Thumb Sucking - Bloomington,IN

try putting mittens on him ( they are sold in Kmart Walmart etc and a light weight material - fairly cheap) he will not like the cloth in his hands. He will cry a little as this has been used to comfort him. You may then try to introduce the pacifier. There are various types of pacifiers he may desire a softer, or a harder one than the one you have introduced to him before. ---with his hands in the mittens the lotion will stay on better. Wonder if you could put diaper rash like destine on it if he can't get it in his mouth
Best wishes

If you are wanting something more natural to put on his thumb you can find a tube of lanolin (the stuff breastfeeding moms use on there nipples). It's perfectly safe for the baby and very soothing for sore chapped skin.

The red, dry, and raw is to be expected, especially if it just started. Just watch to make sure that it doesn't split, that is usually when it hurts them. When we took my son to the doctor when it was split, she was actually really impressed with how clean it was. We now put neosporin and a bandaid on it when it splits (he is 21 months). He hates not having his thumb, and starts sucking when he sees us go for the next bandaid, but it seems to be the only way to get it to heal quickly, then it is all his again after a few days. I like the idea of the aquaphor - I think I will try that next time I see it so dry, maybe it will prevent the split.

There is a clear polish that you get that is safe for children. It taste really nasty but it has been proven to help them suck there thumb. You can get it at Babies R us. Just put on there and when he gets the taste of it his mouth constently he will remmber the bitter taste and not want to do it anymore. Put it on his other one as well just incase he decides to try the other finger. Its a good thing he refuses the pacifier cause there way harder to get them to stop then there thumb. Good luck with thumb sucking addiction.

You can try mittens, similar tot he type that some people use on new borns to keep them from scratching themselves. They also sell bitter polishes, he might be young enough that it will work well.

My son sucks his thumb too. I'm actually happy b/c I never have to worry about finding the pacifier to put back in his mouth :) I know you can't "take away" the thumb, but I figure I'll cross that bridge later...LOL. As for the skin, I asked my pediatrician about that at my son's last appointment and she said as long as it doesn't seem to be causing pain, and as long as it gets cleaned regularly, it's okay and normal for it to be raw and red. If it causes pain or gets infected, then it's a problem. Otherwise, she said, just let it be. Good luck!

Not sure if you're asking for something to make him stop sucking his thumb or for something to help with the broken skin.

At 5 months, you won't be able to stop the behavior. It's a self-soothing mechanism (actually it can be a Godsend as they can never lose their thumb in the middle of the night like a pacifier).

We have 2 kids, 1 is a thumb sucker, the other is a pacifier sucker - I'd take the thumb any day.

When the thumb gets raw, our pediatrician advised using Aquaphor. It's OK to be in their mouth (we asked to make sure) and is a very good lotion to provided the needed moisture to heal the skin.

Hope that helps.

Nurse on demand around the clock. If he still needs suckling there's nothing you can do to get him to stop. Don't worry about it for now, there's nothing wrong with thumb sucking.