teething - do you give tylenol?

2bWednDec · November 2009

My baby is finally teething, at a year old (very soon)!

She has one tiny tooth coming in, her first. She has been whiney for the past 5 days. If this is just her first tooth, will it be the same for her other teeth? I don't like to see her so uncomfortable and the orajel isn't helping much at all. I gave her tylenol a couple times but is it ok to give her to her all the time when she's uncomfortable teething?? I hate giving medication excessively.

What did u all do?

lhuttlinger · November 2009

try hyland teething tablets

kelbrian · November 2009

I give Motrin. Tylenol does nothing for her for teething, but I know that some moms swear by it. I have been giving Motrin every night before bedtime (when the teething pain is the worst) for the past few days, and it has been helping. I also put the nighttime Orajel on her gums.

I try not to give medication excessively, but these molars are killer.

ETA: And the teething tablets also do nothing for her, so those were out. You should try them, though. I used to buy them at Walgreens.

jaejaevee · November 2009

Ditto the Hyland's.

Jessibell · November 2009

If she's really hurting, I do. Especially before bed.

J&A2008 · November 2009

We gave Tylenol as he needed it. He's got 12 teeth, and with some of them, we didn't give any. Some were more difficult than others.

I think as she gets more teeth you'll find a balance that works for you.

ETA: Sometimes we used Motrin.

JamieFL · November 2009

Per the pedi, motrin helps with the swelling of the gums and eases the pain of teething. We give it to him before bed when he's in pain - especially now, as he's getting a molar. Ugh.

Brewtowngrl · November 2009

Motrin works better then tylenol for teething. Personally I would not want to go through the pain of teething without some pain relief. I have heard that if we as adults teethed we would be asking for major pain killers. I never feel guilty about giving a little motrin for teething.

mel41g · November 2009

I give Motrin or Tylenol, whichever is handy. I haven't noticed if one works better than the other. I make sure he gets a bed-time dose, so I try not to give anything for the 6 hours prior (you may be on a different time/dosage than us, you may still be at 4 hours). But when he is teething and it is really bothering him, or if he has a mild fever, I give him meds. With a 6 hour dosage, thats just 2 times a day. But I evaluate how he is everyday, and I only give him meds if I think he needs them.

Teething can be tricky...super painful for a week, then they seem fine for a couple days, then they hurt again. I've noticed that it is when the teeth are descending that he is in pain. Once they break through, he is happy again. Unfortunately, teeth can descend, then go back up, then come down again. So you can have repeated pain with the same tooth.