Teething or Not?

Dear M.,
My son is almost two and I believe that he is cutting his mollars, as well. He has experienced very similar symptoms and behavior. As far as not eating, I definitely do feel that the decrease in appetite is part of the teething process. He has always cut down on eating solid food during a big growth spurt or cutting teeth - he tends to nurse a lot more as well. Don't worry if she doesn't want to eat big meals each day, just look at her eating over a two week period - some days she'll eat more and some days less. And, it is quite natural to fast when your body needs to use the energy that it would normally use to break down food. Also, it could be painful to eat. Have you tried smoothies? Most kids will at least drink a smoothie even if their teeth are hurting. A simple recipe is 1 banana, 1 scoop of protein powder (we like Living Harvest hemp protein which you can get at Sundance), 3/4 - 1 cup of juice, a little yogurt or hemp/soy/rice milk, and 1/2 cup frozen berries. Blend it up - a great way to get some protein, vitamins and fruit in her tummy. Good luck!

could be just a little "not feeling good" bug. I would just try and hang in there... you could try a little motrin to see if that helps. if it is her teeth, she will start feeling better right away. she'll probably sleep better too and so will you ;)

Hello,
My daughter also had a decrease in appitite when she was teething. Another thing to consider is that kids go in stages, sometimes they will eat a ton and other times they barely eat enough to keep a bird alive. I would just suggest that you keep offering the food to her and giving her enough time to eat. My daughter wakes up at night when she is hungary, I know yours isn't eating hardly anything but maybe try getting her to eat a string cheese right before you put her in bed. That's what I give my daughter Rebekah and it helps fill in the gaps if she hasn't had very much to eat that day. I hope it gets better for you soon.

A.

have you tried giving her ibuprofen or tylenol (no asprin!) during the day see if she would like to chew on a cold washcloth... or fruit pops

is her nose runny? but no other cold symptoms? my kids nose ran sometimes....

she could be having bad dreams too... awful to think a kid that young might, but not impossible... if she saw something or experienced something that might have frightened her... there are things kids might find scarey that wouldn't even phase us adults.

does she have a favorite stuffed animal that she could be comforted by? try some aromatherapy to relax her when she gets upset.

best wishes.

JG

Sounds like you are being initiated into the terrible "twos". As a 7l year old grandmother, I went through it three times with my own and have watched my two grandchildren go through it. My daughter has found out about her eldest who was very colicky and for some reason the first borns are the colickiest, was having behavior problems due to his diet. With my son, he developed pneumonia from cow's milk and was put on soy. Well now I've just gone through nutrition problems like onslaught diabetes II. We must look at our diets at a younger age. I would have Alexis checked out for food alergies. Yes, it can start when they just begin life and especially with the foods in the typical American diet. My daughter found out that even food dyes like red and yellow can affect the childrens behavior. And they are in everything processed to make food look appealing. M.

Hi M.,

I could have written this request very recently. LOL I have a daughter who will be 2 next month. She has exibited a lot of the same symptoms. It is called growing! Whenever a child is in a big growth spurt they sleep more and eat less. I always thought it would be the opposite, but it isn't. I was reminded of growing pains when it happened to Sarah. You remember when you were smaller and just ached for no reason right? My mom was very concerned at first, then comforted when she realized that I was just growing. Now, my daughter has diarrhea from time to time because she won't drink as much fluid and has gotten dehydrated. Ususally, we give her a small amount of pedialyte clear to help with that. It is also possible that even if she has all her teeth, or most of them they ache. You could check with a kid's naturopath or pediatrician if you want to make sure. But, our daughter is doing better now. She still does not eat a ton, but to make sure she gets her calcium, we give her a liquid supplement the naturopath gave us. That has helped her mood. She also takes a natural vitamin and we give fish oil and asadophilis (sp)as well. She is very happy and well adjusted now. It took about a week to get her back from cranky 2 year old to precious angel. LOL

Also, this may be tough, but try not to worry because your child will sense that and act out because of it. I have had that happen, and many people I know have as well. Childen are very observant and aware. Oh, and the 2 year molars could also be coming in, and there is a natural teething tablet that we use which our daughter loves. You can find at Whole Foods or any organic food carrying store. She now says teeth whenever she wants them. :) Oh, and not sure if you guys are working on potty training, but that has helped us as well. We got a DVD called Potty Power which is great! Sometimes when kids have new things that they are trying, they feel more tired as well. It is kind of like when a parent goes to work and does all kinds of interesting things like customer service and then comes home tired. LOL Blessings to you and your sweet family.

Katherine

Hi M.,
I went through very a very similar time when my son was getting his molars...it was a rough period for all of us. NO sleep, screaming, up every hour or 2. I had no idea what was going on, I thought it might be his teeth but then I thought he never acted like that before with all the others.. then all of a sudden it stopped. AND I noticed those molars were ALL the way in..so in my case, I say "yes" to the teething.
Every child handles it a little differently.. mine obviously was uncomfortable when those were coming in.. Good thing we don't remember those days! :)