Help! My Three Year Old Won't Stop Sucking His Fingers!

My son is a thumb sucker.. I tried everything I could think of to stop it , the bitter nail polish, socks, gloves, reminders, hand washing, etc. May people kept telling me that he would grow out of it. Fortunately he has grown out of doing it all the time. We only see it when he is sleepy or sleeping, now I am hopeful he will give it up altogether soon! I have been told by my BIL, who is a dental student, that some dentists say an ace bandage can stop the behavior. You put it around his elbow, tightly, but not to where it is constricting. Place it under a long sleeved shirt, so he can't take it off. While he is wearing it, supposedly it makes it uncomfortable to bend his elbow. It may not stop the behavior, but it may slow it down. It's worth a shot. We will be trying this try at night soon for son. Good Luck! and let us know if you find anything that works.

Sounds like his fingers are his security. This is something he will eventually out grow. Another thing if he is getting sick all the time his immune system might need a boost. You didn't mention is this something that just started or has he been doing this since he was a little guy?

It's a tough habit to break, I know because two of my children sucked their thumbs. But it is a source of comfort for him so by pressuring him to stop you may be stressing him out which will actually cause him to want to suck his fingers more. Three years old is probably too young yet to get him to stop. My oldest was more ready when she turned 4 (although she reverted back a few months later when her sister was born!). And my second child was about 5-6 years old, and what worked for her was the Chuck E. Cheese reward chart. Niether of them sucked their thumbs in school -- usually it was when they were tired, or upset about something, or even just having some downtime/relaxation time.

I definitely understand your concern about the germs, so all I can suggest is more frequent handwashing and always having hand wipes available. Don't use the hand sanitizer -- it doesn't actually clean and you really don't want him ingesting it.

My two year old sucks his middle two fingers. I have never seen a child do that before. He doesn't suck his thumb, it has to be the middle two fingers, and with his other hand, he plays with the tag on his blanket. It doesn't matter what blanket it is, as long as it has a tag, and he prefers the silky type tags to the paper tags. It's a security thing for him and I'm sure he'll grow out of it eventually, but I am so glad that you posted this! I've also been wondering about how we might break the habit or if it's something we should be worried about, or eventually be worried about. My older two children never did anything like this, so I'm still not sure.

The absolute best thing you can do is leave him alone about it. They WILL outgrow it. It may seem like he gets sick becuz of it, but kids are kids and dont' really know how to be sanitary, even if they don't put thier fingers/thumb in thier mouths. So in my opinion he isn't gettnig sick just becuz of the findger sucking. But kids suck fngers, and binky's and sleep w/blankets etc...because its a security thing. So taking that away from them takes that security away. Also, if you constantly trying to tell him to quit doing it all the time with affect his self-esteem. I dont think ANYTHING negative that people think happens from this behavior EVER outways the effect on them emotionally! Just leave him be. I know its frustrating to watch, but eventually his fingers will be to big for his mouth and it won't be comfortable. The lady that said her sister in law is 16 and still sucks her finger is a very rare occurance, I don't know of any adults that still suck fingers or thumbs! To me this is a battle you won't win, so instead just praise him and teach him to wash his hands ALOT..lol!! I am a nail-biter, and although it seemed like I was sick alot when I was young, the good thing is, it built my immune system up to where Im hardly EVER sick now! I maybe get a cold one time a year..if that! Good Luck!!

My daughter sucked her fingers too. I finally got her to stop with bribery. We made a chart with a picture of the toy she would get and five blank boxes. If she went without sucking her fingers for the whole day she got a smile in the box. When all five boxes were filled she got the toy. I used inexpensive toys and only had to do the chart about 4 times. Good luck!

That is so hard to break, a lot harder than a paci! My little girl sucked on two of her fingers (still does sometimes). I think Walgreens carries stuff don't remember what it is called to help with that. What we did was tape the two fingers apart (she looked like spok when he held up his hand and said live long and prosper). We also used a reward system. She no longer sucks them during the day but has started chewing her hair instead. I want to say it took a year or so to get her to stop.

I sucked my thumb until the 4th grade. My sis in law sucks her finger and she is 16. It is super gross. Maybe give him something else to suck on?? Then take that away eventually?? I don't know how I stopped, but my dad finally would not let me sit with the family if my thumb was in my mouth ...

medetal.com - finger guard. We used the thumb guard when my son wanted to stop sucking.