fallyn96's Full Review: Gerber Soft Center Pacifier
Before Bean was born, I bought pacifiers. Not just any pacifiers- but Gerber Nuk Pacifiers. After all, those are the ones that Monster preferred and ones that you can buy just about anywhere. I’m sure that you can imagine my surprise at the waste of money that was! Bean wanted nothing to do with those pacifiers- he kept spitting them out.
For weeks, I thought that he just didn’t want anything in his mouth that didn’t give him food. But then there was one horrible night. Bean wouldn’t sleep! He wasn’t hungry, he’d just spit the bottle out. He screamed for hours- only stopping when he had my finger in his mouth. I tried a binky- but it wouldn’t stay in his mouth. I’m not sure if it was the lack of sleep talking, or if it was really a book that I read that suggested buying pacifiers with similar nipples what baby was used it (the book was referring to breast feeding moms, but I adapted it for formula feeding moms as well). I figured that since we were using Avent bottles at the time, that he would prefer a nipple similar to the bottle nipple.
The next day, I had to make a quick run to Wal-mart to grab some diapers and formula. We didn’t have much money to spend- so I was probably dreaming when I stopped in the pacifier aisle at the store to check out what they had. What I found was a dream come true- Gerber Soft Center Pacifiers. I bought them on a trial basis- not knowing if they would work or not, but thought that it was worth a shot. After all, what did I have to lose? Not anymore sleep- I was already running on empty, that’s for sure!
What Are They?
Gerber Soft Center pacifiers are not the orthodontic flat pacifiers that you see all over the place. They are your traditional pacifier. The nipple has a bulb on the end that the baby sucks on. The back is round, and has Gerber’s trademark ring (which I just absolutely love- that’s right, give six week old babies something to grab at so that they can do exactly what they don’t want to do- pull that binky right out of their mouths!). I’ve seen three color combinations- the pink/purple that we don’t own, and the red/blue/yellow and teal/yellow that we do own. I have yet to see them sold with the caps (but this could just be where I live- although the caps look nice!). These pacifiers come in packs of two, and cost about three dollars. Very nice for families on a budget.
A Quality Product That Is Hard To Find
Bean gave up his binky about a month ago. He has since moved on to his fingers. What can I say? This child just has a high sucking need. But for the months in between, he only wanted a Gerber Soft Center. When I couldn’t find one, and tried to give him the Nuk, he would pull the Nuk out and start fussing. But with the Soft Center pacifier, he would leave it in all day, if I let him.
Like any pacifier, you do need to replace them periodically. You should change pacifiers when latex nipples start getting sticky (latex also gets dark as it gets older). Silicone nipples should be replaced when the nipple starts looking cloudy. Gerber Soft Centers are latex only- I haven’t seen any silicone ones. None of the pacifiers ever got sticky, but they did start to darken as they got older. I replaced pacifiers every 3-4 weeks, as a precaution. You should boil the pacifiers before the first use, but as far as regular cleaning, washing them in warm soapy water is just fine.
The only true problem that I had with these pacifiers is that they are hard to find. So far, I've only seen them at one Wal-mart store- the other one close to us didn't even sell them.
Final Words
Each baby has a different preference. Monster took Nuks until he was about six months old- and then he only sucked on his bottle. Bean gave up his binky at five months, and at six months of age is happy to suck his fingers and his bottle (sometimes at the same time!). It’s just a matter of trying different brands, different nipple styles, and different materials to see just which one makes your child happiest.
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