My daughter is 17 years old now when this virus comes I’m glad she stop sucking her thumb now. Before I tried everything like put chilli on her thumb but still it won’t work it will just go away on their own
Divert the comfort by keeping the child busy. The more to do the less comfort he will eant to give himself and possibly break the habbit with something that needs both hands to do. My mom says hot sauce on the thumb
My son its 6 and he sucks his thumb u try everything as a baby he used a pacifier he left it when he was a year and a half shortly after that he started sucking his thumb and still does it.
I didn’t stop sucking my thumb until I was 17. My family tried everything and nothing worked. I had to do it on my own because I wanted to, not because they wanted me to. And guess what, I issues at all from sucking my thumb.
In his crib only! In room if older. And do not respond to him if talking while doing, simply Escort him there stating when done can come out, if does again will keep going back. leaving others, having to stop playing, other people seeing it happen… he will figure it out
My sister sucked her middle and ring finger don’t know up to what age, An uncle of ours put dirty socks on her hand and taped it. She still didn’t stop. Again don’t remember when she stopped tho
I sucked my thumb until I was 12. My parents tried everything but nothing worked. I just grew out of it!
Now my son(6) ,since birth has sucked his fingers.we will see how long it takes to grow out of it.
My daughter did it until she went to kindergarten. One of the kids commented and then she was done. She didn’t respond to anything we tried before that.
Go to the orthodontist. They have special thumb devices and the polish that will help. He can slso tell you how much his teeth are out of line. Maybe not as bad as you think.
Let him suck his thumb! I worked in dentistry for many years… and had a daughter who sucked her thumb till about 8. My thumb sucker was the only one who did not need braces… it is comforting, let it go…
They are either thumb suckers or they’re not. My first didn’t have a need to suck, other than for feeding. Never gave him a pacifier. He was perfectly happy. The second was different. As soon as she popped out, that left thumb went in her mouth. I’m sure she sucked that thumb before she got here. Never sucked the right one. That one was used for getting into stuff! I only mentioned it once—when she was just over 3— I asked her when she was going to stop sucking her thumb. She said when she was 4. She came in one day after she was 4 and said she wasn’t going to suck her thumb any more. She never did it again. Let him suck it as long as he wants.
My nephew always sucked on his middle and ring fingers at the same time, to the point that the roof of his mouth formed around his fingers. We tried EVERYTHING and NOTHING worked. The little bc sh** it 26 now and to this day you can STILL catch them fingers in his mouth if he’s tired. Father of 4. No shame. Teeth are fine.
I have a cousin that still sucks her thumb and she’s 57! Obviously she doesn’t do it in public, only at bedtime.
The teeth can be fixed no problem but if it does go on past like the age of seven or eight there’s this pallet operation that is excruciatingly painful so do what you can. good luck
Never let them start to begin with I would always take my kids fingers out of their mouth each time I saw it happening
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Both my kids got a wake up call when both needed braces and pallet expanders. They both unfortunately sucked their fingers as a comfort thing only at bed time so hard for me to control but stopped cold turkey when ortho told them to prior to pallet expanders. The ortho did say it caused the issues with their mouth shapes but thankfully orthodontist is here and my sons teeth are already looking amazing.
My son sucked on those blankets with the silk edges from 3 months to 5 years. I tried everything I could think of to her him to stop. I took those specific blankets away and he just started ducking on any blanket. After he turned 5 he just stopped. It’s a security thing. He will stop when he is ready.
My daughter sucked her thumb until she was 9/10 Tried hot sauce she loved it! Same thing with vinegar. Ended up with a tongue crib (i think thats what it is called) from the orthodontist and it stopped
My son is almost 17 and still sucks his at times. Mostly when he gets tired. His teeth are perfect.
My little sister sucked her pointer finger until she was 12. By the time she stopped she had to have braces and also surgery to break the finger and then bolt back together because it was deformed. We tried everything. They even used hot sauce that was so hot it actually burned blisters onto her finger overnight. But it still didn’t stop her. I hope you find a solution. But try to steer clear of hot sauce… 
We got some stuff from the dentist. I put it on while they were asleep so they weren’t aware of it. He never sucked his thumb again.
A pediatric dentist can make an appliance that goes on the upper arch and every time she puts her thumb in it hits it he will stop
My daughter is 12 and I still can’t get her to stop I have tried everything!!! Her teeth are now bowing out (so to speak) and her front top teeth are wearing away… I know I can get a bar put in the roof of her mouth but I just have not had the extra money to do so as im a single mom of 4 
any other ideas would be awesome
My daughter got a terrible open wound on her thumb when she was 15 m, I had to wrap it for several nights to keep it clean so it would heal. After a week of having it wrapped she didn’t even want it. Good luck!
Talk to your child’s dentist. My son sucked his thumb til he was 8. The dentist will help.
My daughter sucked hers until middle school. But only when tired. School mates stopped her at school. And hot sauce at home slowed her down… we were lucky no buck teeth which I expected…
Put some apple cider vinegar on his thumb it’s got great health benefits but tastes awful a couple times of tasting it and he won’t want to taste it again
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It wont mess with hos teeth for a while still and its apparently what soothes him. There is a spray for it, its not hot- just tastes bad. Amazon sells it but it may be in stores also. If you take away what soothes/comforts him before hes ready though he may be act like a whole different kid. You will have to replace it, new teddy bear or blanket to hold, something.
He will stop in his own in time he will grow out of it. You can put chyanne pepper on it or I believe they make something that taste really bad so he won’t want to suck on it.
My younger sister sucked her thumb until she was about 4 or 5 then stopped on her own. Her teeth came out perfectly straight compared to me and our other siblings.
Im 66 and I sucked my thumb till I was ten. I have straight teeth so u think he will be ok there but bringing attention to it only makes it worse . Try getting is mind on something else
Good luck my baby is 12 years old and still sucks his thumb bc I took his bink from him.
My daughter still sucks her when in bed and she’s nine it’s hard to stop I have done all sorts
My son sucked his thumb til 5 yrs. he has perfect teeth. I too worried til several dentist stated not to worry
I’m a pediatric dental assistant and we recommended Mavala you have to be consistent though! You can get it at Ulta for 20 dollars
I pulled my kids thumb out of her mouth everytime she put it in. She doesn’t have a thumb sucking problem but now she sucks her tongue. Sooo I mean if they are gonna suck on something they will make other ways.
Call me a bad mom but my son sucked his thumb and had 2-3 cuts on it. At one point I told him that he had to stop or his thumb would fall off. Then, every time he would put his thumb in his mouth he would look at me and I would stare at his thumb as if I was checking to make sure it was still there. It worked after a couple of weeks.
I’m 28 and still suck my thumb. My parents tried literally everything. Yes even hot sauce and guess what I loved it. They tried Carmex ect. My whole family all my friends and classmates gave me all the grief but I did not care. I love having that comfort when I need it. Even my orthodontist put spikes on the roof of my mouth and I still found a way to suck my thumb. It’s something that I will probably do for the rest of my life and I don’t feel ashamed. Neither of my kids have the habit but if they did I wouldn’t force the issue until they saw it as an issue in themselves.
Have you ask his doc? Sometimes its something else. My daughter did this and she had a stomach ucler at age one taken care by medication.
There’s this stuff on amazon called … STOP. Works amazing . U paint it on like a clear coat all over his thumb while he is sleeping. The moment he puts it in his mouth it has a bad taste Z he will wake up crying and ask what’s wrong with my finger. I told my son that’s his ginger was going bad because he kept sucking in it and he needs to stop. Within a couple of day’s …no more sucking
Anytime he goes to reach for his thumb you suck on it…
after a few 1000 times he will get the hint that if I suck on it mom will Also… lol I did that with my tiny nose picker sun… anytime he dug up there I moved his hand away and was like nope mommy do… 
He may outgrow it but if not only an orthodontic device can usually break the habit…
Nail bite. People use it to stop biting their nails because it tastes awful. Put some on his thumb nail.
Yea show him pictures of kids with braces and head gear and retainers. Tell him that this is his life for his preteen and teenage years if he doesn’t stop… that should do it. Lol
My daughter is almost 8 and sucks her thumb. She sucked a pacis till she was 4 
My daughter sucke on her middle 2 fingers until she was 5. The dentist said as long as she stopped before her baby teeth fell out she would be good, and she was.
My son sucked his thumb until he was about 5. His dentist gave him a nice speech about it and he stopped lol!
My daughter is almost 6 and I am going to trytgaurd. 95 percent success rate within 30 days. Good luck!
I was a thumb sucker up to the age of 4. I wouldn’t worry about it until he gets ready to start school.
My 4 year old sucks his thumb and he’s starting to get a lisp. I’ve done everything and even got him to stop for a few months. Now, he insists on sucking his thumb, no matter the consequences.
My lil boy tried first time other day told him he will ruin his teeth that’s all it took very picky about his teeth he is five
My son was a Thumb sucker and we made it to where it was a no big deal. Then as he got older we told him the only time he could suck it was in his room. Our Dr told us the more we made it a no big deal and didn’t make it a big issue that he would quit on his own. I was really worried about it when he would start school but when he started preschool I noticed him doing it a lot less. Then it got to where it was only at bedtime. Then when he started playing with friends and kindergarten it stopped all together!
My daughter didn’t stop until she turned 4. Give him some time.
All I did was put clear nail polish on and it stopped my son sucking his thumb, he is now 5 I catch him every now and then doing it I just straight away i put some on.
Mine didn’t stop until Kindergarten.
I was a thumb sucker till I was 5. My mom tried it all, there was this stuff you paint on the thumb and it’s the most awful taste on earth, I know cuz I had to suck all that taste off to be able to suck my thumb. Then kindergarten came and mom told me big kids can’t do that in school. That’s when I quit. But whatever that God awful stuff she painted on I think would deter most children. Now this was in the late 80s so who knows if it was safe or not but I’m sure their are alternatives.
My son’s sucked there thumb till they were 5 they will grow out of it
My daughter sucked a paci until 3.5 she’s totally fine at 13 now with straight teeth. I wouldn’t worry
Sucked my thumb until i was 12. My teeth are fine. My daughter was 11 or 12 when she gave it up and her teeth are straight and beautiful as well.
They sell this nail polish, I forgot the name of it, to stop bitting nails. It could work for the boy too. It’s bitter tasting and non toxic. Just put it on his thumb nails. He won’t like the taste.
Eh, my daughter sucked her thumb well past 5. She must have done it in utero because she never was interested in a pacifier, always the thumb. She is now 11 and her teeth are fine. It’s much too soon to worry about the teeth.
My daughter still sucks her thumb when she sleeps and she is 11. I dont worry about it. Her teeth are fine.
How about tough strips Band-Aids? You could also brush some vanilla extract on it. Smells great, but tastes like crap!
Apple bitters are great. Is so bitter when they put their thumb in their mouth they stop
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My daughter was in fifth grade we finally had an orthodontic piece put in her mouth
He will stop when he is ready. My daughter did the same thing.
my daughter didnt stop sucking her thumb until she got braces on her teeth, at age 12!
My granddaughter was still sucking her thumb in 2nd grade. Her mother finally had a dentist put an appliance in her mouth which finally broke her. She is now the most wonderful mother of 3.
Try painting his whole thumb with that no bite nail polish. It tastes terrible.
Kids grow out of it eventually
If you find somthing that actually works lmk. Mine is 10 and still at her thumb
Well as long as I keep getting these stories in my news feed…my suggestion is put some hot sauce on the thumb.
I was in 3rd grade and had to make myself put my hand under my pillow! Good luck!
My daughter use to suck till age 3…it was next to impossible to get rid of her habbit…so one day i actually told her her finger got hurt by applying some ketchup and i need to tie a muslin cloth… she agreed… i did that for about 8 to 10 days… ur son is small… u just tie any clean cloth…it will work for sure
I know this may sound kindof terrible, but it’s really not and I have done it myself to stop biting my nails, but there is or use to be a spicey(peppery) solution called, “Thumb”, that is made of all natural pepper ingredients, that you paint like nail polish on your fingers. Its also made to help break thumb suckers from their habit. Its burns your tongue just enough to make you realize what you are attempting to do, and helps you break your habit by making you aware.
They say orthodontics is cheaper than therapy. Let him self soothe with thumb sucking - 
Find something that he doesn’t like and put it on his thumb constantly until he eventually learns
I stopped when I turned 18 and joined the Army
Put some pepper on her thumb. It won’t hurt her or anything but it can help stop it. And for those of you saying it’s not a big deal it actually is. There are numerous medical issues that stem from sucking your thumb
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I’m 38 and still sleep with my thumb in went to sleep in labour and yes my thumb went in my mum couldn’t believe it
I can’t get my 3 year old off her binkie!!
Ive had three that sucked their thumb up until kidergarden their teeth are fine and they broke themselves
My middle son was a thumb sucker. I even have a ultrasound pick of him sucking his thumb. Tried everything to curve/stop it. He turned 13 a cpl days ago, and still on occasion will when he is tired.
Try Chunky peanutbutter,somehow get his finger in it make him think its poop poo…it sometimes works…for some…make a big deal out of it ,should get grossed out about it…
I was 9. It will eventually stop.
Your son will stop when he is ready.
Spray his thumb with vinegar…
THUMB it’s a liquid you apply to the Thumb
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My daughter just turned 10 and i think she stopped sucking her thumb. She started from birth and insisted on a “raggy” every night and at nap time.
spray expensive perfume on it,… taste awefull,… hell stop sticking in his mouth,… works for nail bitting
I’ve heard hot sauce and nail polish on the thumbnail as deterrents
My mom had to put super long socks on my hands in order to get me to stop when I was sleeping
My daughter sucked her thumb until she was 6… I love thumb suckers it’s a natural form of soothing themselves… but she ended up having to get braces @ age 6 cuz her teeth were forming around her thumb
I sucked my thumb until I was in 2nd grade. What got me to stop was my mom took me to a store and let me pick out whatever outfit I wanted. She would buy it for me after I didn’t suck my thumb for a month. She had a sticker chart on the fridge that I would proudly place stickers on daily for successfully not sucking my thumb. It worked. I never sucked my thumb again. And my teeth are perfectly straight…I never needed braces.
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I was in my 25 when I became pregnant and that’s when I stopped.
I tried everything. My daughter gave it up on her own around age 10. you can take away pacifiers but you can’t take away thumbs.
Duck tape on his favorite thumb, at bedtime and his favorite time to suck it… Worked for me…
Hot sauce lol!! My mom did it to me, but now I have an obscene obsession with hot sauce, like i can drink it!
It is for comfort. let him be.
My daughter sucked her thumb until she was 7 years old!! UGH!!!