Thumb Sucking

Sucha thbeautifulumberr l sucker from birth. It started when she was about 10 days old. We've been working on not sucking for quite some time. She's gotten really good about not sucking during the day but night time and bed time have remained a struggle. We've been talking about thumb sucking even more lately because of this:

It's a beautiful toothless grin with the potential of becoming beaver-esque as her adult teeth grow in.
 I've been telling her that we would look at pictures of what happens to kids teeth when they suck their thumb. Well, tonight we finally got around to it. I led off with this gem:

In retrospect, probably not the best choice. It really freaked her out. She immediately started tearing up. At one point I had her on my lap while she did the sobbing-gasping kind of cry. She was really worried because sometimes she sucks her thumb in her sleep and she was afraid she'd turn into a monster. In what seems like a flash of brilliance, I likened thumb sucking to potty training. I reminded her that when she first started learning to use a toilet she still had to wear a diaper at night. But when she got good at using the potty during the day her body remembered at night not to pee. I also had to reassure her that occasional
sucking while she was sleeping would not cause her to have a hideous smile.
We talked about if she would do her part: not suck her thumb, I would do my part: make sure she had braces if she needed them. Still she was pretty worried about having crazy monster teeth - creepy teeth.
Me, being the loving, sensitive, kind mother that I am, had to try really hard not to laugh. It's so ridiculous, it's funny. But I did feel bad for her - even as I bit through my own tongue. She's tired which makes everything seen worse.
I have to say though, when I went in to check on her tonight, after she was asleep, not only is she not sucking her thumb but she's actually laying on her hand. She really doesn't want to look like a monster!

Such a beautiful girl- inside and out!