Thumbsucking - a Book Review
By: Colleen Langenfeld
As a mom with four children, all of whom were thumbsuckers when
small, and all of whom stopped the habit in different ways at
different ages, I understand the frustration many parents feel
when trying to help their young child overcome this habit.
"David Decides About Thumbsucking" by Susan Heitler, Ph.D
(printed by LK Printing Service, Inc.), is a useful tool parents
can use to make sound decisions about helping their own child
stop their thumbsucking habit.
This book was originally published in 1985, but I found it to be
still relevant today. It begins with a story a parent can share
with their thumbsucking child and will initiate the type of
conversation that will be useful as a child begins to think
about ending this tenacious habit.
That is the key point to successfully breaking this habit. A
child must take responsibility for ending their own habit. That
point cannot be overemphasized.
After the helpful story in "David Decides About Thumbsucking",
you'll find a tremendously useful parent's guide that contains
the following.
-- Individual sections ranging from infants to school age
children with data explaining thumbsucking during these life
stages.
-- Tips to help your child at whatever stage she decides to stop
thumbsucking.
-- Helpful hints on using the story itself as a part of the
habit-changing routine.
One of my favorite parts in this book is the habit-reversal
technique which gives the child more control over changing his
habit and was found by one study to increase kids' success
rates. My own experience with helping my children overcome their
thumbsucking habits reinforced to me that simple ideas like this
can really engage the child and move them towards success.
As the author states on p. 34, "Parents do best when they couple
techniques for minimizing sucking with a general attitude of
acceptance."
This resource offers a helpful perspective on this habit, too,
when it states (and I paraphrase) that sucking is not a sign of
emotional disturbance and parents should not be in a panic about
it. Rather parents should gather the facts and awareness
necessary to help their child successfully navigate an important
developmental milestone: recognizing and ending an outgrown
habit.
It's also helpful for parents to be aware that some kids stop
thumbsucking cold turkey, but others take a long time. That's
okay. One of my children took a full year to stop thumbsucking,
but her self-confidence bloomed as she hung in there and
eventually conquered this habit.
"David Decides About Thumbsucking" reinforces the ideas that
drawing attention to the child's successes, no matter how small,
and understanding upfront that there may be a need for several
attempts at breaking this habit are key ideas to maintaining the
motivation needed to be successful.
This book will help you and your child create a team effort,
which is exactly what most kids will need as they address this
habit. You can use the solid ideas presented as a springboard to
customize these tips for your own child.
Overall this book presents a low-key, yet firm approach for
helping your child to stop his thumbsucking habit. Plus, there
are additional books listed as resources in the back of the
book.
Thumbsucking presents a young child and her parents with the
opportunity to learn a valuable life skill; how to recognize and
overcome a no longer needed habit and develop successful problem
solving skills along the way. "David Decides About Thumbsucking"
offers significant helps to any parent who wishes to help their
child move on from this habit in a positive way.
For a copy of your own, check your local library or online
bookseller.
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