Lorelai's pacifier use has been a roller coaster ride for us. Initially, we had no problem with her using a pacifier. It calmed her down, helped her sleep, and seemed to make her happy. Plus there's that research that says it helps reduce the risk of SIDS. At her one year well check the pediatrician said it was time to get rid of her pacifier. So we started taking some steps to make that happen. We set boundaries - she could only use her pacifier in her room, then only when she was in her crib. We made a fair amount of progress although we weren't really trying that hard. We didn't really see a problem. We were sure she'd give it up eventually. Each time we tried to take it away, we were met with a very distraught Lorelai. And we caved. This was made worse with the addition of Logan who came home from the hospital with a pacifier. How could I let one child use one and not the other? We threw in the towel.
Then at her two year well check we were properly shamed by the pediatrician. Yes, we knew this could have effects on her speech and her teeth. But her teeth appeared fine. And she talks a mile a minute. We had no real concerns other than the parental beating we were taking from the doctor. And it was a beating. We came home from the doctor's visit (feeling like no less than abusive parents) and said fine, no more pacifier. We took them all away and told her she was too big for one. They were gone.
And then Lorelai threw a tantrum. Not just any tantrum. The tantrum from hell. It was huge. It had its own zip code it was so big. And it lasted for hours. At hour three, when I was convinced she was going to start vomiting - I handed her a pacifier. I was done.
But I knew, or so Doctor Dirty Look had informed me, we had to get rid of the pacifier. So I looked in every baby/parenting book I had. I searched the internet. I asked around. How did other people make this happen? I just couldn't make myself take it away from her and induce hours of tears (often leading to making herself sick). I mean, it's not like she would be heading off to college with her pacifier in her mouth, right?
Finally a found something that seemed like it might work. I found
Bye Bye Binky. It seemed like a process I could get behind. It promised no tantrums. Nothing painful. A gradual process. And I was skeptical, but optimistic. I downloaded the pdf and decided to give it a try.
The first step was a little confusing to me. Basically you poke a bunch of holes in the pacifier to start with. I tried it as the instructions said, but must not have had a large enough needle to induce the desired effect. I ended up using a seam ripper to create tiny little slits in the end of the pacifier. That worked perfectly.
We've proceeded step by step through the program and are currently at the very last stage. Just as they said it would, Lorelai has drastically reduced her pacifier use. She has thrown away over 15 pacifiers. We only have ONE left! She's still unwilling to part with this pacifier, but we just keep trimming it down. At this point, all she really does is hold it in her hand. As you can see (below) there's not really much left for her to put in her mouth!
I took these photos last night before she went to bed, and before I shaved off another little bit! She hasn't wanted to throw this one away just yet, but I can't tell you the last time I've seen her with a pacifier in her mouth. And there have been NO tears! Not one! I can't endorse this website enough. If you find yourself facing the great pacifier dilemma, go with
Bye Bye Binky. You won't be sorry.
And the best part? As we get ready to go for Lorelai's 3 year well check in another couple of months, I'm practicing my "smug parent" look. Yup, the one I'm going to give her when she asks about whether or not Lorelai is
still using the pacifier. And I'll give her a look that clearly says
you may wish to have a mental health evaluation because you're bat shit crazy. And I'll say, "Oh, Lorelai hasn't been using her pacifier for quite a while. She just decided she didn't want it anymore."
