Project "No More Pacifier"

I've decided it's time to break Ryan of his use of his pacifier as a prop to fall asleep. The reason for my saying so is that he has started actively pulling his pacifier out of his mouth, and then crying because it's not in his mouth. This makes the naptime and bedtime routine a longer process than necessary.

So here's the plan:

Objective: Ryan no longer needs his pacifier to go to sleep or to go back to sleep when he awakens during a sleeping period.

Start Date: February 23, 2009, 1 pm naptime,

Subject: Ryan is 5 months, 1 week, and 1 day old

Action Plan: Use the P.U.P.D method to teach him to fall asleep without aid of a prop.

The P.U.P.D (pick up put down) method worked on his sister last month when she kept having trouble falling back asleep at 3 am. When he cries I'll pick him up, and when he calms down I'll put him down.

I already started at today's 1 pm naptime. He had trouble falling asleep at the morning nap, and halfway through was wide awake so I put him in the swing for the rest of the time. He did not fall back asleep. So he was really tired at this afternoon's naptime. He kept pulling his pacifier out and then crying, so I decided today was a good day to start the plan.

Ryan cried through P.U.P.D for about 20 minutes which is exactly how long Alyna cried the first time we used it with her. As I laid him down, for what turned out to be the last time, he looked up at me and sighed, closed his eyes, turned his head to the side, and fell asleep.

He woke up 40 minutes later. Usually I'd stick the pacifier in his mouth so he'd go back to sleep. This time, I did P.U.P.D two times, and he fell back asleep.

I'm very hopeful that he'll be broken of the pacifier before his Aunt Krista gets here next week.