DON’T USE PACIFIERS. First off, a little crying never hurt a child. Second, pacifiers are not good for the gums and teeth.
—JEANNE ECKMAN
LANCASTER, PENNSYLVANIA

YOU ARE NOT “PLUGGING UP THE BABY” by using a pacifier. The ones made today are shaped so that they don’t cause dental problems.
—KATHY PENTON
SAVANNAH, GEORGIA

IT WAS COMICAL THAT A LITTLE PIECE OF PLASTIC and rubber controlled not only my daughter but me, too. One time, I took the kids sightseeing to an old military fort. When it was time to leave, the kids were tired and my daughter started crying. I tore that van apart but no pacifier! I couldn’t face a 30-minute drive with her screaming the whole way, so I packed everyone up and drove straight to the store to buy two pacifiers—one to give her, and one to store in the van.
—JOHN D’EREDITA
SYRACUSE, NEW YORK

WE DIDN’T WANT TO USE A PACIFIER, but it only took one week of crying for us to give in. From the minute we put it in, he was happy. I prefer the pacifier over the thumb—we can always take the pacifier away.
—KRISTIN KELLEY
ANNANDALE, VIRGINIA

I OFFERED A PACIFIER TO EACH BABY because I figured it would be an easier habit to break than a thumb. But guess what? That is really the baby’s decision. All three of mine absolutely refused to use a pacifier.
—HEIDE A.W. KAMINSKI
TECUMSEH, MICHIGAN

MY SON WAS THOROUGHLY ADDICTED to his pacifier. To wean him off of it, we told him that when he turned three he would be too old for his pacifier, and because of this, it would break. The night before my son’s third birthday my husband and I went around the house cutting off the tips of all the pacifiers. In the morning, my son ran up to me crying, “Mommy, Mommy! You were right! I’m three today and my pacifier is broken!” That was it. He never asked for it again.
—PAMELA BARTH
BAKERSFIELD, CALIFORNIA