouth unless he was really deeply asleep, in which case it fell out naturally and he didn't need it anymore.

 

[Funny Face]

I have a love/hate for paci's. I think they can be helpful if you are not using them to replace time at the breast or to pacify a baby unnecessarily.

Ds is almost 4 months and has had a paci since he was probably 9 weeks or so. I always offer the breast before I offer the paci, which we rarely use except to sleep and in the car.

Ds will literally scream bloody murder if I try to offer the breast after he has 'finished' eating but will willingly take the pacifier (this is in the situation when I am putting him to sleep). He also has a hard time sleeping on his stomach (which he insists on) while nursing so the paci comes in handy.

Only on a few occasions has he fallen asleep when not suckling on something.

I'm embarrassed to use one (because other people sometimes do the whole

) but to be honest in a way that silly little contraption has saved my life!

I'd also choose paci over thumb any day.

I know WHO discourages their use but I haven't seen any research that says occasion/discretionary use of a paci is harmful. Feel free to enlighten me any one!

 

[dearmama22]

Yes, it's like a love/hate thing definitely. What is WHO?

Maybe I will just give it to him and naps and sleeping to help him fall asleep. If we keep it like that we won't have to worry about having one with us all the time/washing it/finding it etc.

 

[jempd]

WHO is the World Health Organization.

 

[Harmony08]

i gave my son a paci at 2 weeks (i know DESPERATE... and bfing was firmly established.) I thought that was just it. I saw images of us doing the whole paci fairy thing someday and him being obsessed with it. we used it with mixed success until he was just 3 months and then he stopped taking it and never has again. it is like he has no idea that he can suck on it. He is 6.5 months now and we just started giving him pacis and he loves to chew on the handle and manipulate them n his hands and throw them around. great fun. People ask us if he "takes a pacifier" and we say well he will "take it" but he won't suck it.

 

[dearmama22]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Harmony08 i gave my son a paci at 2 weeks (i know DESPERATE... and bfing was firmly established.) I thought that was just it. I saw images of us doing the whole paci fairy thing someday and him being obsessed with it. we used it with mixed success until he was just 3 months and then he stopped taking it and never has again. it is like he has no idea that he can suck on it. He is 6.5 months now and we just started giving him pacis and he loves to chew on the handle and manipulate them n his hands and throw them around. great fun. People ask us if he "takes a pacifier" and we say well he will "take it" but he won't suck it.

That scares me.. he chews on the handle? I know you are, but just make sure you keep an eye on him when he does that.

 

[dearmama22]

Quote:

Originally Posted by jempd WHO is the World Health Organization.

ahh of course. thank you.

 

[juliav]

Ophelia had a paci at 3 days old. She tried to get her hands but was only frustrated by it because she lacked the coordination. She used to spit it and that would wake her up too. I used to prop it with her clothes or a toy or something, because I found that if it was anywhere near her lips she'd suck that thing back in.
And as some comfort to you, she started refusing it at about 3 months on her own. I never took it from her. It pretty much coordinated with her being able to keep her hands in her mouth. But she still doesn't suck her thumb.

 

[AugustineM]

Don't stress too much about it, that's my advice. My third baby took one and I was GLAD! Having 3 kids under 5 is hard enough, and if it helps my sanity, yay!