Zoe, like all babies, when you were born you had a powerful urge to suck. Nursing was good, so was your thumb or a pacifier if offered. Over time, you continued to suck your thumb at nap time or bed time as you were falling asleep. The pediatrician said it was no big deal and not to worry about it until you were two. Two came and went. At two, we went to the dentist. The dentist said it was no big deal and not to worry about it until you were three. Three came and went. Another trip to the dentist, and she said it was no big deal and not to worry about it until you were four.
Thumb sucking definitely bugs me, but I've done my best to ignore it and not mention it unless you bring it up. One day, while commuting together to work, Scott reminded me that adults don't suck their thumbs and not to worry about it. We glanced over at the car next to us at that moment, and the 40+ year old woman was passionately sucking her thumb on her commute in to work. Ok, most adults don't continue to suck their thumbs.
About three weeks ago, you began sucking your thumb more often. I wondered if you were getting more nervous about something and needed more soothing or if the habit was just becoming more regular. I called the dentist to schedule your four year old appointment and while on the phone I asked if she was really going to start pushing for us to work on it this year or not. She suggested that if you showed any interest, we should try to stop now.
I asked you if you had any interest in stopping thumb sucking before school starts and before your next dentist appointment. You immediately said "YES!" You were excited to not suck your thumb like many of your friends. You wanted to tell your new teacher and the dentist that you don't suck your thumb. You wanted to, most of all, paint your nails. This was all a surprise to me. I thought you'd say "No way!" and I'd be waiting to see if the dentist said anything.
We agreed that it was going to be a hard habit to break, and we talked about all the ways that people may try. I also told you the story of how my dad helped me to stop biting my nails. It took him several more years to kick the habit he was working on, but I stopped biting my nails right away.
The next day, I asked if you still wanted to try. Again, "YES!" So, I asked how you wanted to try. You replied, "first, let's try the yucky polish, then gloves, then mittens, then thumb guard."
So, a friendly neighbor offered me her bottle of yucky polish called Mavala (which I am totally plugging here because it is awesome), and we were on our way. You were immediately inspired because the little girl that had owned the Mavala was giving it away because she didn't suck her thumb anymore.
We made a chart together that covered a one week period. We agreed that I would do it with you because sometimes I bite my cuticles and we both wanted to keep our hands out of our mouths. Each morning, we signed our names on the top of the chart under the day of the week, and then we polished our nails with the yucky polish. You polished your own and then I gave them a once over. At lunch time, we got stickers and drew smiley faces if we'd kept our hands out of our mouths and then we got to repaint our nails. Same routine at bedtime.
Each day, you were so excited to paint your nails and get stickers and smiley faces. You seemed so much more relaxed. You had replaced thumb sucking with a greater sense of control it seemed. You wanted to show everyone your painted nails insisting that the clear yucky polish looked kind of pink. On the counter, we kept the bright red polish that you chose as the polish we would use on Friday when we finished the chart and had a week of keeping our hands out of our mouth.
From the beginning, you were eager, on board, and very motivated. I only saw you try to put your thumb in your mouth a couple of times followed by lots of spitting and requests for milk because the polish tasted so badly. You thought it was funny though and didn't seem irked. Afternoon nap time was a little tough in that it was hard for you to fall asleep, but bed time at night was no problem and by the end of the week nap time went smoothly too.
It's been a week. You are thumb sucking-free and seem very proud about it. Congratulations Zoe!
P.S. - For anyone who has ever tried to make a change, you know that it can be really tough. Shortly after this photo was taken, when we cuddled up to say goodnight, you asked when you could have your thumb back. You sounded sad, and I told you we could take the polish off and you could have your thumb back. Then you decided you'd rather keep the polish on until you had a chance to show some friends.
