Well I have a five month old little girl and she is usually a very good eater. But lately in the evenings she will fuss her way through only a couple of ounces and then be so irate that I have to put her in her bed to cry through it and then try again when she calms down. She doesn't have a fever and it is not every time she eats, it is very random. I thought it was teething, so I have been giving her tylenol when she gets fussy and it doesn't seem to be doing anything. I just don't know what to do. I am leary about running to the doctor to give her a bunch of antibiotics, so I would love to know other peoples thoughts before I call the pediatircian. Thanks!
Thank you to everyone who posted, I really appreciate it. It has been two days since there has been any fussing so I am pretty sure it was just teething and possibly just needing some extra loving. I have another daughter who is 17 months old and I feel like all I do is play all day and give them all the attention, but I guess she still needed some at night. Thank you to all of you again!
My 7 month old is doing the same thing!! I think my DD is teething because I have found if she starts fussing at the bottle if I put a little orajel on her gums, she will eat. She hates the orajel when I first put it on but then she's fine!
But also my Dr. told me sometime they just aren't hungry. If they aren't under weight you shouldn't worry if they don't eat a whole meal every so often.
My son (6.5 months) has gone through the same thing a couple of times and I've never found any real cause. Within a couple of days to a week he was back to normal. I have heard that sometimes they go through nursing strikes so that may be to blame. I too thought it was teeth but he still has none. I do know that teeth move through the gums gradually so teething symptoms can come and go so it still could be her teeth. I called my ped about it and he said that it was most likely not an ear infection because they will usually run a fever with an ear infection.
You can have your ped. check her ears to see if they are red but to me it just sounds like gas. If her stomach is upset, she won't eat as much or at all until it's settled or the bubble is out of her tummy. You could try some Mylicon or just massage her belly.
Do you have some reason to believe it is an ear infection? Has she had a runny nose? Does she cry when put down or will she nurse or eat on one side or the other? Tylenol should help the pain of the ear infection, if it's just starting. Sometimes Peds want the ears to heal up on their own before giving antibiotics. Depending on the situation, your ped might suggest to try that. If this is unusual behavior for her, I'd at least call to see what they think. Ear infections can be terribly painful and if she's teething, she might be creating more "snot" than you are seeing. Ear infections can also be very random too. I'd give them a call.
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Hi K.! Have you tried Chiropractic? Most likely she is subluxated and which may be the cause of her irritability. What a lot of parents end up not realizing about ear infections are that most of the time a child will have one and us parents will not know it but will clear up on it's own. A child gets sick far more than an adult and is severe at glance because their body is developing an immunity to it. If their body is allowed to process the virus/infection and heal it, their chance of getting it as severe the next time will be less likely. Don't get me wrong...there is always a time and place for medicine. Here is a link you can go to that just gives a little info about ear infections and helping parents in making an informed decision about medicating. http://www.nytimes.com/2006/06/08/science/08drug.html?ex=...
Fever: kills the bacteria & virus. Slows down reproduction of virus & bateria. Speeds up chemical reactons in the body to fight infection & get the body back to normal. Promotes the production of cancer fighting agent interferon.
Diarrhea: Elimination of poisons, bacteria & germs from your blood.(diarrhea isn't fun but shouldn't be stopped..but within reason obviously)
Couphing,Sneezing & Running Nose: expellation of excess germs & toxins. Sluffing off of the old mucous lining to replace it with a newer healthy one.
There was once a doctor who went on the Morning Show talking about over the counter medicines for kids. You should try to google it...very interesting. If you have more questions and to help you always make an informed decision, you can check out nvic.org I hope you do not think I am trying to harp on you. Only reitterating that you are a wonderful mother and just reminding you of what you already know! BEST OF LUCK!!!
It sounds to me like it is something else. If it is only happening at night then most likely it is not an ear infection. It could be something as simple as needing to burp or she is just not hungry at that time. She may just need some time of rocking and cuddling. I know that both my little guys just wanted to be rocked in the evening and snuggle. Then after that they would eat. I would call the Dr. though and just explain what's going on. They may be able to give you some other things to try besides drugs.
I would take her in just to be on the safe side. The only way you will know if it is an ear infection is if they look in the ear. And, the only way to fight it is meds or possibly tubes. My son had several ear infections and did get tubes. I would not mess around with it because it can damage their hearing if not treated.
IF YOU DO TAKE HER TO THE DOCTORS AND THEY TELL YOU IT IS NOT AN INFECTION, YOU CAN REFUSE THE ANTIBIOTICS. TAKING THEM WHEN NOT NEEDED BUILDS A TOLERANCE SO YOU WOULDNT HAVE TO FEEL BAD ABOUT IT. BUT TO ME IT DOESNT SOUND LIKE AN EAR INFECTION. PERHAPS YOUR BABY NEEDS AN EXTRA BURPING EVEN AFTER JUST AN OUNCE....SOME BABIES NATURALLY SWALLOW AIR SO THEY GET THAT BUILD UP IN THEIR TUMMYS. SO INSTEAD OF LYING HER DOWN WHEN SHES FUSSY, TRY BURPING HER OR EVEN JUST PATTING HER AND WALKING AROUND THE HOUSE. WHEN MY SON WAS THAT AGE I USE TO LIE HIM ACROSS MY LAP SO HIS BELLY WAS SOMEWHAT ON MY KNEES AND I WOULD JUST RUB HIS BACK AND YOU WOULD NOT BELIEVE THE BELCH THAT CAME FROM THAT LITTLE GUY. IM SURE YOU KNOW TO MAKE SURE SHE IS UPRIGHT WHILE EATING AND MAKE SURE SHE IS COMFY TOO. BEING A MOM IS REALLY ALL ABOUT LOOKING LIKE YOU HAVE IT ALL UNDER CONTROL BUT REALLY YOUR JUST TRYING WHAT WORKS BUT ALWAYS ALWAYS ALWAYS LISTEN TO YOUR HEART...YOU ARE A MOM AND YOUR INSTICTS ARE RIGHT....OR ATLEAST WORTH CHECKING ON. SO IF YOU THINK YOUR BABY NEEDS A DOCTOR BY ALL MEANS GO...IF IT TURNS OUT TO BE NOTHING....THEN IT IS A TRIP WELL WORTH IT TOO.
Hi K.,
My son has just gone through the same symptoms and they always seem to be worse at night. He is 5 1/2 mnths old. He started with a runny nose then it went into a full blown cold. He cried and was restless all night on Monday. Tues. I decided to take him to the doctor. If he didn't have a ear ache it would at least give me peace of mind that there was nothing wrong and it was just a cold. I am also leary about putting him on a antibiotic but also want him out of pain. He ended up having a double ear infection and a head cold.
The peditrician told me that it is very common to get a ear ache after the child has a cold. He is already doing better after a day of being on the antibiotic. I don't know of any other way of treating a ear infection.
Hope this will ease your mind,
T.
She may be teething or it could be an ear infection. When my son had one the first time and second time;he didn't mess with his ears at all. I only found out when i took him to the er from having a very high fever. It wouldn't hurt to ask the dr;just to see what the dr has to say. IT is always good to be safe.
K.- if you have reason to believe that something is wrong then take her to the dr it won't hurt anything and tell your dr before he even looks at your daughter that you don't want any meds if it is not necessary. That is what I do with my kids and my dr will tell me if they need to have somehting prescribed or if something over the counter will work until it gets worse. you have to trust in your dr!!!
