Saying goodbye to the pacifier is not easy. In the child they find an object of comfort, it helps them to sleep and gives them calm. Some children leave it naturally but others you have to give them a little hand to get it.
Generally, it is advisable to leave the pacifier between 24-36 months. Depending on the type of relationship you have with the pacifier, the process will be easier or more difficult.
What types of relationship are there?
Well, children have two ways of relating to the pacifier: a healthier one where they use it at certain times (sleep, sleep, stress ...) or when they use it for everythingThey do not know how to be without it and if they do not have it, they are enraged. The latter is a dependency that will complicate the issue.
How to help him to give up the pacifier?
If he has a sporadic kind of relationship with the pacifier, he may even say goodbye from one day to the next. There will come a time when you will no longer need it and you will forget about it. But if it hasn't happened yet and you need a little push or if your dependency is greater, here are some tips.
Previous phase
There are parents who decide to suddenly remove the pacifier from their children and in other cases gradually. It is always good to prepare them for this new stage of their development. This phase can last a month.
- Talk to the child. Explain the reasons why he should give up the pacifier.
- Read stories on the subject. There are stories where the characters stop using the pacifier because they are older children.
- Boost your self-esteem. Highlight the things that he knows how to do like older children and congratulate him.
Farewell phase
The time has come to say goodbye to the pacifier.
- Put it in a place that is not within your reach. He can choose it, and when he needs it he asks us for it. Not having it on hand may make it easier for you to forget about it.
- Supply the pacifier function. If the child uses it to calm down we can hug him and calm him in an affective way.
- Replace it with another object. My little sister was given a little blanket that gave him comfort and that he took when he was sleepy.
- Helium balloon. Another very nice idea is to mark between the two of you a day on the calendar when the pacifiers will farewell. That day you buy a helium balloon and in a nice place (beach, mountain, park ...) all the pacifiers are tied. A countdown between the two before saying goodbye to the pacifier stage (yes, parents also have to say goodbye, their children stop being babies). Any other pretty goodbye you can think of will be fine.
- Congratulate him. Tell him how proud you are of him and how well he is doing.
Comfort phase
After first moments of joy for parents and children, the times when you need a pacifier. A moment of insecurity for parents and children. He has always had the pacifier to comfort him and in times of distress he will want to use it again. She will need your help to learn to calm down, she will want extra pampering and a good dose of patience.
In this phase, it may be difficult for him to fall asleep and he may be more irritable. The temptation to go back is great for parents who see their child suffer, but we can do something to calm them down. Pampering, pampering and more pampering.
Patience
The important thing is that do not obsess or put pressure on the child. Be on the lookout for extra comfort on those days. Do not scold or punish him because it will be much worse. The process must be carried out in the most respectful way for the child. Understand that the pacifier is something that parents provide to children and then decide to take it off.
If we force them, we run the risk of thumb sucking. And it's easier to let them use the pacifier than to let them suck their thumb.
Because remember ... it must be done when the child and parents are ready.