Ok, we don't call it a binky in this house, we call it a paci, but the aliteration just wasn't there with paci.
M. and I have been talking about getting rid of the paci for a while now. Finn only uses it at night, and for naps on the weekends, but he's still quite dependent on it. He will ask for it when he's upset (though we don't give it to him), and occasionally try to sneak it out of his bedroom. With a new baby on the way that will be encouraged to use a paci at any old time (I'm all for a great nursing relationship, but have no desire to be a human pacifier), we are afraid Finn would start demanding to use it more often, or try to take the baby's paci. We just returned from a vacation (sleeping in a strange environment is not the time to take away a comfort mechanism), and we have about 4 weeks before the next huge upheaval (starting at a new daycare), so we decided to go cold turkey on the pacifier use this past Wednesday. No big lead up to it, no cutting off the tip and having Finn throw away the "broken" paci's, etc. We just told him he couldn't have it when he asked for it, and that was that.
So far, things have been going well (knock on wood). The first night, it took Finn an hour to fall asleep. He cried off and on, but when M. or I were in the room with him (we went in a couple of times to lie down with him), he was fine - just not very sleepy. He didn't have that "trigger" of sucking on the paci to tell him to be tired, so he was a little wired. He woke up early the next morning at 5:30, but M. got him back to sleep until we were ready to get him up for daycare. All in all, not a bad night of sleep for everyone.
Last night, night 2, it took only about 20 minutes to get Finn to fall asleep. M. had to go back in his room after I put him down, but the crying wasn't terrible. He slept all the way through the night, until 6:20 or so.
It's crazy how easy it has been, we have been dreading this for soooo long. Fingers are crossed and double crossed that things continue to go well. I have a feeling naptime this weekend will be a challenge!
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As you know already, the naps were the big issue for us. It only took a few days for DS1 to get used to no binky at night. But naps during the weekend, we had to say good bye most weekends (we can get one in occassionally if he is lulled to sleep in the van).
ReplyDeleteWhat does daycare say about how he is napping without the paci?
ReplyDeleteHe hasn't been napping with a paci at daycare since he switched to the 2-year-old room back in September. He had no problem with the switch, because none of the other kids were using them. I kept bringing one in every day just in case, but he never needed it... He still expects it at home, though (but not for long!).
ReplyDeleteI am sooo not ready to give up weekend naps (I want them to stick around for a few more years!), so we WILL find a way to get him to sleep :-).