So I'm pretty sure my 3.5 month old is teething. He's irritable (well, more so than usual anyway!), drooling, chomping on ANYTHING he can get into his mouth, rubbing his cheeks, not sleeping well etc. I feel like we've tried everything for this kid - cold washcloths, 4 different kinds of teething rings (refrigerated and not refrigerated), his fingers, our fingers, his paci, his burp cloth...nothing works! I haven't given him baby tylenol or baby orajel yet...I'm waiting to use those as a last resort. Does anyone have any suggestions on what I could use? I can't take the screaming and fussiness much longer!!
Have you tried Hyland's teething tablets? They were taken off the market a couple years back because of some issues with the FDA, but now they are back! They were the only thing that worked with my daughter. You can get them at Target or Babies R Us. If he has a really fussy day, consider at least giving him the baby tylenol at night before he goes to bed. He needs the rest too! Orajel scares me because of the numbing effects.....it always made me think she was going to choke on her spit or something because she couldn't swallow :-/
I have a lot of friends that swear by amber teething necklaces, my kids are not that bad with the teething, but we did use advil at night for rough times. My doctor recoomends advil over tylenol for teething because it is an anti-inflammatory as well.
That's a good point.......advil always seems more effective than tylenol when it comes to pain relief, anyways!
If you do Orajel, get the Naturals kind because they don't recommend the regular anymore. I would definitely give some Tylenol or Ibuprofen, especially at bedtime. I know it's a little scary giving meds to small babies but there's no sense in letting them continue to be in pain when the medicine will give them some relief for a little while. My pediatrician also recommended buying the Pedialyte popsicles so I'd break off a little piece, put it in the mesh feeder, and give it to my son to suck on. He was a little older than your little one when I did that, though - maybe 5-6 months?
You said you were pretty sure he was teething. Are his gums swollen? Are you sure he doesn't have an ear infection? Not all kids rub their ears.
I agree with scmom, sounds like could be ear trouble. Both of my children got diaper rash when they teethed...not sure why!
Does your lil one have a little cough... I know my nephew gets a little cough when he starts to teeth...sadly almost everytime he gets a tooth he gets an ear infection as well!!!! Have you rolled a blanket under the head end of the mattress...sometimes if you prop them up just a little it helps take some of the pressure off of their gums.
My favorite treatment for teething: frozen mini bagel halves. The fact that they're frozen helps sore gums. They must taste a whole heck of a lot better than the teething rings, and the size helps little fingers grab on. Hit the supermarket, get a bag of Lender's plain mini-bagels,separate the halves, and re-freeze. They really did help my kids.
I haven't tried them...I heard they were unsafe, so I was very hesitant to go that route. I have heard bad things about Orajel also, like you mentioned, but I've had friends who have used it with their kids and rave about it. I don't know...I'd rather try natural remedies first before I go the Orajel route!!
I forgot all about those! I saw a friend's baby wearing one a few months ago and was asking about it, but it had completely slipped my mind! I think I'm going to look into that!
I suppose it could be an ear infection. I just assumed he was teething. Plus, my mom (who watches him) and my mother in law both said they're pretty sure he's teething. I trusted them since they both had kids! We're taking him in for a doctor's appointment next week, so I'll have them look into that also, just in case.
So funny you mentioned this! My dad told me this morning that he used to use this method when my brother and I were teething and that I should try it. I told him there's no way I'm giving my baby whiskey!!
I had the same concerns, but they are really popular. Everything I have seen advises not to use them when they are asleep or unattended and they are very short so they wouldn't get caught on things.
My first thought was ear infection. There is lots of drroling and biting with ear troubles too. I knew when it was an ear infection because they either could not lay or had to be pushed in the stoller in the house. When my sons teethed, they also had running noses, loose stools, and a diaper rash. My second thought for teething was frozen waffles. My sons still eat waffles right out of the freezer. The bagels would probably be even safer.
