By Daycare Spots

If your baby is teething, you’ve probably noticed a negative correlation with their sleeping routine. Teething is an unfortunately painful, but an inevitable process that causes babies' mouths and gums to be sore. It’s important to nail down a bedtime routine early in your child’s life that will hopefully transition to their teething phase, and it’s equally as important to not create any habits during this phase that you might regret later down the road.

Teething Rings

A popular option to help relieve babies from the pain of their teeth cutting through are teething rings. When chilled, teething rings provide a great comfort and relief to children, and also aid as a distraction from their painful gums. If you’re in a crunch and without a teething ring, a cold washcloth is a great alternative. The cloth just needs to be damp, then frozen, and can be popped out of the freezer for quick and easy relief.

Over-the-counter medications

Talk with your child’s pediatrician about giving your baby infant tylenol for teething to assist with helping them sleep. Giving your infants tylenol for teething, especially about 30 minutes before bed, can help relieve the pain just long enough for them to fall asleep. Most over-the-counter medications have a minimum age requirement, which is why it is recommended to ask your child’s care provider about your options and the proper dosage for your baby.

Distractions

The key to helping your child is to try to find distractions. During the day, this is easy with toys and games, but it gets difficult at night. A popular nighttime distraction is creating white noise. Either with a specific machine, or as simple as just playing music in your baby’s room can help them focus more on the music and less on their sore gums.

Alternative Remedies

There are several remedies that can aid in helping your baby self-soothe or gain relief during this time period. Sticking to your child’s routine, despite them going through pain, is really important during the teething phase and can also aid in distracting them from the pain. Also, applying pressure on your baby’s gums in a massaging way can also help with the pain - just make sure you wash your hands prior to trying this method.

Teething is an uncomfortable phase in your baby’s life. Dealing with the pain before bed can help tremendously, but these tips can help should your child wake up throughout the night due to the pain. The most important thing to remember is that teething doesn’t last forever; it’s only off and on for a couple of years. If you stick to your baby’s sleeping schedule as best as you can, once the teething stage is over, they should transition back to the same routine fairly easily.