We all expect that a baby getting a new tooth will be accompanied by sleepless nights. However a number of sleep experts believe that "new tooth syndrome" is too often blamed for babies waking at night, and that quite often the problem relates to other factors completely.
In those event packed early years, with so much development taking place, it can be difficult to ascertain why baby is not sleeping well. We suspect everything, and teething is a popular culprit, but this is not always the case.
There will be periods when your baby will wake during the night. This may be due to acute teething or a recently picked up cold or other virus. However in general, a baby should sleep through the night more often than not.
Babies and toddlers are pretty much "teething" for the first two to three years of their life. There is what's known as chronic teething - which is when the teeth are slowly moving through the gums. This pretty much happens all of the time and shouldn't affect your baby's sleep or appetite.
However, a period of distress for baby will begin when a tooth cuts through the surface of the gum, which is known as acute teething. This may last for 7-10 days and can affect daily and nightly moods and routines. Symptoms' include
1 - rash on chin 2 - tooth pushing up through the gum 3 - irritable behaviour 4 - loss of appetite 5 - Some parents have found that acute teething causes diarrhoea
Your baby will need a lot of comforting when the tooth breaks through the gum. Sucking on dummies, the breast or bottle can be painful and this will add to the distress for everyone.
A baby who is a usually a good sleeper should be able to cope reasonably well with a certain amount of teething at night. She may be restless, even wake and whimper a bit, but may also be able to get back to sleep. However, acute teething can result in waking and crying.
If your baby wakes and cries during teething, it is important to give her comfort. Try as much as is possible to avoid slipping into bad night time habits that will have to be addressed later. Sometimes teething gel or medicine can help.
A spell of acute teething will present you with a real challenge if your baby is already a poor sleeper. Remember that things should ease up after 7 days, once the tooth has broken through the gum. Offer your baby as much comfort as you can, and try some of the ideas already mentioned in this article. Once the period of acute teething is finished, now is the time to look at improving your baby's sleeping habits if you want to.
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