Healthy Habits: Teething Relief

It's been a while since I've had kids that were teething, but now they're old enough to actually understand and deal with the annoyance on their own.

Teething doesn't seem to bother older kids much - I don't know if it's because they don't hurt as much, or because they've had more severe injuries and so by contrast the pain doesn't seem as bad. I don't remember any teething except my wisdom teeth, and that I just mostly remember itching. So chips and other crunchy food helped at that point (so did cold food).

There are lots of ways to help babies with teething pain. Every baby is different, so for every baby different techniques are going to be more effective.

Many parents swear by frozen teethers or frozen washcloths. Unfortunately for us, my kids actually weren't very oral, so teethers didn't interest them - which meant we couldn't use the frozen teether or frozen washcloth technique at all. My kids didn't even like putting food in their mouth. One child was very sensitive to various textures, and one child was very much into control, so she didn't eat much either.

The one kind of food they did like was nursing, and they definitely were more interested in nursing when they were teething. Although they were picky there were a few foods that they would eat, like applesauce, and we would make sure that it was extra chilled when we fed it to them. We also froze yogurt and fed it to them, because the cold had a numbing effect. Cold also provided just a different sensation that most likely distracted them from the teething pain.

Distraction was a powerful tool when they were teething. As they got older, when they were crabby because of teething we sometimes would say yes to things we didn't normally do, giving them a few extra treats or letting them play with toys that were more special.

There are a lot of over the counter products that are designed to help with teething pain. Hyland's teething tablets are one type of product. There are also gels that can be applied. These are supposed to be safe forms of pain relief. I'm always a little careful about what kinds of over the counter products I give to my kids, especially when they were younger, so I tend to look for natural options whenever possible - and many parents also look for options that are free from artificial colors and flavors. Hyland's products contain natural ingredients, which is a definite plus.

There are lots of ways to try to ease the pain or distract babies from the pain when they're teething. Even if it seems like nothing works, rest assured that they will get through it. Teething actually doesn't last all that long, and it'll seem like no time at all before they're old enough that they hardly even notice what it feels like for teeth to come in.

What techniques worked for you when your babies were teething?