Dummy/Dodi/Soother/Susu!

BlazingSaddler

Hi all, I have a 20month old daughter who is a little fond of her soother. It is only at bed times and she drops off almost instantly when she has it which is great. However she has started to get a rash around the mouth from it. I ensure she has a clean one every night and try to slip it out when she's asleep. My question is should I be thinking of weaning her off of it even though it gives her such comfort?, if so, how?! If not, is there a particular brand that I could try that may be kinder to her face?

MLE

Maybe she is teething and is getting the rash from her dribbling at night as opposes to the dodi although the dodi would be holding the spittal against her face. So the rash should fade in time if this is the reason.

Ive a little girl who is 3 and a half and still uses the dodi to sleep. I obviously havent phased it off her yet as I think that she will give it up herself and Im not going to buy her any more, so it they will go very gradually which will ( I hope ) be easier on her. Im all for not removing their comfort zones. I use Nuk doddies which have two air holes in it which might provide more air around her mouth.

littlebitdull

While eventually you would want to be taking her off this soother, at the moment she would seem to me to be young enough to allow her that little bit extra comfort. Especially as you say she is just using it for sleep.

You could try smearing a tiny bit of vaseline around her lips at night? Just a small amount to ease the rash.

We simply went down the cold turkey route with our three taking them off the soothers, and my eldest used to have four or five going to bed with him!! Like you we kept it as a bed time thing, but as they got bigger I felt they could do without them. The soother fairy arrived one night and left a cool pressie in place of the soother. We just took them all away in one foul swoop. It did mean a few nights paying the child a bit more attention than usual, soothing them ourselves a few more times, but it was only a few nights ...

I agree ... life is going to be hard over the years .. why not allow them all the comfort they need as kids.

Dampsquid

When our daughter was 2 years and 6 months we decided it was time to say goodbye to her dodi. She wouldn't give it up, so we just cut a tiny piece off the bit that she sucks. Said nothing and when putting her to bed, gave her the dodi, she put it in her mouth and then took it out and threw it away saying yuk! she picked it up again two minutes later and tried again, and threw it away again... she never asked for it again after that, and there were no problems putting her to bed without it.

SarahMc

I agree that it is a bit too young to take the dodi, time enough next year when she gives it to Santy. It is unlikely the rash is from the dodi, but could be from the reason MLE suggested.

deisemum

It's far easier to wean a child off a dodi than it is to wean them of thumb or finger sucking.

My first lad loved his dodi and had several on the go but when it came to weaning him off them we gradually punctured them, a few weeks before christmas we suggested leaving them out for santa. He stopped using them before christmas so it wasn't an issue.

luckat

I've seldom known a 32-year-old who still loves the dodi. Chill. It'll be gradually consigned to bedtimes, then to a cursory suck, then lost under the mattress, then totally forgotten.

dame

Our daughter gave her's up at 18 months so it's not too early to suggest to your child at 20 months that they give it up. After all, it's only used for bedtime as it is. Just tell her it's lost and after a short search with you she'll accept that. After a couple of nights she won't even ask for it any more.

embee

My daughter who is 22 months never had a dud, didn't see the point in them. She was a placid baby anyway though so I never felt it necessary to give her a dud to suck on.

Having said that, she is still very fond of her bedtime bottle and won't go to bed without her "gogga". I'm not too bothered about it though - she usually drinks about 1-2 fluid ounces and she's out like a light, at which stage I'll take the bottle off her and leave it standing in the corner of her cot. She doesn't even take a full bottle over the course of the night and doesn't want it during the day because she drinks out of cups. I am going to remove the bottle from her once she is toilet trained (but not immediately after). Perhaps when she goes to her big girls bed after she's outgrown the cot I'll explain that bottles are only for babys and she isn't a baby anymore. She will probably kick up a fuss, but it will no doubt be a storm in a teacup. Your daughter sounds like she's still a bit young to take the dud off her, especially if she's only having it at night. It is possible that the rash around her mouth is just caused by irritation from the excess dribbling that duds promote, and she may well make a link between the dud and her sore mouth herself, but I wouldn't rush her into anything.

undecided

a trick that worked on both of mine-

replace dummy with a bottle and small amount of fluids at bedtime. Then when child getting a little older close to potty training change bottle with nice new bright sports bottle then to a beaker with lid then lose the lid!

Worked like a dream on both of mine. I remember my eldest saying I was silly coz was allways losing things;)

killwill

Ok I'm sorry but why give your children soothers in the first place? If they have never had one they can never miss them? There is conclusive research to show that they are not good for them.

embee

killwill wrote: »

Ok I'm sorry but why give your children soothers in the first place? If they have never had one they can never miss them? There is conclusive research to show that they are not good for them.

All full term newborn babies have a natural sucking reflex. Some have a very strong sucking reflex and get agitated when they can't suck on something. It isn't great to let them suck on their hands, as they can give themselves sucking blisters which hurt. Some parents will give a dud to pacify a baby. Other parents introduce a dud when they don't need to. It is personal choice. I never used one with my daughter. I don't think I'd use one with any subsequent children I may have, but thats my choice. I don't really see the point in them either - the sucking reflex in a newborn doesn't last that long, but the habit of having a dud does and can be very hard to break.

deisemum

When I had my first boy the midwife told me to get one. They are used with premature babies to help them to develop their sucking reflex.

tred

killwill wrote: »

Ok I'm sorry but why give your children soothers in the first place? If they have never had one they can never miss them? There is conclusive research to show that they are not good for them.

#
There is as much conclusive research to say they are no harm. Personally, id prefer our lad to use it away, and not develop a sucking thumb habit. Which is actually much more harmfull to developing teeth i believe.

FoxyCat

A sucking reflex of the newborn is for a reason. Designed by nature not for the soother, but for the breastfeeding. The more baby is sucking the breast the more milk it needs to produce.

they do start sucking their thumbs if you do not satisfy the need of sucking. Basically, if you breastfeed, it takes 20-30minutes, sometimes even longer, for the baby to empty the breast and if you give them a bottle, they finish it in less than 10min. Where 10 min of sucking does not satisfy the need.