Thumb sucking

How hypnosis helps your child to stop sucking your thumb?

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About sucking his thumb

In infants and children under 4, thumb sucking is more of a food automatism than a compulsion. Indeed, many ultrasounds where it is possible to discover the foetus sucking his thumb. This apparent automatism of the feeding will allow the child to find a feeling of security and calm.

 

About hypnosis

The word hypnosis refers to a modified state of consciousness. It is in this state that it is possible to acquire new capabilities and develop deep resources. In this sense hypnosis may be an effective tool to stop sucking his thumb.

 

Hypnosis to be healthy and stop sucking your thumb

In children over the age of 4, thumb sucking may reveal emotional deprivation and may be of interest to parents (when a new child is born, for example).

Sometimes sucking his thumb allows the child to feel reassured and safe in the face of a conflict event or simply to find an unmet need in his development.

Faced with this problem that the child has no conscience and has become an unconscious behavior, it is important for the parents and our hypnotist to determine the cause, to be able to provide a suitable solution.

In this context it is interesting to remember that prohibitions can generate conflict, so compare the child to other children his age who do not suck their thumb may ridicule him without meeting his needs.

 

Using hypnosis to stop sucking a child's thumb

Milton Hyland Erickson shares his approach with little Jimmy, who sucked his left thumb much of the day despite repeated punishments from his parents.

First he questions the balance of power between the child and his parents by placing himself as the responsable who decides the smooth running of the session. He points out to Jimmy that no one can give him orders but that he can give orders to his mouth to suck his thumb and all the other fingers.

By offering Jimmy to suck both his thumbs (right and left) each Erickson reminds us that Jimmy has reduced the behavior of sucking his left thumb by 50% (which Erickson calls divide and conquer).

The following hypnotic suggestions were inspired by his work.