7 Month Old Suddenly Fussy

M.,

I totally agree with Paula, my daughter has the exact same behaviour when she is teething...a normally happy go lucky little girl, she turns really fussy & wants to be held!!! The teething tablets(Hylands) do work! Check her gums and see if you see any puffiness where her teeth might be coming in. If the tablets don't work you might want to try some tylenol....just to see if it makes her fussiness dissapear....then you will have your answer.

M.,

Is it possible that she is teething? My daughter got very clingy and fussy (for her... still not very fussy, but I could tell) around 9mo when she was getting two teeth in at once. I just comforted her as she needed it and started her on teething tablets. They were recommended by a co-worker of my husband's and they worked great! We give them to her four times a day (three tablets at a time) and they really, really helped with the fussiness and seemed to make her feel much better. The best thing is that she thinks they are some kind of treat and runs over when I get them out and just pops them in her mouth (I've tasted them and they have no taste to speak of, so I'm not sure what the draw is - other than we spend so much time trying to keep her from putting things into her mouth and these are something she's allowed to pick up and pop in her mouth!).

My daughter moved away from wanting to be in my lap all the time after she started feeling better. She had another little bout of "closeness" when her top four teeth decided to all come in together, but once they broke through, that subsided as well. I don't think you will foster any negative behavior if you comfort her through this.

I hope that helps.

I can feel your pain, my 8 month old daughter is currently in a phase of chasing through the house to hold her constantly. Don't worry though, this is very normal developmentally. Seperation anxiety, while difficult for us as parents, is a good sign that your baby is bonded to you. When she cries when she sees you, she is just reminded of how much she misses you when you are out of sight. When babies get to this more mobile age they suddenly understand how easily you can be gone and how much they still need you. Give her a pat, caress, some reassurance or maybe a song to let her know that she is okay and that you aren't leaving. She will learn that she is okay.

I would have to go with the other responses. I have a 7 month old son and he has been a perfect little angel the first few months, but started teething over the past month and has been SO fussy and it is very frustrating. Use plenty of orajel, tylenol, cold drinks, and we even let him bite on a popsicle which really satisfys him! Hope this helps!