Skeptical Mama: Trying to find a REAL natural solution for teething pain.

So, baby Price is just starting to show the fussy signs that his gummy smile may be a thing of the past before too long. His poops have been weird (sorry... tmi), he wants to chew on everything from his own hands and feet to my face, any toy or piece of furniture that he comes into contact with, and everything else EXCEPT his teething rings/ toys! He has been waking in the night upset and just seems uncomfortable more than usual. 

I am the kind of crunchy mom who likes to use as little medication as possible (for myself and my family). I cloth diaper, babywear, bed share, use essential oils, and a few other things that people would consider hippyish, except I'm not a hippy at all. So, naturally, I have begun the search for a REAL, as natural as can be solution to help my little man out. 

I've gone to the internet, facebook, and family, and I'm getting a lot of the same information, however, I find myself not wanting to do most of the things mentioned. There has to be something else that works. 

These are my thoughts on some of the solutions I've read/ been told about:

1. Amber teething necklaces: I get it. They have succinic acid, which has been used for years to help with pain management in other cultures. However, even if you do find somebody who is selling the real thing and not trying to rip you off with a necklace made from resin or fake stones, they only contain as much as 8% of the acid. And I'm supposed to believe that is enough to absorb through my baby's skin and find its way to the source of the pain and be powerful enough to soothe a screaming baby? I'm just unsure. 

Secondly, these are necklaces (or bracelets) made out of BEADS that I am supposed to hang around my baby's NECK and leave on him for 24 hours a day? Didn't I mention that my baby wants to chew on EVERYTHING?! Can we say choking hazard? I just don't know. 

2. Hyland's Teething Tablets: Maybe they do work. Maybe they aren't THAT bad. But, weren't they just recalled not long ago for risk of harm to children? Doesn't that raise a red flag? I know people swear by them, but I just can't imagine why they are still on the store shelves. Just hearing that they may pose a possible POISONING risk is enough to make me super nervous. 

3. Good old Tylenol or Motrin: My baby isn't 6 months old yet, so he can't have Motrin, and Tylenol we do use occasionally. We use it after his shots because he always gets a fever. However, I don't like to take too much Tylenol myself, and I just don't want to rely on it so often for something that may have another solution, especially for my little 13 pound bundle of slobber. 

4. Cold/ Frozen Wash Cloths: My mom said she used to do this for me, and I've also heard from others that this works. It was actually one of the first things I tried. Price just didn't like it. I hoped he would. It was a fail. However, he does like to suck on his washcloth full of nasty soap in the bathtub :)

5. Chew toys: We've gotten every kind imaginable. He doesn't like them. Fail #2.

6. Orajel: I have read recently, and heard from a friend, that even baby orajel can be a potential hazard. Because of the numbing effect, there is a chance that the baby's throat may also become numb. Because babies do not have complete control of their reflexes, this could become a major choking hazard if saliva were to build up. No thank you. 

7. Essential Oils (specifically thieves and peppermint): I have definitely been known to use essential oils. I use them on myself, my baby's bottom, my husband, my dog, and I diffuse them regularly. I have ingested them (Young Living only) and so has my husband, but, even diluted, it makes me nervous to put two "hot" oils directly in my baby's mouth. If I dilute them enough to not have any effects from the "hotness" will it even be enough to help the teething pain? I just don't know. I'll sure try it out though. 

8. Frozen Foods: I can actually see this working. Specifically the idea about frozen waffles, however, Price isn't old enough to have food yet. Bummer. 

I usually have a conclusion, but today I don't. I'm going to keep trying some of these remedies, and if I ever find one that actually works, I'll be sure to post it so you can all try it out! 

If you were one of the lovely ladies who passed on what worked for you, I TRULY appreciate it! I am going to keep trying them and maybe my particular little man will find something he likes. If you have another possible solution, let me hear it! 

Sleepy Mama

Baby Price was sleeping a solid 5-7 hours and then waking for a feeding and going back to sleep for 2 or three hours for at least 2 months. And then, out of nowhere, he just stopped sleeping, sometimes waking up EVERY HOUR for no reason.

The dreaded "4 month sleep regression" has brought so much more to my little family than just sleep deprivation. As a working mom who sometimes has night duty all alone because my husband works over night, this crazy lack of a sleep schedule has made me desperate to find a solution, and with my search came some deep conversations between my husband and I about just what kind of parents we want to be and the type of parenting style we think fits our family best.

But first, the things that I read/ was told about helping my baby (and me) get more sleep:

1. Let him cry.
2. Give him cereal in his bottle.
3. Put him in his own room.
4. Give it time.
5. Don't feed him when he wakes up.
6. Feed him when he wakes up.
7. Lay him down awake, but drowsy.
8. Change his diaper.
9. Don't change his diaper.
10.  Just nap when he naps during the day. (Ha! Yeah, right. My boss would love that.)
11. Don't create any "sleep associations" (bottle, paci, rocking, bouncing, holding)
12. Don't let him see you.
13. Never put him in your bed.
... And a gazillion more.

Every child is different. I get it. But there has to be a solution that works for my baby, and none of these seem to be it. I could go through mine and my baby's reactions when some of these proposed "solutions" were tested, but let me just sum it up with the simple fact that none of this worked.

So, back to the conversation that all of this brought up between my husband and I. It went a little something like this:

Husband: "I don't want my baby to cry if he doesn't have to."
Me: "Me either."

Husband: "I love when Price sleeps in the bed with us."
Me: "Me too."

Husband: "Why would we not feed our baby if he is hungry or change him if he is wet?"
Me: "We will."

Husband: "Why would we not rock and hold him to get him to sleep if he feels safe and comfortable and likes it? And it works?"
Me: " I don't know. That's dumb."

Husband: "How did tribes back in the day do it?"
Me: "What?!?"
Husband: "I think they had the right idea. Let's do it the old way."

Anyway... It continued, and I learned that my husband is a big fan of attachment style parenting. And we learned that we are on the same page with this parenting thing, even if it seems to be a different page than the rest of the world.

We will cuddle our baby to sleep, rock him, bounce him, wear him, or whatever he is needing that night. We will lay him in his bed that is in our room, and when he wakes up hungry, we will feed him. Then we will change him if he is wet. And then, we will snuggle him back to sleep in our bed where he will sleep with us, safe, and surrounded by love, for the rest of the night.

Everybody has an opinion, and I am slowly, but surely, learning not to solicit for parenting advice. We will figure out what works for us and our baby, and that is what we will do. Even if it means that we will get absolutely no sleep in the mean time.

After all, I don't know many 15 year olds who still sleep with their parents or college kids to wet their pants or drink from bottles. I don't know a high school student who still takes a pacifier. It will all work itself out, and in the long run, our baby will never feel alone, abandoned, or sad when bed time rolls around. To me, my lack of sleep is so worth his comfort. That's what being a parent is all about; sacrifice.