Nursing and Pacifiers

I used a pacifier pretty early with my daughter. When she was tiny she would only use a soothie, as she got older, she switched to a nuk. She had NO problem with nipple confusion. There is actually evidence that using a pacifier for sleep can reduce SIDS risk.
http://www.webmd.com/parenting/news/20051208/pacifiers-ma...

my daughter is two and a half months old. I have been breastfeeding her and she has also been using a pacifier since she was one week old. I use the NUK pacifiers. she doesnt have a problem with going from the pacifier to the breast. she also needed something to help her sleep better.

As long as her latch is good I would offer the pacifier. My almost 8 week old also has a very strong desire but refuses anything to suck on besides me. I WISH I could get him to take something other than my nipple to sleep!

I have had two children who loved their pacifiers. My second one wanted to nurse all the time while I was still in the hospital, but kept falling asleep. The nurse told me that some children have a greater need to suck. She said they don't always promote the pacifier, but in cases as that they do. Both her and the home care nurse thought the best ones were the gerber nuk. I thought they would have recommended something more fancy, but they said that one was the closest to to real thing. I liked that if we lost one we could find that brand anywhere. I made the mistake of buying one that not every store had the first time around and when my daughter lost one it was a pain to find them.

I used a pacifier with my daughter and nursed.. I didn't select any special kind of pacifier, I called the nursery at the hospital and purchased what they offer newborns (as my other two children never used one). She did well with it and it did not effect her nursing. Hope this helps.

My daughter had a paci from the start. She was preemie so on a feeding tube the first 5 weeks - however after a few weeks was introduced to a pacifier. When she was able to start feeding, she could only nurse once in an 8 hour period (takes a lot out of them!) so she never had nipple confusion because she had all from the very start.

Hi J.,

I breastfed my son, and he used a pacifier from the time he was born until he was 6 months old. (From 4 months to 6 months, he only used it at naptime and bedtime.) We used the "Sassy" brand and I did not think it caused confusion at all. There were times that my son needed to be soothed and he did not want to breastfeed.

My personal philosophy is that pacifiers are for newborns--I can't stand seeing a toddler running around with one. So, I don't see any problems with giving her one now, but know that the sooner you take it away, the easier it will be. When we took away our son's at 6 months, he had 1 or 2 rough nights and then he was just fine. The pacifier served its purpose and I was grateful for it, but it was nice not to have to deal with it or wonder where it was or did it fall on the floor.

(It was really funny, I was deadset against pacifiers--no way was my kid going to have one! The second night after he was born, he screamed ALL NIGHT. Nothing I could do would soothe him, and he did not want to breastfeed. We had received a pacifier as a gift from the hospital, and I remember feeling so desperate as I tore open the packaging and gave it to him.)

I was dead set on not confusing my son by giving him a pacifier. After a entire night of screaming at the hospital, the Pediatrician told us a pacifier very rarely confuses a baby. Desperate, we gave in and were SO glad we listened to her. My son took almost any brand, but I did stay away from latex. He never did have any nipple confusion. At 2 weeks, your daughter should be just fine. Enjoy!

Hi J.,

I was also against giving my little guy a pacifier as well, but he got one in the hospital since he was keeping all the other babies in the nursery awake!

Anyway, we've been using the Avent brand ones since he was born (he is now 15 months and only uses it for sleeping and car rides) and I am happy to say that he is still happily nursing and has not had any confusion at all. Our ped. said that some babies have a much stronger need to suck then others and offering a pacifier is a great way for them to calm themselves down.

Hope this helps!

Being a first time mom I was very worried that my daughter wouldn't go back to me. After letting her suck on my pinky and then grandma hearing her cry all night we decided that she needed to suck on something. We did the soothie kind to start with but it didn't stay in her mouth, so now we are on to the MAM. It worked for us, we do limit when she has it though, just when she NEEDS it and needs to be soothed. Only now she has started to suck on her fists till they get raw... poor little thing. I do like the idea of a passi instead of sucking the thumb, you can't take the thumb away! Just have a plan on when you want your daughter to have it and then also a plan on when you want to get rid of it. My plan is limiting it more and more, she doesn;t need it for naps just bedtime and screaming at church. 1 year seems to be a good limit for our family. Everyone is different though. Message me if you would like to talk more about it and 1st time mom experiences!
Blessings+
A. E

I have given a pacifier to all 3 of my kids while nursing them. My son only nursed for 4 months but he was my first and I did not know what I was doing so that was most of the problem. But my two girls were fine with them. I used the Soothie brand ones that the Hospital gave out. This one looks like a good one also. I want to order a couple of these myself.http://store.nexternal.com/shared/StoreFront/default.asp?...

Here is a link to the soothie ones on Amazon. These green ones are the best to start with and then move up to the pink ones later. The pink ones are harder and my 1st daughter would not take it. My 2nd daughter LOVES hers. http://www.amazon.com/First-Years-Newborn-Soothie-Pacifie...
These pacifiers are the more natural looking ones and I have never had a problem with confusion. Hope this helps.

In my experience as a parent and after having had this conversation with countless other parents over the years, my conclusion is this: it all depends on your comfort level. Set some ground rules and be consistent and you and your daughter will be fine. Find a pacifier that she likes, and use it when she needs it. Set some ground rules for when she uses it that fit her needs and don't drive you crazy. Adjust those rules when her needs change (when she's sick, when she starts to talk, etc.) You can try to plan an exit strategy now, but what works will depend a lot on your daughter's personality, which you will, of course, learn a lot more about over time.

I have a 4 year old who was breastfed and lovvvveeeedddd his pacifier for a long time. It was attached to his shirt pretty much all the time for roughly his first year. When he started to talk (or, that sort of pre-talking where he knows what he means and he's trying to form words - and when they really understand a lot of what you say to them) we limited it to naps and bedtime. It stayed with naps and bedtime until he was 3-1/2. Our ped wasn't at all worried about it, he had excellent verbal skills and good social skills, it doesn't affect their teeth at all until the permanents come in. We were expecting our second, and it just seemed like he was probably ready to give it up. We let it be his choice - he desperately wanted a 3-wheeled scooter for Christmas, and we told him that was a big boy toy, and big boys didn't need pacifiers any more. Santa could bring him a scooter if he left the pacifiers for Santa (yes, w/the cocoa and cookies.) We gave him six weeks to get used to the idea, and even Christmas Eve, told him it was OK if he wasn't ready,that the scooter could come later, too. But he was ready, and he left them for Santa, and he got his scooter. The first week or so of bedtimes was a little rough, but we got through it just fine and he had no interest in the pacifier by the time his brother came along, six months later.

This seems to be one of those parenting decisions that you can really overthink and get obsessive about - and as you know, having older children, most of those decisions do not turn out to be nearly as life-threatening as they sometimes seem. So try a pacifier, see if she likes it, and don't worry about it too much. Good luck!

Hi there! I see you have numerous responses, but i wanted to add my little bit too. I tried using a pacifier (Playtex binky) in the hospital, but my son wouldn't take to it. Then when we got home, I tried the NUK and he really took to that one. He still uses it today. He never had any confusion while nursing and the nuk apparently is best for nursed babies, because the pacifier is shaped like the nipple does while nursing. My son only wants his pacifier when he goes to sleep, and that isn't a whole lot either. However, every baby is different. Hope that helps! And congrats on your newest addition!!

We gave it to our second two girls in the hospital! We think it's so much easier for two reasons; 1. if they need to suck for comfort it means you don't have to be nursing all night, and 2. it's SO much easier to take away than if they suck their thumb!

Good Luck!

I have nursed two babies. The first, I introduced the pacifier at about 1 month, no problems except that she eventually preferred her thumb, so the pacis were a waste of money. The second I introduced it at 2 weeks because she needed to suck so much that I think she was overeating and threw up a lot. Once I introduced the paci, the barfing quit almost entirely. No problems there either. However, I know it can cause problems with getting a bad latch. So I wouldn't introduce it before 1 month without very good reason.

I nursed both my girls. I chose not to use pacifiers. If you baby is doing fine without it, why would you want to give them one? My view on it is I would rather figure out why my baby is fussing rather than just pop something in their mouth to keep them quiet. The hassle of trying to take a paci away from a 2 year old did not seem worth the short term ''plug'' benifits.
Yes, some babies need the soothing sensation of sucking, HOWEVER, babies lose that need at 6mo of age. If you do decide to give a paci they recommend taking it away at 6 mo so they do not get addicted or emotionally attached to it.
There really is no ideal paci. Just whatever your baby likes best.

my son wouldnt take to those wierdo one piece nuks. the regular nuk 'brand' is just as good, and actually designed to help prevent teeth issues. so i would go with those. however, if your daughter will take to those one piece kinds, they do last longer and are quite a bit cleaner than the nuk brand.

i dont remember when we gave our son a nuk. i do believe it was early on. GREAT JOB BREASTFEEDING! i highly recommend finding your local or nearby la leche league, they are awesome and will give you tons of info and support!! :D

you are right that babies have a need to suck, and awesome that you are willing to accomodate that to your daughter! i wouldnt worry about nipple confusion, babies who nurse have a stronger sucking reflex than those that dont nurse, so she should be fine no matter if shes got the nuk or not. as long as your breastfeeding relationship is secure, and nursing is going well, you should be fine introducing the nuk! :D

great job moM!

I used one while still in the hospital for 4 days. If I hadn't, my daughter would do 45 minute nursing sessions just to suck...ouch! We never had issues with nipple confusion and continued to nurse for 22 months....

I introduced the pacifier as soon as we got home from the hospital, at about 2-3 days old. Some babies have more of a need to suck, and my 2nd son is definitely one of those babies! I think as long as their latch is good and they're eating well, a pacifier is ok. My son prefers the Nuk ones but really he'll suck on anything! I only use the silicone ones cause I heard the latex can cause allergies, but whether that's true or not, no idea.

Hello there! My daughter had a pacifier very early on and I nursed for the first year. The pacifier never interfered with the nursing. As for what type--she went in stages: she always loved the Soothie that she came home from the hospital with. She went through a phase where she only wanted a Gerber Nuk and eventually settled on Avent. When she was about 6-8 months old she only had it at naps and used the Soothie at bed time. We just started naps and bedtimes without her "nuk-y" there wasn't too much fussing but I can tell she misses it! Good luck with your decision!

Hi J.!

Both of my kids were suckers, and great nursers! I used the Gerber Nuk for both kids. With my daughter I started at 3 weeks old, and my son we started at 1 week old. I did not have any problems with my milk supply for either child. Best wishes!

I breastfed my now 2 year old for 9 months (until I got pregnant again - or else it would've been longer). She too was a comfort sucker, in the beginning - first month or so we used the round green soothie pacifiers and bottles, but she kept losing the paci(that brand really have some "weight to them"), and was very sloppy (drooled half of the bottle down her chin and cheeks) and gassy with those bottles. We tried lots of other types, including Nuk, Playtex, and Gerber, in bottles and pacis, and none were readily accepted, UNTIL we fond the Mam brand bottles and pacifiers! She still uses a Mam Paci at bedtime/naptime, we got off the bottles at 1 year old, but she was excellent switching between bottle, paci, and breast, and kept these pacifiers in her mouth better, they also come with cut paci-holders/clips so they don't fall on the floor all the time. Also, the bottles are wonderful - NO GAS, come apart for east cleaning - I washed them itnhe dishwaser for over 6 months of use (I put the smaller parts - valve, nipple, lids and rings in one of those litle Prince LionHart baskets) - and I swear this kid hardly ever had to burp and never missed a drop of milk form those bottles - the nipple is more flattened like mom's nipple gets in their mouth, not a perfect cylindar like others. You can find all the things i mentioned at Target.com, pacis, bottles, and the dishwasher baskets.

Good luck - the pacifier won't ruin your baby!

Jessie

As long as she is nursing well and has a good latch, then you can intro a pacifier just fine. Just make sure to avoid the 'Nuk' type ones with the curved up then flat end. These will 'train' her tongue to latch differently, and it will in the end affect her latch while nursing. Stick with the Mam pacifiers, or the Soothies (the hollow blue ones you mentioned in your post). These both have a long more rounded nipples nad it will keep her tongue trained to the same latch as nursing.

My son was also a babe that needed the sucking all the time. He prefered the mam brand, i tried many others. he seemed to need it all the time for a while and at around 2 months decided he was pretty much done with it. he takes it to fall asleep but spits it out almost immediatly after drifting off adn doesnt use it all night. then just to get off to nap. I had no problems with nipple confusion with him but i know some people have. so watch for a nuring strike. good luck

I nursed all three of my kids and introduced the pacifier to them right away. They all seemed to need the extra sucking, also. I used the playtex pacifier...not the ortho one, but the brown nippled one with the ridges. It was the only pacifier my kids would take.

When I nursed our daughter we used the soothie pacifier, it is straight, more like the breast nipple. I didn't want to confuse her by using the standard NUK type. She now is on a bottle and will use a normal nipple and a NUK style pacifier and it works well. I would say at any point after she is a good eater it is a good time to introduce the pacifier. I also think it is great that she wants one, it is a way to help minimize the risks of SIDS.