Chomping At The Bit

Guess who's teething?  Yes, we have reached that milestone.  It's not as cute as say, when she started smiling and cooing.  No, definitely not as cute as that.  My normally sweet and cheerful Babydoll is a miserable drooly mess of a baby.  Some of my dear mommy friends have babies who are about the same age as my sweetness, so it's nice to have someone with whom we can weather this storm.  And oh, what a storm it is.  To put it mildly, Babydoll is *pissed* about her swollen gums.  If she could speak, I'm pretty sure a nice chunk of expletives would be spewing forth right about now.

So, what's a Groovy Mama to do when her precious babe is in pain?

I suppose, in this day and age, we should forego our parents' remedy: rubbing whisky on the baby's gums.  I believe this is why the smell of Jack Daniel's makes me gag uncontrollably.

BD and I are in the midst of exploring all the homeopathic routes.  I wish that I had made a mad dash to every store in town when Hyland's announced their teething tablet recall and stocked up on those little gems.  "But Groovy Mom!  Those teething tablets were dangerous," you're gasping.  Look, dude.  Hyland's had been using the same formula for eons.  Trust some jackass parent to overdose their kid and ruin it for the rest of us.  Millions of people take tiny doses of belladonna with no side effects other than the herb's tendency to help you chill out.  Grrrrr.  So here's what we're trying, in lieu of Hyland's:

Amber teething necklace: while I was still pregnant, several green mamas recommended an amber teething necklace for when my little sweet pea began teething.  The one I bought comes from Lithuania and is pure Baltic amber.  For safety, each bead is hand knotted, so that if the strand does break, we only lose one bead.  It has a screw-on safety clasp and is loose enough that it doesn't pose a choking hazard.  At night, or for a long nap, I take it off Babydoll's neck and wrap it around her ankle.  The theory behind amber is that it releases oils into the skin and is a natural anti-inflammatory.  She's only been wearing it for two days but the drool factor has greatly decreased.  I'm hopeful that it helps with the pain, too.  Plus, she looks cute:

Chamomile: I've found several methods for using chamomile.  My favorite, so far, is to brew a cup of chamomile tea (for me) and place the used tea bag in the freezer for about a half hour.  Then, I let Babydoll gum on it (of course, I watch her carefully to make sure the tea bag doesn't open).  You can also brew chamomile tea and soak a baby washcloth in it, then freeze, for the same effect.  I've read that infants can safely ingest chamomile in small amounts, but I haven't bought Babydoll her own tea pot yet.

For older babies, who have started solids, you can freeze chunks of fruit then place it in a mesh teething bag for baby to gnaw on.  Babydoll just recently turned four months old, so we're not rocking this method yet.  (Before you buy, please check the label and make sure the product is BPA-free)

As a last resort, we've given her Infant's Tylenol.  For myself, I try to avoid conventional medicine if at all possible, and in an ideal world, I would do the same for my child.  I can't stand to see her in pain, though, and if all else fails, we give it to her. 

Hey mamas, what natural teething rememdy has worked for you?  Let me know!