# Introducing a pacifier for 1 yr old?



## pelirroja (May 9, 2008)

I've just finally joined this discussion board after reading it for a while. I have so many questions! Let's start with this one:

Have any of you tried introducing a pacifier for an older baby? My 1-yr old always nurses to sleep when she's with me (we co-sleep, and I nurse her in bed and sneak away after she's asleep). My dh used to get her to fall asleep in his arms and then put her into bed, but now she wakes up every time he tries to put her down. We're wondering if she would stay asleep if she were sucking. Do you think it would work? Would we be perpetuating a bad habit, and perhaps even make it worse? Any other thoughts on how to help dh get her down for a nap? Thanks!


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## alegna (Jan 14, 2003)

No way I'd introduce a pacifier at that age. It is biologically normal for her to nurse to sleep.

I would consider a pacifier for an infant with a high suck need. But I do not think it would be appropriate to introduce one that late without an extraordinary reason.

-Angela


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## readytobedone (Apr 6, 2007)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *alegna* 
No way I'd introduce a pacifier at that age. It is biologically normal for her to nurse to sleep.

I would consider a pacifier for an infant with a high suck need. But I do not think it would be appropriate to introduce one that late without an extraordinary reason.

-Angela

i will disagree. i don't see any harm in trying it. it probably won't work that late anyway, though.

one qualification: i see no harm in trying it as long as you're not going to do something crazy, like cold turkey wean her from it in 3 months because you decide she's too old.

when DD started taking a paci around 5 months, i realized i'm going to have to follow her lead about weaning the paci. otherwise it's just not fair to give them one.


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## RoadWorkAhead (Sep 8, 2005)

I intro'd a pacifier around age one but only because we had to take away DD"s sucking source (my breast) due to her medical issues. I prayed she'd take it, but no such luck. Now 3 months later, she finally has chosen to take a pacifier and a bottle in limited contexts, but its a huge change, it was 2 full months post "weaning" (In quotes because she still sneaks in a dry nurse here or there) before she would consent to an artificial nipple. As long as she had any hope we were gonna give back her boob, she wasn't having it. And since I wouldn't recommend weaning just to get her to take it, I think its highly unlikely. ANd liek PP, I know that giving it means letting her choose to wean from it, as her first weaning was a fairly hard one on her.


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## pelirroja (May 9, 2008)

Thanks for your advice. I'm leaning toward not introducing a paci because I don't want the struggle of weaning her from it. I just feel bad for my dh because he gets so frustrated when dd wakes up every time he puts her down. I'm hoping he'll get comfortable with the ergo so he can just wear her while she naps. Wish us luck!


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## Pumpkin_Pie (Oct 10, 2006)

I actually just tried to introduce a pacifier to my 13 month old. He has a very high suck need at night, and I was getting so little sleep that I was becoming a very bad mama in the middle of the night. I was getting pretty much no sleep and he was actually not sleeping much either because I was stressing out over him needing to be on my nipple all the freaking time. I tried it out one day at nap time while I had him sleeping on my lap. I slipped my nipple out and slipped the paci in and he spit it right back out and rooted for my breast.

He then found it when he woke up later and thought it was the most hilarious thing. He walked around with it in his mouth for a minute or so and then threw it on the floor, and that was that.

He is now sleeping great (Thank-You NCSS!!) but there was absolutely no way he was going to take that pacifier. I think he seriously thought it was silly.


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## leighann79 (Aug 4, 2005)

I tried at about that age and it was a no-go. LOL She likes playing with any she finds around the house though.


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## lolar2 (Nov 8, 2005)

DS will only take a pacifier if he sees it in another baby's mouth first. Yum!


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## clavicula (Apr 10, 2005)

I'd say why not? But _you_ will hate it soon!








My question: can they learn how to use it at that age? We have pacifiers, but my 13 mo has absolutely no idea what to do with it. We freeze it (for teething) but she just chews on it, never sucks.


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## lizziebits (Sep 3, 2007)

We were recently decluttering our house, and my 16 month old found one of his old pacifiers. He never really took to a pacifier when her was younger, and gave it up completely by 5 months. Well, he thought it was just the coolest thing in the world, and had been randomly sucking on it for the past few days. He likes to chew on it, too, and I think that is from teething. Just for kicks I tried giving to him one night after we he was drowsing off from nursing but not quite asleep. It was a no go for sure, as I thought it would be.

I think older kids are just far too aware of the real thing to like be introducing a substitute at this point. But I don't see any real harm in giving it a whirl. If it got to the point where he was nursing substantially less because of it, I would reconsider, but I think that is very unlikely to happen.


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