Baby Teething: What To Chew On

You hear it all the time, but until you experience it first hand you just don’t realize how true it is. Every child is different. What works for one, may not work for another, even siblings. I discovered this first hand when my second daughter started cutting teeth.

With my oldest, she was content to chew on frozen wash clothes and be cuddled. She cut one tooth at a time with at least a couple of weeks in between each one popping through. Her teeth broke pretty quickly once she showed signs of teething. Occasionally we used medication at bedtime to help her sleep well, but did not need it consistently. She was relatively easy when it came to the whole teething game.

Our Second Child

My second …oh, she is a whole different can of worms. To start, she cut her first 6 teeth all at once over the course of 10 days. A normally happy-go-lucky baby was suddenly miserable, unless she was sleeping. And when she was sleeping it was restless, and she was waking often in discomfort. She has sensitive skin to begin with, and we noticed right away that she got a rash on her forehead as soon as the teething began.

Then came the diaper rash. I have never seen such a terrible diaper rash. Teething causes her to have very loose and frequent bowel movements, which in turn causes the rash. We tried every cream and ointment we had. Giving her bum as much “air time” as well could always results in her peeing on the floor despite us having a spare shower curtain laid out on the floor under a cozy blanket. We change her diaper more frequently. Nothing seems to be helping.

Baby Teething: What We Can Do To Help

We had to find a solution. I turned to the vast mommy knowledge of my friends via social media. I got all sorts of suggestions – some we had already tried, some were new to us. In the end we found a magic trifecta.

First, we tried Boiron’s Camilia, a medication formulated to relieve pain, restlessness, irritability and diarrhea due to teething. In the first 24 hours I notice a drastic change in her bowel movements – for the better. Administering the medication is so simple, since they come in drinkable, single unit doses, that I just have to squeeze into her mouth. The neutral taste means she swallows them without a second thought. I also love that it is safe for children as young as 1 month old through until 30 months, which covers the time period most babies/toddlers are cutting teeth.

We still had to combat the rash she had. Ultimately we found two elements that helped clear & keep away her rash: giving her baking soda baths every evening, and sprinkling corn starch on her bum at each diaper change.

Now we know that as soon as a red spot appears on her forehead, she is about to start cutting a new tooth. We always make sure we have Camilia on hand, and a good stash of both baking soda & corn starch just in case. It makes all the difference for us – with this baby anyway. Who knows what the third will be like!

Baby Teething Toys: What She Loves To Chew On

My first child is just not a “put everything in your mouth” kind of kid. My second though, she will literally put everything and anything in her mouth. For her, we make sure to have lots of baby teething toys and teething friendly accessories on hand.

I find myself wearing wood or silicon teething jewelry most of the time, so that when I am holding her she can gnaw away on my necklace. We also find that frozen baby teething toys are a big hit with her and now have a stock pile on our freezer door. And in her own very peculiar fashion, she absolutely loves to chew on socks – so when we dress her in the morning, we put one pair on her feet and hand her a second pair that she can chew on for the day.