I still remember that when my niece was just a year old, my sister and brother-in-law literally worked their backs off to get rid of her pacifier habit. While it can be comforting for babies in the beginning, its long-term usage is really not ideal.
Looking at my family, I can understand why this couple lost it when the mother-in-law brought back their toddler’s habit of using a pacifier. All their sleepless nights and efforts were wasted because the grandma didn’t know how to stop the crying. Just scroll down to find out what they did next!
More info: Reddit
It’s really frustrating when parents set up rules for their family who babysit, and they get broken without a thought
Parents celebrate pacifier-free toddler milestone while grandmother reacts to baby’s cry, impacting months of progress.
The poster and her husband had spent many sleepless nights trying to get rid of their toddler’s habit of using a pacifier, and it worked
Screenshot of a forum post discussing parents celebrating pacifier-free toddler while MIL panics at one cry and hits reset.
Text explaining a toddler going pacifier-free, with parents celebrating and family challenges during the transition.
Text discussing sleepless nights caused by dependence on a dummy in a toddler’s night-time routine.
Text excerpt describing the process to fully wean a toddler from a pacifier after one month and three months of effort.
Text about toddler pacifier-free progress reset by MIL after one cry during babysitting session.
Toddler with pacifier in mouth standing by sofa with scattered toys, highlighting pacifier-free toddler milestone challenges.
However, when her mother-in-law babysat the toddler for just four hours, she shoved a pacifier in their mouth as she couldn’t stop the crying
Text excerpt about toddler crying and MIL using pacifier, highlighting pacifier-free toddler parenting challenges.
Text excerpt about parents hiding pacifiers from toddler who screams if they cannot have one, reflecting challenges of pacifier-free toddler.
Text about partner lamenting over MIL’s actions and pacifier-related tantrums in toddler behavior.
Text excerpt showing MIL upset after parents celebrate pacifier-free toddler progress and refuse babysitting.
Text on a white background reads a parent questioning if they are wrong about a parenting situation involving a pacifier-free toddler.
Toddler crying on floor after pacifier taken away, parents celebrating pacifier-free milestone while grandmother looks worried.
The couple was beyond furious as their toddler got into their old habit again, so they banned the grandma from babysitting without supervision
Text graphic showing the question Did your MIL know about the rule in bold black font on a white background.
Parents celebrating pacifier-free toddler milestone, while MIL panics and resets months of progress after one cry.
Text slide showing question “Why have dummies in the house?” related to parents celebrating pacifier-free toddler.
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Parents celebrate pacifier-free toddler progress while MIL panics and disrupts months of comforting and soothing efforts.
Parents celebrate pacifier-free toddler milestone while MIL panics at one cry, risking months of progress reversal.
Text excerpt about toddler handing pacifier to baby, highlighting challenges in parents’ pacifier-free toddler journey.
Text on a white background reads: Also, this incident took place at my In Laws’ house, not mine.
Text slide showing the question Why have dummies at all in black font on a white background
Text quote on white background about health benefits and research, related to pacifier-free toddler parenting.
Text graphic reading I won’t go into a long tangent as to why, highlighting parents celebrating pacifier-free toddler efforts.
Parents celebrate pacifier-free toddler milestone while MIL reacts to one cry and anxiety about progress setback
Text image showing a question about toddler learning difficulties and the answer stating no difficulties.
Text excerpt showing a question about preventing a mother-in-law from seeing the children, related to toddler pacifier struggles.
Parents celebrate pacifier-free toddler milestone while MIL panics and resets months of progress at one cry.
Text about FIL being better at dealing with crying, highlighting a pacifier-free toddler milestone and MIL’s reaction panic.
Text excerpt about children being dropped off, illustrating parents’ pacifier-free toddler milestone amid MIL’s reaction.
Text excerpt explaining parents’ rules about pacifier use during visits, highlighting pacifier-free toddler concerns.
Text screenshot showing a warning about triggering content for parents celebrating a pacifier-free toddler.
This angered the mother-in-law so much that she played the victim in front of the rest of the family, but the couple refused to budge
It seems like tales about toxic mothers-in-law are endless because here’s another one where the original poster (OP) is the daughter-in-law. She and her husband had spent a lot of sleepless nights trying to get rid of their toddler’s habit of using a pacifier. In fact, they would surrender any dummies they found or hand them over to their baby sibling, who needed them.
Much to the parents’ dismay, however, it all changed when OP’s mother-in-law babysat the toddler for just four hours. Apparently, the kid started crying, and the woman didn’t know how to stop it, so she shoved a pacifier in their mouth. To say that the couple was furious is an understatement because the child got back into an old, unhealthy habit.
The kid’s baby sibling was in the teething stage, and pacifiers were needed to ease the discomfort. That’s why the couple needed dummies in the house, but it started turning into a nightmare. Their toddler would steal it from the baby’s mouth and throw a tantrum if the couple tried to take it away. OP also caught the kid trying to sneak into her room, trying to find it.
Obviously, they would be frustrated with the grandma because of this, so they refused to let her babysit the kid without supervision. Well, the woman took this so badly that she started lying to their family and friends that the couple was “punishing” her for getting the toddler to stop crying. However, that didn’t deter the couple from changing their decision.
Older woman with gray hair shrugging at home, expressing concern that echoes panic over pacifier-free toddler milestone.
Cohort studies report that 58%–85% of infants use pacifiers, peaking around age 3 months. However, research shows that when babies become dependent on it, it can increase the risk of middle ear infection. In fact, its prolonged usage might lead to dental concerns as well. While it can be useful initially, parents always want to get rid of the habit as soon as possible.
Moreover, experts also warn that if the pacifier habit continues for a long time, it may have negative consequences on speech, language acquisition, and cognitive development, especially in toddlers. Well, looking at things closely, we can totally understand why any parents would be infuriated when their child relapses into this habit despite their efforts.
What further annoyed netizens was that the mother-in-law never really shared the real reason why the kid was crying so much that she had to give them a pacifier. OP claimed that both her children are pretty chill and don’t really throw a fit. Even when she tried to understand the reason, the woman kept giving vague replies.
Netizens were amazed that she didn’t know how to console a crying toddler, and they deemed her unfit to babysit
Reddit conversation about a pacifier-free toddler’s crying and a mother-in-law panicking and undoing progress.
Reddit discussion about parents celebrating pacifier-free toddler while MIL resets months of progress after one cry.
Online discussion about parents celebrating a pacifier-free toddler while dealing with MIL panic and setbacks.
Reddit users discuss challenges parents face celebrating a pacifier-free toddler while MIL panics and resets progress.
Reddit comment discussing MIL panicking and resetting pacifier-free toddler progress after one cry.
Commenters discuss MIL panicking and giving pacifier to toddler, affecting parents’ efforts to keep child pacifier-free.
Reddit conversation about parents managing grandmother’s visits and toddler pacifier-free progress challenges.
Reddit conversation about parents celebrating pacifier-free toddler while MIL panics at one cry and resets progress.
Reddit comment discussing challenges of getting toddler off juice and trust issues with family during NICU stay.
Online conversation about parents celebrating pacifier-free toddler while MIL reacts to setbacks in months of progress.
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