When can adult thumb sucking become a problem?
Like any other habit, there is moderation and there is overdoing it. When do you think thumb sucking can be bad for you? Many adults don’t have any consequences from their thumb sucking, but some develop crooked or bucked teeth. Some people may damage the skin on their thumbs.
So what are your thoughts?
What is the difference between healthy and unhealthy thumb sucking in adults?
I am a 30 year old male and although I don’t suck my thumb I do suck my left index finger. I hide it from everyone I can. As I tend to only do it to sleep and in moments of stress where I can hide it involving a sleeve.
This has big problems with sharing a bed with a new partner but most accept it as once I’m asleep it falls out and they have the snoring to deal with!
I never thought I would share this, especially with a people I don’t know. But…
I am 29 years old. I am an English major in college. It would feel silly to say I have sucked my thumb all my life cause it isn’t something that people pick up in there teens or twenties. But yeah I suck my thumb. Not really sure if I would even call it that, for my self anyway. It is more just having it in my mouth. I have always kept it a private habit. I noticed a lot of people posted about doing it in the car but I am a 2 hands on the wheel kinda guy. I have debated kicking the addiction on and off for years but it has been my coping mechanism all my life. I have a partner who doesn’t talk about it but I know they have seen me.
My mom said that I was stuck in my life from the interesting childhood I had and that is why I have never managed to kick this habit. It is funny to me that she would choose to talk to me about this when some of her other children choose drinking and drugs to deal with things. As many people have said, “I’m not hurting anyone.” I am not forcing others to suck my thumb like smokers force everyone around them to share their smoke.
My teeth are fine, as are my thumbs. The worst that happens is the roof of my mouth gets a little tender once in a while.
If you quit then you should be proud of yourself, but for those of us who don’t really have a problem with it, I say “Eh. Do as you please.”
Remember, “I don’t expect other people to change for me so why should they expect me to change for them.”
I’ve sucked both my ring n middle finger on my right hand every since I was small. I’m 21 years old right now in university, have a part time job, and have started to think about trying to stop. The thing is when I’m outside of my house, at school, or at work I never feel the urge to suck my fingers. But once I’m at home watching tv, reading a book, or going to sleep they are always in my mouth. It just relaxes me as I do whatever I’m doing. One of my aunts got me to stop when I was young but I started back again. Finger sucking has not affected my teeth at all, but the skin on my middle finger has been affected. My whole family knew when I was a kid they sucked it, but no one knows that I still do accept my mother. Well she believes I still do, but has not seen me do it. I never let anyone see me do it, ever! Sometimes I do feel guilty about sucking my finger, but most times I don’t. But my thing is, is when I have a partner that I share personal space with, there is no way I would feel comfortable with them seeing me, nor would I want to tell them. Eventually I will need to stop, but honestly don’t want to. I feel like my finger sucking is an immature thing to do, thats only for children and I need to grow out of it…….
Hi, it’s Rebecca again… It’s hard to remember everything you want to say in your first post…
Anyway, I’m 19 now, and I’m sucking more openly in the car, depending on the traffic. I know I must have been seen, not that I care that much. A few weeks ago, I was riding in the backseat when I didn’t bother to remove my thumb as a car passed in the fast lane. The woman in the passenger seat was staring away! Though she was wearing sunglasses so I couldn’t see exactly where she was looking… Though I bet it was at me! Oh well… perhaps I like shocking people…
As for dental effects, I have a thumb-shaped mark on the roof of my mouth, and some of my front teeth have moved slightly. I’ve never heard of any other thumb-suckers with a scar-like mark like mine, and I’m surprised no dentist has ever mentioned it.
I think my father is getting a bit annoyed at my habit and has made a few comments, which I hate, though none recently…
Anyway, I don’t think I’ll ever give up my thumb or charmy (pacifier). I just can’t imagine quitting and NEVER doing it again. I’ve said that when I’m old, I’ll be lying in some nursing home, still with a charmy in my mouth.
Anyway, I think it’s great to have a website like this where we can openly discuss our habit.
Please send no emails.
Eu tenho 32 anos e chupo dedo,tenho vergonha de fazer isso na frente dos meus familiares.
Faço isso quando tou com fome ,triste ou quando vou dormir.Chupo dedo desde de pequena
e não consigo parar.
Yesterday I was at Walmart and saw a woman sucking her thumb- it was the first time I ever saw another adult thumbsucker in person. I know I must have been witnessing a rare event since so few adults have the nerve to indulge so publicly.
I am 33 years old…..and have been a thumb sucker my whole life. Even admitting this is making me feel uncomfortable. I am married with 2 children. My husband knows and accepts it as do my children. I feel very guilty when I do it, and find myself doing it more often than I ever used to. I have tried to stop…oh how I have tried, even cutting up my pillow ( a small piece of one that I hold when I suck my thumb). My parents tried everything to get me to stop, including pepper, Off! spray and bribing me with gifts. Nothing has worked. I feel more addicted to it than anything in my life and cannot go a day without it, not to mention trying to sleep without doing it….yet the guilt and embarrassment I feel about doing it is making me miserable. I have high self esteem and self respect, and I thoroughly love the feeling of ‘release’ I get when I suck my thumb. I do it while I watch tv, work, drive, sleep, read, write…..it is non stop. A large part of me wishes I could stop, but the same size part of me does not. I don’t know if i want advise or just a means to voice something I have held a secret for my entire life and carried the guilt for for just as long.