The great dummy debate.
The great dummy debate!!!! Do you have a dummy dependent baby, toddler or pre schooler and do you constantly get up throughout the night to put it back in their mouth, when they wake up screaming out for it? Is it interrupting their sleep and yours too!😴 It can become a frustrating time and most parents feel at a loss as to how to change the situation!! A dummy can be a useful parenting tool and for babies the sucking reflex that it encourages, triggers a calming and sleepy response!!! For reflux and colicky babies it can improve the situation greatly and for most of the time its fine....until its NOT!!! If you have reached the point with your child where they are dependent on the dummy to fall asleep and will wake between sleep cycles to have it popped back in, then I have a few suggestions to ease your troubles.. ✅Are you thinking cold turkey? If so I recommend doing this before the 4 month mark! To avoid a sleep association before the Circadian rhythm completely develops (sleep cycles) ✅if your child is older then 4 months(or before that age, if you are looking for gentle methods), you could gently phase it out, only offering it as a comforting tool and removing it from your child's mouth before they are completely asleep...this will encourage them to fall asleep without it in their mouth! ✅before removing the dummy introduce other positive sleep associations and over lap them for a few weeks before ditching the dummy. Examples would include..
pink/white noise, sleep comforter, aromatherapy, lullaby's. ✅stick it out between 6 and 18 months, until your child is able to find the dummy them selves and replace it independently. ✅have more then one dummy in the cot so that it is easier to find one in the dark. ✅wait till your child has passed any developmental leaps, especially separation anxiety, so you are not causing any unnecessary emotional upheaval. ✅if your child is older, talk them through it, wait till their mature enough to understand and allow them to be involved in the process. ✅Be consistent and commited to the change..once the dummys have been ditched..throw them all out so you can't regress.
