It's teething time!

Last night was a nightmare. I tried putting him to bed at 8.30pm (one hr earlier than his usual 9.30pm). He screamed and cried all the way, waving his hands and legs up on the air, as if asking for hugs. Nothing could pacify him, except the last latch on he dozed off on the breast at round about 10.30pm. Then little monster woke up again 3-4times in the middle of the night. I guessed the only way was to latch him on. So I did. At one point I dozed off and he too slept on our bed. And then I got a harsh kick on my eye. It was SHAWN's foot doing a smack down on my eye. Thank goodness there was no bruise this morning! The only time I remembered latching him again on was 4.30am in the morning. And then he also dozed off after having his fill and he settled peacefully in his cot. I had to wake him up at 7.30am for his morning booze before I get to work. He woke up happy as if nothing has happened the previous night.

I checked with the infant care centre. They had noticed that he has been rubbing his gums vigorously with toys on the sides of his gum. Indeed TEETHING is the right word. Only thing that we can do is wait for the teeth to cut throught. Meanwhile got to bear with it, as the little monster is not feeling well during this whole process too... poor thing...

Says wikipedia (Shawn has all the traits of teething these days - OMG!!!):

Teething is the process during which an infant's teeth start to sequentially grow in. Teething can start as early as three months or as late, in some cases, as twelve months. Occasionally a baby may even present with one or more teeth at birth. The typical time frame for new teeth to appear is somewhere between six and nine months. It can take up to several years for all 20 deciduous (aka "baby" or "milk") teeth to emerge. The process of teething is sometimes referred to as "cutting teeth".

The infant teeth tend to emerge in pairs - first one upper incisor emerges then the other upper incisor emerges before the next set begin to emerge. The general pattern of emergence is:

1. Lower central incisors (2)
2. Upper central incisors (2)
3. Upper lateral incisors (2),
4. Lower lateral incisors (2)
5. First molars (4)
6. Canines (4)
7. Second molars (4)

Milk teeth tend to emerge sooner in females than in males. The exact pattern and initial starting times of teething appear to be hereditary. When and how teeth appear in an infant has no bearing on the health of the child.

During teething, the new teeth break through the surface of the gums. Signs of teething may include

• Poor mood
• Loss of appetite
• Chewing of objects
• Bruises/swelling in gums
• Excess salivation
• Runny nose

Teething has not been shown to cause fever. A slight rise of temperature may occur when the teeth come through the gum, but this does not make a baby ill.

Infants chew on objects to aid in the teething process. This can be dangerous if the baby is allowed to chew on objects which are small enough to be swallowed or which could break while being chewed and cause choking. Teething rings and other toys are often designed with textures that will appeal to an infant during teething.

In cases where the infant is in obvious pain, some doctors recommend the use of anti-inflammatories or child-safe pain-relief treatments containing benzocaine. Some infants gain relief from chewing on cold objects.