Advice About Pacifiers and Bottles

Hello
The problem with bottles is the older they get the harder it get usually thats the case. With my son we just switched his bottle which he had at night to sippy which we were using as a bottle! He was 20 mos when we broke him but still had milk at night till he was like 2 1/2 in the sippy and it was hard to break we had to let him cry a few nights and it was horrible!

Now I also have a daughter and we broke her of the bottle at 12 mos and gave only water at night and this worked out so much better and easier for all of us. I learned with my son.

Sorry no advice on the pacifier my son took one till about 3 mos and my daughter never wanted one at all.

My 2 year old was off the bottle at her daycare at a year old and just got off totally a month after her second birthday. We used the sippy cup and water thing for the bedtime bottle. She went for it for a while and then just stopped altogether on her own. I like other mothers was afraid of tooth decay if she stayed on it much longer. Can't give you advice on the pacifier. She never really used it and neither does my 4 month old. They both suck their thumbs and their pediatrician says there is no reason to "stop" the thumb sucking. They will stop when they get to regular school and be embarassed to continue the thumb sucking around other children. Like all advice it is up to you as her mother to do what you think is best for your child and situation.

I would definetley try to get her off the bottle. That is a hard thing to break them of, but it is well worth it. My son was off the bottle at 10 months, but he weaned himself. If you put her to bed with the bottle you should stop doing that very soon. The pacifier is a tough one. I have heard that it does mess with their teeth if you let them have it too long. I would start by just giving it to her at bedtime, then slowly stop putting it in there. I agree with what the other mom said though, go with you mommy gut. Good luck!

I'm not to 18 months yet, but I think she may like the time with Mommy more than her bottle... you might try reading to her instead of the bottle with her favorite blanket/stuffed toy, but I would make sure she has a snack right before bedtime since she is used to eating before bed.

Hope it helps...

I would start with the bottle first. Especially if you are giving it to her right before she falls asleep. We waited too long with our daughter and she ended up getting a cavity between her front two teeth and it was hundreds of dollars to fix. Once she's doing well without the bottle then I would slowly limit her time with the pacifier. Try to eliminate daytime first and then bedtime. I've heard other moms talk about cutting a little off at a time and that seems to very successful. Both my sons loved their pacifiers, and I just eliminated it except for nap and bed time and it didn't take very long for them to not even notice it was gone. My daughter on the other hand sucks her thumb and she just turned four and we are open to any suggestions any of you moms may have to break thumb sucking!! Good luck! ~L.

The teeth thing is kind of an old wive's tale according to the pediodontists I've talked to. Paci. use can do 2 things - it MAY cause increased risk of decay if they suck on it constantly or if it's used after the adult teeth start coming in, it can affect alignment...but since most kiddos naturally give up the paci before starting school, it's likely not that big of an issue. My 4.5 year old still uses a paci to fall asleep and frankly, it's not worth the trauma to me to take it away....she'll give it up when she's ready.

I don't really see that a bottle could be a big deal either as long as there's just water in it.

I definitely wouldn't take away both at the same time. You could certainly start to gently move her away from them and see how she responds. If it seems to be very traumatic for her, just give it more time. If she responds well, then you're golden.

I empathize with you.

Hi C.. I have a 24 month old that I just got off the pacifier. I had wanted to try to do this before his 2 year b-day so I started about 2 weeks before. I had read to start clipping parts of the rubber (the part they suck on) off a little at a time. I would notice him looking at it until one night he gave it back to me and said "yucky." He hasn't had it since.

I know that each child is different, before my son turned one I had the bottle and pacifier out of sight. I would always tell him that he was a big boy and didn't need it. He went with that. I think if you can keep them busy enough to keep their mind occupied then there is a chance that you can successfully get them to forget about it. When it is moring time give them a sippy cup instead of a bottle. If they start to cry and throw a fit, don't give in. Your child will eventually give in and realize that they are not the boss.

I am a single full time working and going to school mom with one child living at home.

Let me know what you think Good luck!

My daughter was obsessed with her pacifier, she'd cry and cry if she didn't have it. I bought so many of them just to keep her quiet. What i did to wean this was threw out the old ones when they got gross and decided not to buy any more. eventually they all got gross and thrown out. During the process I would take her pacifier out of her mouth to give her a snack, or if she was talking and i didn't understand i'd tell her to take it out so i could hear her. She just kind of got used to it. As far as the bottle thing. I stopped buying them too and got those cups with the soft top from wal-mart which are like $1.50 each, she had nothing but those for a while, then i started giving her the harder sippy cups more and more and phasing out the soft top ones. for a while she'd only get the soft ones at night, then i gave her her sippy cup at night and eventually weaned her off those (with a lot of crying) to prepare for potty training. That's what i did and it seemed to work, but good luck. Best advice is to be strong. It hurts you more to hear the crying than it hurts her to do without. :o)

C.,
Go with your mommy gut.

I, too, am a working mother and have one son at 15 mos. old. I talked with the ped. and she told me that it is not necessary to give up the binky until definitely 3 years old. At that point their teeth could be affected by the binky. Until then she told me to try and wean him off when I was comfortable. I don't like to see kids with a pacifier when they are over 2 years though. For the bottle feeding she told me to try and get him to stop doing that and just give him the sippy cup. He loves his binky for nighttime or when he is feeling tired or uncomfortable. He also takes a bottle from me in the am and one before bed (just like you, he does not drink it on his own or in his bed). They are worried about their teeth rotting. I am not so worried about the bottle in the am or pm when I can supplement this need with something like a morning snack or evening snack, but the binky is another story. I like the fact that I can calm him down with his binky. I don't think that I will wean him off his binky until he is about 2 years old. Then I have read about giving his binky to other children that need them and ask him to give it to the binky fairy. Once he agrees to that,then I will ask him to put it in a box and have him color a picture to put in the box and take it to the post office and have him watch them take the box. I hope this works and that I can remind him he agreed to give it to a little baby and send it to that baby. Let me know what you come up with and that works. Thanks, N.

If it is something she likes, I don't see any reason to take it away. Just make sure you are brushing her teeth and gums morning and evening. Don't let her fall asleep with a bottle. It causes the teeth to rot. I learned the hard way with 9 cavities with a three year old and a $1300 bill! Also one other thing: Use non-fluoride, non -sodium lauryl sulfate toothpaste. Children her age don't know not to swallow and both these chemicals are dangerous (linked to cancer.)

Hope that helps!

I am very opinionated about these so please don't take offense to what I am doing to say, but she needs to be off of both of them. I strongly agree with doctors on the age limits for both the pacifier and the bottle. Avent makes a great transition sippy cup that has opitional handles and a soft mouth piece that work great. Just think about the problems she can develop with her teeth if she remains on them. It could also cause spech problems down the road. Trust yourself and take your doctors advice on the subject for both of them.

With our four kids - we weaned them each from the pacifier by snipping just a teeny-tiny piece off the end every other day. Eventually, or sometimes right away, it doesn't feel the same to them and they lose interest. They may be upset about it at first - but within 2-3 days they were fine. My daughter tried to hold even the tiny nub that was left (after a lot of snipping - lol) but she too, eventually decided it wasn't quite as soothing, and was more of a hassle.

We weaned them each from the sassy between 15-24 months old - the girls liked them longer. I should also add that we only let them have the "sassy" during car rides, naps and night time sleeping....as we wanted them to be able to talk as much as possible; which is hard to do with a sassy in all the time.

Good luck!