Sick Baby or Teething????

T.: I agree that it could be an ear infection, so rule that out first. Even if it is, Tylenol and Baby Orajel is fine to give him. It really sounds like teething to me. I would give him Tylenol and Nightime formula Baby Orajel at bedtime and see if that works. I use to really worry about giving my babies medicine when they didn't need it too, but my doctor told me that if they seem uncomfortable and giving them the medicine will help them sleep, then they need it, no matter what the issue is. I put the baby orajel on their binky and it works good for my daughter. It never seemed to work for my son, but it was a godsend for my daughter. Good Luck!!

I've been going through this with my almost 10-month-old daughter. She went for like a week with a super congested cough, runny nose, interrupted sleep, crying jags, all of it. I gave her Tylenol or Motrin (though your baby is still too young for Motrin) and it seemed to help with everything except the cough and runny nose.

After a visit to the pedi, we reaized that not only was she teething, but in that short week she had developed an ear infection as well as bronchitis; warranting an antibiotic and breathing treatments.

Point is, I just chalked it up to teething becuase this is how she acted with the first (and only) two teeth she had gotten. Imagine my dismay when I realized she was suffering from horrible ear pain all along. I deffinately suggest you take her to the pedi. At worst, it will cost you a couple of hours and maybe a copay for them to tell you its nothing, right?

It could be a lot of things. I know the time change has caused some headaches to our evening routine.

If the tylenol and/or (particularly) baby orajel seem to calm him down, then it's likely teething.

It could be he's tired and the change of bedtime combined with the recent time change has just caused him to be a little cranky.

Since he's congested, it could be teething, but I'd take him to the dr. to see if he has an ear infection. My neice is about 6 months old, and recently sounded (what we call) "rattle-y" (a.k.a. congested). She took her in to the dr., and the poor little booty had a double ear infection. That could also cause him not to sleep well.

For what it's worth, and good luck!

I think we all go through the stages, where we just established a great sleep habit and, bam, it changes overnight. This is completely normal. Yes, your baby might be teething. You may not feel anything yet by rubbing his gums. Put your finger on the bottom gum and see if you can feel a bump or two (do the same on the top). My son always had multiple teeth coming at once and it hurt even when I couldn't feel or see anything yet. I just ended up giving him infant tylenol b/c the orajel really didn't help him. He had so much saliva in his mouth that the saliva had "washed" the orajel out before it really had a chance to work. I knew that it was his teeth, when he would wake up pretty much every four hours after giving him the infant tylenol. You can also give your little one ibuprofen. It lasts longer than tylenol. I would say, try out the tylenol tonight and see how long he sleeps.

Hyland's teething tablets are awesome for teething and totally safe (they are all natural). you can use them throughout the day and before bed. much better than tylenol. they are cheapest at target, but you can find them at all kinds of palces. my Ped said it was ok for my girls when they were that age and they were premies. give it a try. you'll find life is much better :) oh, and are you using a humidifier? that helps alot too.

We just went through something similar with my 5 month old. He was doing really well at night and then for about 2 weeks straight he would wake up whining or crying. Sometimes he would eat, other times the binkie would help get him back to sleep. I asked the dr who said it probably was not teething, but all kids are different. By that weekend he woke up screaming and nothing would calm him down. I tried putting his binkie in and he started chewing on it instead of sucking. He also chewed on my finger. We took that as teething, gave him some baby orajel and Tylenol and he slept great the rest of the night. For a few days after that we gave him a little bit of both before bed and he did much better. Now he hasn't had any teeth pop through, but he stopped and the last couple of nights has slept better than he has in a while. Good luck! I know it is frustrating. It's possible that he could just be sick, but I know how tough it is as a first time mom! :)