Finger Sucking
Thumb or finger sucking is probably the most common childhood bad habit. If it continues beyond the age of three (and possibly even before this), thumb sucking becomes a problem because it interferes with the normal healthy growth of your child’s teeth.
The conventional approach
To stop a child from sucking their thumb or fingers, many parents simply try telling them to stop. They may say something such as: “Take your thumb out of your mouth!” or “Please don’t suck your thumb, your teeth will stick out”. This direct approach may not succeed, and can backfire if your child decides to defy the order.
To stop a child from sucking their thumb or fingers, many parents simply try telling them to stop. This direct approach may not succeed, and can backfire if your child decides to defy the order.
An alternative approach
Adopting another approach may work better. In this, don’t try persuading your child to stop the habit but talk with them about the thumb or finger they are sucking. In most cases, they always suck the same thumb or finger, for example the thumb on the right hand or the index finger of the left hand. Once you know this, suggest to them that instead of sucking only one finger, they should suck on all of their fingers for equal amounts of time.
If you succeed in convincing them that all their fingers should receive equal attention, the situation changes radically. Your mission is no longer to get them to stop sucking their thumb or one finger, but to help them make sure that all their fingers get sucked for equal amounts of time and avoid giving any individual fingers special attention.
Thumb sucking then turns from being a bad habit into a fun game in which the focus is on making sure all their fingers receive equal attention. When the game has been going on for some time, possibly days or weeks, they’ll gradually tire of it and will probably want to stop all types of sucking.
Modifying behaviour is easier than stopping it
The approach described here confirms the observation that rather than just trying to stop bad habits, both children and adults usually find giving them up much easier if they are first modified.
Kind reminders
Another approach well worth considering is inviting your child to help work out a good way in which adults can remind them to remove thumbs or fingers from their mouth and do something else with the thumb or finger they were sucking.
The replacement behaviour can be anything they choose. It could, for example, involve palming their thumb or finger with the other hand, or stroking one hand using the other. It’s a good idea to agree on a signal or code word you can use when reminding your child to perform the replacement behaviour rather than continuing to suck.
Possible skills
– the skill of sucking on both thumbs for equal amounts of time
– the skill of sucking all fingers – including thumbs – for equal amount of time
– the skill of squeezing your thumb instead of sucking it
– the skill of stroking the fingers of one hand with the other hand
– the skill of changing from sucking fingers to a replacement behaviour after being reminded by a supporter
This article is owned by: Kids’Skills https://www.kidsskills.org/WP-fin/http://www.kidsskillsapp.com/
