I can't believe I gave in to the PACI...

[Marcy_O]

I have been figting with DH about giving DS a pacifier. Since he's been home from the hospital, if he wants to just "suck" we offer him a finger because it smells/feels more like mommy's breast than a rubber nipple. Since we don't have BFing established I was VERY reluctant to do this. But after talking with Bright's Ped, she convinced me that he's already figured out BFing and it's just a matter of him not wanting to do it sometimes. She suggested that if he's upset after trying to BF, to give him the paci to calm him down and try again. So I went out and got 4 (two different nipple types). And believe it or not, it worked! Bright latched on a couple times tonight though he didn't stay on (I think my let down was too fast and it sprayed into his mouth and scared him...at least that's my theory tonight).


I HATE HATE HATE seeing him with that godawful thing in his mouth, because it makes me feel like I'm just putting it in his mouth to shut him up, but I suppose I need to get over that. But it is nice in the car when he wants to suck and I can't give him the finger (HA!) to suck on. But still, I hate it but it might just be what we needed to get him to BF afterall!!

Marcy

[anamika]

Hi Marcy,
I have a binky (paci) baby too - completely against my wishes too!! We only had a binky at home since it was a shower gift. We finally gave in and gave it to her one long night after much rocking and crying ( me and her). We gave her the binky - hubby, baby both were asleep in 2 mins while I stayed up and cried for an hour. I hated the sight of the binky in her mouth!!
But now we're used to it. Our ped (whom I love) said it's fine so that helped me feel better too.
Is Bright your son's name or nickname? Either way it's such a nice name!

[Marcy_O]

Hey there! Glad to know you had the same experience/feelings about the "sucky" as I call it :) Bright isn't a really crier, but he gets so darned frustrated and I can't have my finger in his mouth ALL the time. So I guess the sucky is a good thing. Bright is short for Brighton, Brighton (obviously:)) is his name. He's my bright boy!!

[sarahsthreads]

Eight months ago I could have written your post. I was so totally anti-binky, and we managed to hold out for three long weeks, but I gave in after a particularly hard day when DD was obviously just comfort sucking and my nipples were so sore... I was so upset to see that thing in her mouth, and I kept hiding it from DH and MIL who were trying to give it to her all the time, but the world didn't end like I thought it would. I got used to seeing it in her mouth, and I have to confess I saved her very first binky in her keepsake box.

Carrie still loves her binky. She goes to bed with three of them. But she doesn't have one in her mouth all the time, and I don't foresee her going to college with one, either.

So, all that to say that I completely understand how you feel, and that it's important to do whatever you need to do to get through the first really hard weeks.

Good luck!
Sarah :)

[HHCs Mom]

I too gave in to the paci and it was one of the best things I ever did! In the hospital, they brought DS to me in the middle of the night to nurse. He had a paci in his bassinette and I told the nurse that I didn't want him to have a paci. She looked at me like I had three heads and just said, "ok but he really wants to suck". I stood firm until a few weeks after we got home and then sent my mom out to buy some. Our LC said that as long as they were orthodontic pacis that it was ok. I had my mom get him Nuk pacis since that's what they had in the hospital.

DS gave up the paci on his own before he was a year. I fully expected it to be a battle but he became less and less interested in them as he got older. We *did not* size up on his pacis as he got older; he kept using the same ones we bought when he was a newborn. I have no idea if that helped him become disinterested or not, but it seems like if they were hard to suck on that he would give up on them. That's my theory anyway.

Don't worry about whether your child uses a paci. They are born wanting to suck and they surely can't suck on your nipples all day long! :o YIKES!

HTH!
Kim
~ mama to a sweet boy named Harrison ~ 4.6.04

[jhaud]

I didn't think i wanted dd to have a paci either, we had received several with shower gifts... well, we (meaning my husband) tried it to soother her early on (after hospital, but not sure how far in... i had bf issues from the beginning and ended up a pumper) and it worked. after that if her mouth was empty dh was shoving a damn paci in it... driving me crazy. not that i didn't want her to have it, but only wanting her to have it if she was upset. he thought she "was bored" or "needed something to do/keep her occupied" constantly. I just knew i was going to have a battle on my hands (with him as much as dd)

She gave it up before she was 6 mo!! thankfully. she just stopped taking it! in fact she was about 4.5 months when this started and by the time we flew to florida at about 6 months i couldn't even get her to take it on the plane. now if we're socializing with others who have babies/toddlers with pacis she will go up and take it/ check it out and play with it... chewing on both sides, but never sucks on one!

so don't fret, for now it serves a need and gives you a bit of relief

good luck
jennifer
mom to genevieve aug 05 2004

[buddyleebaby]

I think my DD and your DS are just about the same age.
I do not let DD have a pacifier but I have read recent studies that have found using a pacifier between months 1 and 3 help in reducing the risk of SIDS, so much so that the AAP is in the process of changing their anti-paci stance.( I forget why. Something to do with making baby more aware of their breathing.) So no need to feel guilty!

[tbriese]

my DD loves her binky. i'm neither pro nor con but i did try to limit its use situations that DD needed soothing. if she seemed ok, i would try taking it out.

now that she's 6 months, she recognizes it and reaches for it. it is fun to see her problem solve and figure out how to put it in her mouth herself. i did worry we'll have probs taking it away later but both my dentist and our ped says it's not a big concern unless she's still using it at 3-4 years of age so i've stopped worrying too much.

a note of caution...DD became very dependant on her binky for her bedtime routine. when we started having probs with nightwaking as much as 4 times per night (to get her binky), we had to break down and take the binky away for bedtime. that was hard! so if you can avoid using it for bedtime, it might save you some real heartache later on.

good luck!

[Marcy_O]

Well, so far he's not taking it every time we offer it so that's good. I will offer it to him while I'm warming up his bottle at night if he's really fussing and acting like he's starving to death. That seems to calm him down. It also calms him down when I'm trying to BF and he's getting frustrated. I let him suck on it for a little bit before we try again. So far that's only worked once. I do know I'm going to have ot keep an eye on DH. He seems to think that he can just give it to him all the time. If we're able I'd rather have him suck on our fingers before the sucky, but sometimes you just don't have enough hands! Thanks for all of your encouragement. It makes me feel better that other BFing moms use them.

[sntm]

If it's any consolation, we succumbed as well, but Jack outgrew it by 10 months old and was never a "heavy user."

Think of it as meeting a sucking need. As long as you don't abuse it, it's not necessarily a bad thing.
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shannon
not-even-pregnant-yet-overachiever
trying-to-conceive :)
PREGNANT! EDD 6/9/03
mama to Jack 6/6/03
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Breastfeeding 2 years & counting