How Can I Get My Son off the Pacifer He Is 2 Yrs Old ?

Hi C.,
With my little girl I cut the tip off of all of her pacifiers. When she would go to get one and put it in her mouth she soon realized that is was "broke". After one day of her going back and forth with the pacifiers she wanted nothing to do with them anymore. In fact she took all three of them and threw them in the garbage. I then told her what a big girl she was and clapped for her. She thought it was the greatest thing! The key is to let them realize on their own that they cannot use it, and decide that they are not needed anymore.
Good Luck!!

There is no easy way ... you can do the paci fairy ... you can "give them to a new baby." You can just "lose" them or say they are broken. You can trade the paci in for an awesome new toy ...

Have the pacifier fairy pick it up one night and leave a big boy toy. My kids weren't pacy babies, but I heard it works.

Good luck to you.

Hello C.,

Toddlers need a security item. Often it's a pacifier, blanket or doll. He will eventually out grow the pacifier, but if you want it gone now, make pacifier rules, like he can only use it in bed. He can use it as much as he wants, in his bed. Also, encourage him to bond with a different security time, like a toy or blanket. Allow this item anywhere.

If he tries to talk to you with the pacifier in his mouth, tell him that you cannot hear him with it in his mouth and ask him to talk to you when is mouth is empty.

I hope this helps.

R. Magby

I like what everyone else has said, but basically, IN ALL NICENESS: just take it away - you are the parent. Brace yourself for a couple of days of fits and tears, but if you're ready for it to be gone, take it away!

We went to my mom's lake house for a weekend (I'm sure any vacation would do). When my daughter was going to bed we pulled out her jammies and blanket and settled in. When she realized she didn't have her "binky" she asked me for it. I said, "I thought YOU brought it. I guess we forgot it at home. Well that's ok, we'll be ok." This forced her to go without it for the long weekend. It was rough - lots of tears and fighting going to sleep, but she did sleep. And the next day, she was tired from being up so much, so she had to nap without it too. Daddy cleared out all the binkies at home too, so there were just none to be found.

I have heard too of people using a "nap fairy" that you give all the pacifiers to so that they can be given to the new babies who need them. She leaves a new toy behind as a thanks.

We just went through this a few weeks ago, more by accident, because we couldn't find any pacifiers, but it did the trick regardless.
We went cold turkey with our two-year old son. At first he asked for it, sometimes cried for it, but after a couple of days, he stopped asking, and has been fine ever since!
We did cold turkey with our middle child as well, with the same process and results.
Make sure he has some other security item as an alternative to the pacifier. We used a little stuffed animal this time around, and my son toted it around with him for the first few days, and then hasn't picked it up since. It made for an easier transition though!
Good luck!

My daughter is 2 as well, and we just went through this with her about 3 weeks ago. She had thrown it down some stairs, and we couldn't find it. So I explained to her that since she threw it, she no longer needed it, that she was a big girl now. She only asked for it for a few days after that, and I was VERY surprised at how well she did without it. Your little guy might surprise you too! She was VERY attached to hers, but took giving it up really well. The best thing to do, in my opinion, is to just get rid of it all together. Letting them only get it at bed time or naps, I believe, confuses them that it's ok to continue to use it. And remember, that it WILL take patience. Don't give in to tantrums, and try to get his mind off of it by diverting his attention to something else.
GOOD LUCK!!

we tried all kinds of stuff that didn't work with our 1st born, lol... There was just hiding them all (suggested by someone) or putting a touch of something he didn't like on it (a food taste, like lemon juice), but I didn't like that idea...One that worked with my nephew was to cut a hole in it or cut the end off. And then when he sucked on it, it wasn't right, so he just stopped. With mine, he was older than 2, lol... but we gradually got him from having it all the time, to having it when he slept, then only at bed (not nap time)... and then when nothing else worked, I invented the paci-fairy. We mailed it to her-in other words, we put it in an envelope with "paci-fairy" on it, and we waved and said goodbye as Daddy drove off to "mail it"... when Daddy returned from driving around the block, the paci fairy had brought a couple of new dinosaurs, and his very first transformer toy. And so at night, when he asked for it, we would say "well, we'd have to give the toys back", and that was the end of that... but I did find him asleep with those toys lined up less than 6 inches from his head, lol...

Some say that it is best just to tell him that the pacifer is gone and don't give it to him again., It is said that they are fussy for about 3 days but then they begin to move on. I never had this problem so I don't know if the 3 day thing is true. Give it a try and see. Children can learn to adjust to new thing quicker than us adults.

The binky fairy (cousins with the tooth fairy) came and took all the binkys for the "new babies". The binky fairy left a present. Also, she had to come back because my daughter found a binky stashed in an old diaper bag. Again, that night the binky fairy left another small token of her appreciation. Good luck-she did ask for it now and again, but it was easier than I thought.

I was actually surprised that our pediatrician said it was ok and that if we take it away now she'll just replace it with something else and if it's her thumb, we can't take that away. It's just allowing her to use it at nap time and at night. This is where our problem is. We often give in and let her have it when she wants it. I want to try and let her have some gum when she asks for the pacifier. She's getting the hang of gum chewing, meaning she doesn't always just swallow it anymore. I'd like to read what other people wrote as well.

The binky fairy is exactly what we used and it when over surprisingly well. She understood that the fairy came to take the binkys for the new boorn babies and she was fine with that......we didn't give her a present and she asked for it a few times but over all it was very easy with the help of faries : )

We actually used Santa Claus as our helper. We told our little girl that she had to give Santa Claus all of her pacifers so that he could give them to all the little babies. In return Santa Claus left her a very special present.... you could do the same with the Easter Bunny!!!!

Hey C., I didn't read all the responses, so I hope I'm not repeating. I just took my son's away on his second birthday last month. It was much easier that I thought it was going to be! I just prepped him for it all day, and let him carry the binkies around in a baggie and told him we would be taking them to the store to get something new for him to use at bedtime, and that he was goign to share his binkies with "other babies." He went along with it, picked out a glow in the dark teddy and handed over his binky bag to the cashier. He then knew that the binkies were no longer at home. That night he cried only about 7-10 minutes and slept until 2 when he woke up crying for a binky. We just reminded him he had shared the binkies with other babies and he remembered that they were indeed gone and seemed to accept it. The next night went down with no crying and slept through the night. He used to have to go to bed with one in his mouth and one in each hand and would wake up and cry if they fell on the floor. Good luck, it will probably be easier than you think, just make sure all binkies are out of the house so you don't cave in and give him one! (I knew I would if I had a back up one!)

start by weaning him. First dont let it out of the house, then not while hes out of bed, then eventually remove it from the bed routine, but who cares when that is. Dont traumatize yourself and your child. He wont be 16 sucking on a pacifier

cold turkey.... buy a new friend to replace it. Maybe a new stuffed animal or blanket of some sort. You need to throw all of them out so you are not tempted to give it to him. He should be good in 2 days. Just do not give in no matter what. :) Good luck! Been there. It's tough at the beginning, but so long as you don't give in, he will know that he is not getting it back.

We went cold turkey! The first couple of naps/bed times were rough! Throw them away and take the trash out of the house so you won't be tempted to dig it out!!
Blessings, K.

I'll second everything Rebecca said.

Also, paci's are easier to take away than thumbs.

The older they get, the easier it is since they don't 'need' the security of a paci as much. It doesn't get harder. At all.

If and when you decide to get him to stop, just cut the very tip of it off, that way he can use it, but it will be broken and he can decide, all on his own, whether he wants to keep it. By all means, if he wants to keep it in his bed, let him. My kids hung onto theirs for weeks, but just didn't suck on them.

cut the tip... when he asks what happened, just say it broke.

We just got our 2 yr old off the passy in Jan and it was hard but we did it cold turkey, he cryed at night and was very frustrated during the day but it only took a week. Alsothough, everytime you find one if you are like us with 15 passy's running around you have to throw them away, DO NOT put them in a drawer for hiding since your son will find them, also you can buy new ones for the next baby if you are pregnant or get pregnant later and choose to use a passy with the next. good luck it only took us a week.

Try to see if he will trade it for a really great toy -- take him to the toy store and let him pick, or buy 3, let him pick one, return the other 2 or give them as birthday gifts to someone else.

I have heard of people tying it to a doorknob, or other object, with a few feet of string. Then the kid can still have it all they want, but they have to sit there and suck on it. If the area near where you have it tied up is no fun to be in with no toys or tv, they will give it up on their own and go play. (Obviously, make sure he is supervised since there is a string he could strangle on.)

The older they get the harder it is. There are lots of different creative ways to make it disappear but none of them make it easier. Just choose the way you want to go with and stick with it. There will be crying and a few tough nights but after a week they won't even miss it. Good luck!

On the night of the full moon throw the binky away in front of him and tell him he is a big boy now and you don't need it anymore. The night of the full moon in the Farmer's almanac is when the ween calves from their mothers.

I am 2 for 2 both my kids gave up the binky that night of the full moon with no problems. My daughter was 23 months and my son was 18 months at the time I did it. If your son is still teething just make sure to have a gel hand or something made for the fridge to give him when he wants to chew the swelling down of his gums.

-A.
Proud Member of Internet Ceo Moms working from home