Soothers

daheff

Whats the story? Some people absolutely hate these....see them as evil

My OH really does not want to use them. Would rather that our baby was crying for an hour than use the soother.


me i think that if they help baby sleep then why not? Is it not better to have a baby that gets a good night sleep and isnt tired and cranky the next day (with tired and cranky parents who didnt sleep properly because of crying baby)?

or maybe have i missed something?

Peoples thoughts /opinions/comments please

deisemum

What are your OH's reasons for not having a soother?

Having worked in orthodontics for some time I'd sooner see a child suck on a soother rather than a dirty blanket, fingers or thumb. A soother is much easier to wean them off later.

Now some babies are fine without them but others do get great comfort from them. Soothers are not the evil objects some people see them as, in fact they are used on premature babies to help teach them to suck. Also recent studies have shown that they can help in the prevention of cot death. I've seen that on various websites on a number of occasions but if you google it then I'm sure you'll find it.

Some people claim they hinder speech development but from personal experience my older child had one and he was speaking 6 word sentances at 12 months, speech was one of his early developments.

When my son was 2 days old my midwife told my husband to get him a soother and he did and our son was a lot more settled. He was a happy contented baby, happy baby happy family


I'd do whatever works rather than suffer from sleep deprivation.

foxy06

Neither of my first two would take a soother. First one was always crying and if he would have taken it he would have got it! second one was much more laid back and was offered one but didn't want it either. I really don't see anything wrong with them but 5 year olds with soothers....well thats a different story. If you are willing to wean them off them early enough then they are a great help.

January

I was dead set against giving my baby a soother also, untill she came out of the womb!! It wasn't the crying that bothered me, she was a good baby. But on day 2 she wouldn't let go of my finger for an hour and in the end a midwife handed me a soother and I gladly put it in her mouth!! She just loved sucking things!

She doesn't get it often now, just at night and nap times. You have to wean them off it early though. Like the previous poster said five year olds with soothers and trying to talk with them in their mouth get on my nerves. My nan lets her grandkids do that.

~me~

adrieanne__x wrote: »

I was dead set against giving my baby a soother also, untill she came out of the womb!! It wasn't the crying that bothered me, she was a good baby. But on day 2 she wouldn't let go of my finger for an hour and in the end a midwife handed me a soother and I gladly put it in her mouth!! She just loved sucking things!

She doesn't get it often now, just at night and nap times. You have to wean them off it early though. Like the previous poster said five year olds with soothers and trying to talk with them in their mouth get on my nerves. My nan lets her grandkids do that.

same as my girl! they have been said to reduce the risk of cot death as it controls/regulates the rate of their breathing or something like that.
you can also get orthodentic ones nowadays to prevent teeth problems! and sometimes kids who dont have soothers get a bit hooked on the bottle which you really dont want as thats worse for tooth decay and the like!
they also say that if a baby just holds the soother rather than suck it then it might be better to give them a substitute like a toy cause babies are less nervous when they're holding something and if thats the case they only want the soother for comfort rather than as a sucker. that sentence was a bit jumbled sorry!

wuzzik

Recently did a childcare course and it was stated that they should be used for the first year as they reduce the risk of cot death. They are great as long as they are used correctly i.e when needed. I could have a screeeeeeeming fit when I see five year olds with them! If a child can ride a bicycle they DO NOT NEED ONE

daheff

i agree with all of you...i think its good for a *baby* to have them to help soothe the baby/ help to go to sleep. I dont want our baby with one in its mouth 24/7 . we only really use it at bed time...but the baby seems to wake up if the soother is taken out/falls out while she is asleep...meaning crying baby


my OH has read loads stuff that it hinders speech (but what 5mth old speaks?)

and of course there is SuperNanny and her Crusade against soothers...........

LashingLady

I remember the period at 5--6 months when we had numerous "dummy runs" in the middle of the night when ds would wake up and cry looking for his soother. I was wishing I had never started giving it to him! BUT that phase passed anow he just uses it to settle to sleep and doesn't get so upset if he wakes and can't find it. He got the stage that he could look for it in his cot anyway. (If your OH will allow it) maybe put a few extra in the cot so it's easier for him to find them!!

I definitely think that the good a soother provides outweighs these bad times and I've read that mothers have been giving their babies some type of "sucky" things for centuries - soothers are just the commercial solution!