[HikariJung]

What do you feel about people who still suck their thumbs even though they're adults or teenagers or whatever?
I mean I still do at night sometimes, when I'm stressed out or sad or something. It kinda soothes me.
But my mom doesn't like it and I used to get teased about it a lot so it was kinda a secret for a long time. It still is but some of my best friends know and they don't say anything about.
I mean I already know it's not normal to suck your thumb when you're like over 5. But I mean I can't really help it? It's like a part of me doesn't want to let it go.

So does anyone know why people don't stop sucking their thumbs cuz I don't know why I can't stop. and I don't want to make my mom mad. I don't see anything wrong with it but my mom really doesn't like it.

Man.....I feel so embarrassed asking something like this hahah

[duh123]

i never admitted this outside my family but i used to suck my thumb up until my teens. my parents never really enforced the rule to stop but they did constantly tell me to. i wouldn't be able to sleep without doing it as i got older. i stopped for a few years in high school but when i was stressed i would start for a few mins then it ended up i couldn't stop. but then i stopped for a year and never went back to it. it's been years since i sucked my thumb now.

honestly, it's like listening to music or anything else that other people do to relieve the stress. it also becomes a habit or like an effect of an addictive drug. you feel relieved while doing it especially in stressed times. that's why you just can't stop. kids have a harder time to stop because they don't know any better. i used to do it so much that my thumb nail was really thin and weak all the time and the skin was always wrinkled.

i think i'm a bit more understanding and less traditional when i say i don't see it as something wrong because it's just another form of a stress reliever.

BUT there is something bad from doing it. it messes up your teeth. teeth are always shifting and sucking on your thumb just accelerates and actually cause your teeth to shift in directions it wouldn't have otherwise. gum disease - because of the bacteria on your thumb if you don't clean your hands before you do it. i used to get this weird outline just below my bottom lip and on my chin from it. and the nail part.

overall as much as i understand how it soothes you and everything, i think you need to stop doing it. i've been in your place and honestly i doubt you would want dental problems starting from such a young age. it takes a lot of willpower in the beginning but it'll be better for you in the end.

[reminiscence<3]

mhmm. i used to such my thumb till i was like 11 years old . and trust me it just makes your teeth look really ugly. cause your thumb pushes your teeth out. anyway i stop it when i started wearing braces

[Miki_Moon]

Well, I'm completely different. I didn't suck on my thumb, but my ring finger and middle finger. (XD) Anyway, I was forced to stop at a young age because they were messing up my teeth badly. (Which is a reason you should do you best to stop sucking your thumb, so you don't have to get braces) I also think you suck on your thumb because it helps you calm down, which is probably the reason why children do it. To stop me from doing it, my mom bought some nail polish that had a horrible horrible taste so when I sucked on my fingers the taste would stop me and I stopped pretty quickly after that. It's also just a habit that has been built into your mind. You can stop, it just will take time and as duh123 said, willpower.

[5bchm]

This was my secret too as to why I had to end up wearing braces. It really ruined my top teeth. I sucked my tumb only to sleep because it was soothing/comforting and became a habit. I guess I stopped around 11-12 years, not sure when exactly and how it came about. This may be a reason why babies suck on pacifiers.

[plumerias]

lol xD so embarassing to admit~ but I still suck my thumb too when I sleep.
Most of my friends know I think..
I've tried to stop MANY times but its like subconscious ..
it always ends up back in my mouth when I wake up.
I have a callus thing on my right thumb from it and I've gotten
braces cause of it causing my overbite. My thumbs also really wrinkly o_o
Doesn't bother me though.

I stopped doing it in public when I was in like kindergarten though.
My dad tried like everything to make me stop, even the bad tasting nail paint >_<
(I ended up just scrubbing it off with soap and bearing with the taste....lmao)

I think my dad does it too... sometimes I see him taking a nap
sucking his thumb LOL. AND WHILE DRIVING! O_O;

[Seiiryuu]

I got a senior who loves to suck her thumb. It was weird at first to watch such a pretty lady sucking her thumb?...aigooo but later general sense developed on me just like 'nahhh...that's her habit..let her do that as her pleased etc. etc.'

Ah, once I watched KBS Vitamin, they said to reduce 'thumb-suckering', place a bandage at your thumb and put some oil etc. Later when you accidentally sucking your thumb, it wont be a pleasure anymore but I think there's nothing to be shame off

[Rhawr]

Aha. I used to suck my thumb when I was really young,
but I grew out of the habit.
I never knew it could relieve stress.
What if you're in the middle of class taken a huge exam and
you're frustrated at the answers, would you suck your thumb? o__O.

[bgirlxstylistic]

Well, I'm completely different. I didn't suck on my thumb, but my ring finger and middle finger. (XD)

hoooly crap, i thought i was the only one who did that.
loll, that's so weird. but yeah.. i stopped when i was about 11 or 12.