Common Baby Teething Symptoms

My little daughter's two little teeth. :)

Teething usually begins around 6-8 months of age. This can actually happen at any age. Their are some babies who actually born with a teeth, although it is rare. Others get their teeth as early as 3 months or even as late as 12 months.

• Irritability – As the teeth rise to the surface, baby’s gums may be sore and painful, making your little angel very fussy. The levels of pain and discomfort vary with every child and even with every tooth. (When she's teething, she actually wants to be carried always.)
• Drooling – Your baby will seem like a never-ending faucet of drool. Teething stimulates drooling and if you are not meticulous, this may cause a rash on your child’s face, lips, chin, neck and chest.
• Biting and Gnawing – Teething babies will bite anything and everything to help relieve the pressure from the erupting teeth.
• Loss of Appetite – Some babies tend to lose their appetite due to painful gums during teething. (This actually happened to my girl. I actually thought she doesn't like her milk at all since we changed from Nestogen to Nan.)
• Tender, Swollen Gums – You may actually see the outline of the teeth as they bulge inside the gums. The gum tissue may sometimes appear bluish or purple. This condition is called an eruption cyst. These are usually harmless and should be left alone. The tooth will eventually rupture the sac as it pushes through the gums.
• Night waking – Teething pain happens during the day AND night. Some babies wake up when the pain gets bad enough.