Teething?

[kt_11]

Can anyone help reassure me that this sounds like teething please? My little boy (nearly 7 months) has always been a terrible sleeper but I’d thought with a bit of help and his own development things were improving slightly (was still waking several times at night but he started to be able to put himself to sleep most of the time in his pram when not moving and sometimes in his cot).

But now he’s getting increasingly hard to get to sleep again and waking up every 1 or 2 hours crying. I just spent nearly an hour getting him back to sleep for him to only sleep for an hour.

He’s always chewed a lot on everything but this has got worse this last week and he’s now started biting me when breastfeeding. Having previously had very few dirty nappies he’s now going about 5 times a day (he doesn’t have a temperature or any other signs of a bug). But as yet no teeth have appeared.

I was already struggling with the prolonged lack of sleep and now it’s got worse again. I’m now wondering whether it’s even teething at all or just behavioural and whether I’m going to have to resort to the less gentle means of sleep training him (never ever wanted to do this).

Has your baby been so bad with teething, if so how long after these symptoms started did the teeth actually come through? I’m really starting to worry that this is just how he’s going to be from now on and I genuinely don’t think I can cope with the exhaustion. Thanks x

[Kempton]

I think it sounds like teething. My lo definitely got especially grumpy right before the first tooth appeared!

[kt_11 in reply to Kempton]

Thanks. I think I’m just so terrified that it’s not that at all and is something that won’t just ‘go back to normal’.

I was just so happy that he was able to nap without me going out for walks 3x a day and go to sleep at night without feeding or rocking but now it’s just impossible again. He still never slept more than 3 hours but I’d take that at the moment! 😔 x

[Amanda86]

Hey,

I feel your pain. My little boy (almost 7 months) has also never been a sleeper, it slightly improved (he done 4 hours) then went back to 1-2 hourly wakes.

With my little boy I’m not sure if he just can’t self settle (he has to be rocked or fed to sleep) and as much as I want to try controlled crying, I can’t bring myself to do it!

Anyway, my little boy has his two bottom teeth and he’s now got the top 2 fang teeth coming through and I can honestly say it 100% unsettled him in all ways (mood, sleep, eating etc).

For us his two bottom teeth took a couple of weeks to come in from when we seen the white of the tooth, seems to be the same with the top fangs we’ve got one partially through and another you can see it’s on the way through and I probably noticed this 2-3 weeks ago.

Hopefully all will settle down with you little one, it’s not easy dealing with a little one who doesn’t sleep and then teething on top of it 🙈 xxx

[kt_11 in reply to Amanda86]

Thanks. It does sound like our little ones are very similar. He’s got two big lumps on his gums at bottom and top but I’ve been expecting these teeth for a while now!

He’s never been great at self-settling but as I said had just started to be able to do this a couple of weeks back mostly in the pram but also in the cot (sometimes he cried a little but it was a whiny, tired cry, a very different one from what he’s now doing at night and only lasted a minute or so).

Really hope it’s teething as I was so optimistic about him being able to settle himself. Thought he’d just grown into it a bit! Sorry to hear you’re still having regular waking too. It really does build up over the months doesn’t it xx

[Amanda86 in reply to kt_11]

I would say with the lumps being there it shouldn’t be too long, I actually stopped giving my little one teething medication because it was going on so long I honestly thought it can’t be teething and then suddenly a little tooth appeared! Are you giving him anything for teething?

I hope my little one learns to self settle, I haven’t tried for a while to put him down awake. I should maybe try just to see what happens. He fights sleep so bad, screams because he’s tired and doesn’t want to sleeps. Think he’s scared to miss anything, he’s so nosey 😂

It’s good your little boy was starting to self settle and I’m sure once his teeth are through he’ll go back to that.

Yeah it really does take its toll, as I approach getting closer to the return of work I’m getting more worried that this won’t get better. I really hope it does 🤞 xxx

[kt_11 in reply to Amanda86]

Haha yep exactly the same thing with the nosiness! He's too interested in everything for his own good.

When are you due back at work? I've got two jobs and have just started back once a week at the evening one which is really my hobby. Not going back to my proper job until April/May and really hope he's settled a bit before then!

I'm giving him calpol and have tried the teething powder but not sure whether either make a difference. He chews everything so I've tried to put some of the teethers in the fridge. He just never seems to chew the things that I'm giving him for long. We've got the jigsaw floor mats for him as we've got a wooden floor and he's always picking them up and trying to chew them when Sophie the Giraffe is sitting right there!

He's actually just put himself to sleep in the pram!!! About 10 seconds of crying then gone. Wondering if it's because I kept him up a bit longer. He was previously managing about 3 hours of awake time but I cut it back down to 2 hours a couple of weeks ago when he had an awful cold. Not sure if that will have any relevance at night but at least it's got me a bit of time to catch up on some things and try have a little nap myself!

xx

[Jemima2226]

I’m so sorry you’re getting no sleep, it’s really tough. My little one is 17 months now and finally stopped teething. But she had it bad too, she would scream nonstop if I left the room so I had to sleep on her floor for a couple of months. And another time she woke up for a solid three hours before going back to sleep. As for the nappies I think because they produce so much saliva which can upset the tummy.

Stay strong and it will come to an end. X

[kt_11 in reply to Jemima2226]

Thanks. It’s good to hear from other people who’ve been through similar. He’s such a lovely little boy - really lively & interested in everything with loads of character.

It’s just got to the stage where my ‘mum friends’ seem to have it so much easier (one of them was complaining yesterday that sometimes her baby wakes up once, sometimes twice to be fed 😔) It can be hard to remember that babies are just all different and I end up feeling like I’m obviously not coping as well as everyone else.

We always wanted more than 1 baby but my partner has said he doesn’t want any more now after how hard this one is! x

[Jemima2226 in reply to kt_11]

I think some baby’s feel teething more than others. My little girl got so bad she refused to nap during the day as well. But it did pass and now she’s much better and I’m now a mum who wakes up once or twice in the night, but It was a hard journey.

My partner also said he didn’t think we’d mange having more baby’s but as she’s grown older he’s found it easier and we’re now trying again. It gets easier 😊

[amazed]

Sounds like teething to me. It's just a phase so don't despair- he will sleep again! But maybe not for a month or two 🙁 my daughter got a lot worse at sleeping around 7 months and ended up attached (gumming) to my nipple (we co-slept) for two months until one day (9.5months) I went to feed her and there was a tooth there. She happily chewed and I screamed and tried again and she did the same thing. So I started pumping and my mother in law and husband cuddled her overnight for the first two nights (while I pumped-in tears-darn those hormones, in a separate room) and I weaned her. I'm happy to say that by day 3 not only was she taking a bottle (it took a few different brands but she settled on 'mam' ones) but also sleeping in her own cot (albeit at the end of our bed). She had a couple of weeks of waking once or twice a night for a quick cuddle before she started teething again and there were a few nights when she wouldn't settle for an hour at a time! She now has 2 teeth though and I feel almost human again! Best of luck with it all. Don't be scared to give him a bit of calpol or neurofen if it gives you both some relief and enables him to sleep. And remember, the only constant is change! Good luck xx

[kt_11 in reply to amazed]

Thank you. Sorry to hear you had similar issues but good that things are a bit better for you now. Gives me a bit of hope!

I have been giving him calpol in case he’s in discomfort even when I’m not sure whether he’s crying with pain or tiredness. Last night he woke for the 3rd time at 2:30 and was up for 90 minutes, which included having to change a very dirty nappy. He did put himself back to sleep though after that so I know he can do it. x

[amazed in reply to kt_11]

Just remembered something! I don't know if you'd consider an amber teething necklace for him? I was always a bit skeptical but I purchased one for my youngest son, which his little sister now wears and it does really seem to make a difference. Jay had been wearing his for several months when my friend's daughter started teething and I offered her his necklace until the one she'd ordered arrived, since we'd had no problems. Within 12 hours his cheeks were pink, dribble galore and a very sore bum- I had to go get it back!

The one we've got is unpolished pale amber and I ordered it from ebay from lithuania, I think. Apparently it releases some sort of acid (sylicilic or something) through the skin which has a calming effect... worth a try?xx

[kt_11 in reply to amazed]

I actually do have one that was bought for me a couple of months ago. When we got it, although he was chewing other things he didn’t seem interested but have got it out today and he’s been chewing it so thanks for the recommendation & hope it helps! Had another awful night last night where he was awake screaming for ages more than once so will see how tonight goes...! x

[amazed in reply to kt_11]

I hope you had a better night last night. With the necklace, he won't need to chew it, just wearing it should be enough. Although my son used to manage to get his in his mouth while he was wearing it when he was v small! I dkn't even bother taking it off in the bath, mine just wear it 24/7!x

[kt_11 in reply to amazed]

Ah maybe I’m thinking of the wrong thing, this must just be a teething necklace. Will look into amber necklace as well then 😊

Last night started off bad with him waking after 1hr45, awake & crying for about an hour (with attempts to settle him) before finally sleeping for 3 hours, waking to feed then sleeping 4hrs30! So this is much better and proves he can settle himself in the night. Something (teething or otherwise) is stopping him re-settling after that initial sleep cycle 🤷🏻‍♀️ but it’s as if he’s just having a late nap rather than going to bed! Will keep trying! x

[amazed in reply to kt_11]

Woo-hoo, 4.5 hrs is great. I bet you feel a bit better for having that chunk of sleep! Does he have 2 naps in the day? I often find mine sleep better at night if they've had a couple of good sleeps during the day.

Yes, the necklace I'm thinking of is the little nuggets of amber. They're all individually tied so they're not a choking risk and it's something in the amber that helps so I would get one ordered with fast delivery.

So pleased you got a better night last night. This won't last forever, they grow up so quickly!! My eldest is 19 now!xx

[Masha111]

Hi KT. Is your little one better now from sleeping and teething? Hope you are getting more rest x

[kt_11 in reply to Masha111]

Thanks for asking. He now has two teeth and seems more settled from that. Sleep is up and down. A few times he’s slept for 5 or 6 hours in one go and I’ve watched him on the monitor putting himself back to sleep in the night so when he doesn’t, that means he must need something. Last night he woke at 9pm, 1:30am, 5am, 5:30am then up at 7...x