Feb 26, 2011  •  In Baby, Claire, Parenting, Personal

Teething

Claire seems to be teething.  🙁

She has been extra fussy and irritable the past couple of days. While she doesn’t seem to be drooling more than usual (but then again, she’s been a drooling machine for the past month), she ALWAYS has her fingers in her mouth. She is not eating as much — she will drink for a few minutes then stop and wail, as if sucking on the bottle is causing her pain — and sleeping in shorter stretches, often waking up with whimpering cries.

At first I believed it to be the sleep-training regression mentioned in the How to SUCCESSFULLY teach a baby to sleep post. But then I noticed that her cheeks would intermittently turn red which is considered a telltale sign of teething.

2/26/11 She sucks it like she owns it!
Claire’s favorite teething “toy” for now seems to be my finger.

Some babies teeth with no problem, with the parents not noticing any change in behavior or routine. There are also those on the opposite end of the spectrum who will act like it’s the end of the world.

I have read that teething also differs from baby to baby in that while a tooth may pop out after just one day for some, it may be a long, drawn-out process for others.

Claire’s behavior hasn’t been too bad, but I can’t help but be concerned. How can I not be, as her mother? I was telling J that it physically pains me to see her in so much discomfort, and that I feel it’s my duty to help her as much as I can. As a result, I sent J to get some Baby Orajel as soon as I suspected what was happening, and have been giving her baby Tylenol right as we end our bedtime routine.

I have also tried:

  • Sophie the Giraffe. Claire has never been too interested in Sophie, and the chewtoy doesn’t seem to help much now either because Claire’s mouth is too little to comfortably fit any part of Sophie in her mouth. I still don’t see what the big deal is over Sophie (personally, it reminds me of a dog toy and I have caught Comang eyeing it with MUCH more interest than Claire ever has) — perhaps Claire will like it better when she gets older.
  • Razbaby RaZberry Teether. She makes a face whenever I stick this in her mouth as if to say, “That is not my pacie, mom. It feels all lumpy and uncomfortable. I don’t like it.”
  • Cold washclothes. All that accomplished were wet, cold clothes as she seems to have no interest in chewing on fabric.
  • Cold baby carrots. Unless I hold it in her mouth, she would just spit it out.

While Orajel seems to provide some relief, I am reluctant to keep using it because I tried it out myself and I didn’t like the numbing, just-got-back-from-the-dentist feeling it gave me. (I have also read that it can be potentially dangerous to use at night because if the baby’s tongue becomes numb it might cause a choking hazard.)

As such I have rush-ordered the following products:

Do my readers have any other suggestions? (Note: Claire doesn’t like most ring-shaped toys as she gets frustrated that she can’t fit the whole thing in her mouth.)

Sleep training will be taking second priority until Claire cuts the tooth/teeth that are bothering her.

It’s funny how the little booger STILL can’t roll over and is about to cut her first tooth. I guess it’s true that all babies develop at different rates and not necessarily in the same order.

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7 Responses to “Teething”

  1. cml says:

    both my kids teethed for no more than 5 days. i too have orajel and sophie. sophie was almost chucked out the car window by both. so please dont spend too much money on toys. my kids, like claire, prefers their fingers more. as for orajel…. i’m not a big fan of it. i used it cause i couldnt stand watching them in pain. my first one used it for about 3 days. by the third day i realized too much meds will probably do his little body more harm. so we stopped the meds in the morning, he fussed during the day and by the evening he was fine. we spoke to the doctor and she recommend orajel and more solids. so with the second one she had orajel in the morning and for the rest of the day, we’d give her a little milk in a bottle (to see how her teething is coming along) and use the rest of her formula to mix it with cereal (make it watery if she’s not use to the cereal yet). claire is probably pissed cause she cant suck on her bottle (thats when it hurts most…. sucking), so she cant sleep cause she’s hungry. if you can find a way to solve that… she should be ok. hope this helps. let me know if you have any questions.
    my second one is almost 7 months and she still has no teeth and wont rollover. she can stand and sit thou.

  2. Ohhh.. very cute moment you captured with your camera right there. This reminds me of my daughter when she was teething too. I remember buying different teethers of various shapes and sizes.

  3. Stephanie says:

    Oh the amber necklaces! I stayed with a french family for a month last summer, and that is a thing there. They buy a necklace when the baby starts teething, and then they pretty much leave it on until they outgrow it! Unlike the necklace referenced in your post, these were “chewable” and supposedly fantastic. The baby never cried or had any pain from teething, just chewed on the necklace when they felt like it.
    Interesting, eh? Good luck! She’s awfully adorable, anyway!

    • That’s interesting, because almost every (American) source I read about amber teething necklaces said that the warmth from body heat will release the acids and enzymes that supposedly help with the pain, so there’s no need to chew — just wearing it is fine. Chewing does make more sense when you think about it, but I have had trouble finding a chewable necklace from a reputable source (apparently, there are tons of online shops that sell “fake” amber necklaces so you have to be careful).

      It’s so fun finding out how other cultures raise children — thanks for sharing!

  4. Elsa loved chewing on cold metal. She had a sterling silver teething ring — thanks, BIL who works at Tiffany’s! — but they say a spoon in the fridge works for many babies. Otherwise, our staple was Hyland’s Teething Tablets, which have been taken off the market. Heresy! But I’m sure the Boiron will work just as well…. Good luck!

  5. Celia Gallegos says:

    hello, i found your blog and i find it amazing.
    i have a baby too, he will be 8 months next march 22nd, can’t roll over either! but he trys to crawl, not very succesful though…he is big, not fat but big baby, i can see his firth tooth too, about his behavior…he is very sleepy during the day since his teeth are bothering him, (cause he wakes up during the night i guess is the reason…) My baby adores to chew everything! sometimes i suspect he would walk and not crawl…
    your baby girl is beautiful!

  6. mindy says:

    eeeeee cute!!!! first baby teeth!!! 🙂
    They (textbooks) say baby mouth is first colonized by mother’s and father’s oral bacteria from kissing. Once they’re popularized.. they tend to stay for good once baby teeth are out (for good or bad) — so even dental cavities can be somewhat “genetic” depending on whether mother or father has virulent kinds of bacteria!
    For babies, they recommend just wiping after feeding and before bed with a piece of cloth…and making a visit to pediatric dentist before year 1! weee so cute… lil babies!! 🙂

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