Weaning baby from her BFF...the Pacifier

When I discuss sleep plans with my clients I typically advise them to introduce a pacifier to their newborns to give them a chance to use it as a soother at bedtime. I do however try to have parents limit the pacifier to the child's sleep space or carseat only, and after a few months it really can be taken away all together. For infants, there are few reasons not to introduce the pacifier but as a kid gets older it can inhibit speech and cause more temper tantrums as a child has difficulty communicating. But more and more often I have noticed that parents are afraid to even consider the introduction a pacifier for fear that baby will never want to give it up. While this can be true with some children, I find that giving a baby a pacifier is really nothing to fear, there are some easy and effective ways to eliminate it from baby's day to day when ever you choose.
 One of my favorite methods for saying bye bye to the "binky" is to bring the "pacifier fairy" over for a visit. For this you can either have a friend dress up as the fairy and come with her magic net to collect all the pacifiers throughout the house, or you can say that you are collecting them for the fairy and put them in the mail for other babies to use when they snooze. Another great aspect of this method is that the fairy leaves a  prize for your little one in exchange for being such a big kid.
A similar method could be used around a birthday or special holiday in exchange for some big kid gifts.
As the fairy is a "cold turkey" technique, there are also gradual options. Making the pacifier less appealing to the child can work wonders. You can cut off a small piece off of the pacifier each day until there is really nothing left to suck on and you will find that your baby or toddler quickly becomes disinterested.
Another idea I like is to sew the pacifier in the belly of your little one's favorite stuffed animal. If there is no favorite friend maybe you go pick out a new one, this will not only eliminate the pacifier use it will help your child to become attached to a new soother.

  So many new parents feel lucky when their baby does not want a pacifier, and while it can make some things easier down the road, the pacifier is a great way to help baby self soothe and trigger the calming reflex.