When you’re a new parent, every milestone your baby crosses is exciting. Getting the first tooth is no exception. There’s nothing cuter than a baby grinning with just a couple of teeth showing. Unfortunately, with those cute little teeth come a few problems. To answer your questions, here’s some information about what to expect about teething and how to help make teething easier on your baby.

Teething Symptoms

Just like every baby is different, teething symptoms in every baby will be different too. The symptoms that most babies have in common are drooling, irritability and crying, chin rashes, biting and gnawing, diarrhea, low-grade fever, and cold-like symptoms. Your baby will more than likely not have every one of these symptoms, but you can expect at least several of them.

When your baby starts teething, it can be painful. His sharp teeth are pushing their way through his gums and it hurts. This is what causes the irritability and the crying. Trouble sleeping through the night can also be expected because of the pain. Teething stimulates drooling so have a supply of clean bibs on hand. Many times because of the drooling, your baby will develop a chin rash and possibly diarrhea. Your baby may even experience a low-grade fever and cold-like symptoms, probably from getting germs by keeping his hands and fingers in his mouth much of the time.

Relief

To help with the crying and irritability, try to help your baby with his teething symptoms. Babies try to help themselves by biting and gnawing because the pressure feels good to his gums. Help your baby by keeping a supply of things for him to chew on like a cold, wet washcloth, popsicles, or a cold teething biscuits. You can buy plastic teething rings in any drug or baby store. Keep several on hand and chill them in the refrigerator to be extra soothing to his gums. Good snacks to have for your baby is slightly frozen applesauce or slushy fruit juices. The coldness has a numbing affect on the baby’s gums when he eats and makes them feel better.

If the chewing aids don’t seem to help, you can always try baby-strength pain relievers that your doctor has approved. Another option is trying over the counter teething pain medicine. Some babies get added relief from these medicines.

Getting your baby relief from teething is mainly trial and error. Comfort your baby and try different ideas to see what helps your baby the most. Remember, teething doesn’t last forever and you’ll soon be rewarded with those cute little teeth!