Natural pain relief for teething

Even though Oliver started teething at four months old, he didn't start showing signs of being in pain until recently.  He is waking up multiple times throughout the night fussing, he is also drooling so much he is choking on it.  Teething has completely absorbed my 5-month-old baby.  

When it comes to remedies for teething pain, all I knew about was Tylenol/paracetamol, gum numbing gels, and teething tablets that dissolve instantly. I read that the gel was not that effective, and the tablets are not really that great.  As much as I would like to give him Tylenol every 4-6 hours to kill the pain, I know that's insane. I cannot consciously give my son Tylenol/paracetamol more than absolutely positively necessary. That being said, I cannot sit by and let my baby be in pain, if I can help him. 

I have spent the last week trying out drug free remedies for teething pain.  While I wish I could say there are plenty of options, there really are not.  Luckily there are a couple I can tell you about that have made my baby's teething discomfort much more manageable!

1. The first remedy, and my personal favorite, is the mesh pacifier bag filled with frozen fruit. 

Side Note:I have a good friend whose son was being very difficult about eating solids at 6 months old.  She bought one of these mesh pacifiers, filled it with banana and voila! her son could not eat it fast enough!

Here is what you do.  Fill the mesh bag with frozen fruit, but not too much.  I packed my bag full the first time, only to realize Ollie couldn't get his mouth around it comfortably. After taking half the fruit out, I held Oliver in my lap and held the pacifier the whole time while he gnawed away at it.  He loved it, ate all of the fruit out of the bag.  This really works!  Oliver was not fussy for hours after eating the frozen fruit. 

MMMMMM!
Frozen Mangoes!

2. My second favorite is a washcloth that has been soaked in Chamomile tea, and then placed in the freezer or refrigerator for an hour.  Oliver loves this one too! 

Steep a bag of Chamomile tea, then soak a corner of a washcloth in the tea.  I soak 3 or 4 baby washcloths at once and refrigerate them in a Ziplock bag.

BONUS: Chamomile is also thought to help sooth colicky babies and help babies sleep.  You can even put a teaspoon in their bottles

3. This tip I came up with on my own! Refrigerate or freeze EVERYTHING at night  At the end of the day I wash all of the water filled teething toys, his pacifier and a couple of plain water soaked washcloths. This way the next day I have a full arsenal of teething ammo.  





4. Last but not least...Amber Teething Necklace- Currently, there are two different thoughts as to why wearing amber on the skin can have soothing and calming effects on teething children. One thought suggests that when amber is worn on the skin, the skin's warmth releases minuscule amounts of healing oils from amber which are then absorbed through the skin into the bloodstream. The other theory is based on scientific findings which have shown that amber is electromagnetically alive and produces significant amounts of organic, purely natural energy. 

I have not personally used this on Oliver, but would LOVE to hear if you have first hand knowledge and thoughts. For more information visit Amber Artisans.

If you have any other natural remedies please share!