When to medicate preemptively

amother

Wed, Jul 28 2021, 10:27 pm

I'm constantly feeling guilty. My 8mo is teething for weeks and I think she needs baby Tylenol. My doctor said generally give Tylenol as little as possible. I don't give it to her all day but some days I might give her twice (including overnight). Every few days or so I'll try to stop and I can see she's having issues going to sleep for naps, waking up after only one sleep cycle, or crying in her sleep overnight (in addition to normal wakeups). So I give her the Tylenol preemptively before putting her down and then feel guilty for over medicating her. Even though she then sleeps beautifully. After a day or two I try stopping and see she's struggling to sleep, chewing on her hand and whining instead of falling asleep, then I eventually go in to give her and then I feel guilty for not having given her in the first place.

As I understand it, baby Tylenol is not drowsy causing, so if she's sleeping better it's just because she's less in pain, right? It's not like I'm just dosing her, right? I give her the lowest end of the weight range for the range below her age even though she definitely weighs more by now.

amother

Burntblack

Wed, Jul 28 2021, 10:33 pm

You should give Motrin, there are some concerning studies on the effects of Tylenol on babies and kids.

Try and give as little as possible- I wouldn’t preemptively give but if you see your baby is in pain, give. You can also try alternate pain relievers, teething oils, cold teething rings…

amother

Wed, Jul 28 2021, 10:34 pm

amother [ Tuberose ] wrote:

I would use Motrin over Tylenol any day, but for teething pain I would look into alternative options.

Like what alternative options? I also give her teething gel but it doesn't seem to help as much. I thought Motrin was harder on the stomach but I can give her that instead.

Based on her teeth that came in, it seems like she gets multiple at once so she might actually be in real pain.

amother

Hotpink

Wed, Jul 28 2021, 11:39 pm

amother [ Silver ] wrote:

I believe hylands teething tablets are off the market now although they worked. I call it motrin magic. My baby is 18 months and every tooth was an ordeal. So I get you momma

They had an older version with belladonna. They removed it and now have a version called oral pain relief. It worked like a charm!

amother

Wed, Jul 28 2021, 11:51 pm

Thanks for the responses. She has plenty of teething toys and other toys that she makes into teething toys, although they don't go to bed with her. It's normal for babies to be distracted by toys when teething so they don't notice the pain (which works well during awake times), but they feel it more when trying to sleep. So when I don't give her the medicine she stays awake in her crib for a while playing with her luvee, chewing on it, chewing on the crib, etc, until she's overtired. Then she starts getting up and biting the crib and crying or pressing her gums with her fingers and crying. Then I go to give her the medicine but she's overtired and even more upset that I'm coming in and putting her back in the crib instead of taking her out of the room. Then I wish I would've just given it to her in the first place. This has been going on for a couple of weeks. But I'm getting from here that I should wait for her to be actually crying before giving medicine?

Can someone explain what those teething tablets are? Are they safe to give to an 8mo?

amother

Starflower

Thu, Jul 29 2021, 3:06 am

amother [ OP ] wrote:

Sleep is just as important for kids. I would definitely give for the night and maybe one more nap.
Try to change up different painkillers (approved for babies) so it is not the same.

liveandlove.ima

Thu, Jul 29 2021, 3:55 am

amother [ OP ] wrote:

chamomilla works magic, it's a homeopathic remedy

amother

Diamond

Thu, Jul 29 2021, 6:36 am

Some babies hardly feel teething

NOT my babies. They feel it terribly and they are inconsolable until the pain is gone

During peak teething weeks (my babies have 8 teeth by 8 months so they come in hard and fast) I absolutely give Motrin before bed. Absolutely. In middle of the night if they wake up and it’s too soon to give more I give Tylenol. My baby is in agony so I certainly give medicine To relieve their pain

rowena

Thu, Jul 29 2021, 9:15 am

If your looking for a natural remedy, have you tried chamomile?
I would give it to my kids when they were sick to help them sleep better; I think it’s safe for babies, but I only gave it starting from toddlerhood, so ask a doc.
I give Motrin and Tylenol when my kids need it, but I always try this first, and it usually helps enough to get them resting comfortably.
I give it in a loose leaf tea form.

YYYY

Thu, Jul 29 2021, 11:32 am

rowena wrote:

Chamomile tea?

amother

Thu, Jul 29 2021, 12:04 pm

amother [ Diamond ] wrote:

Thank you for sharing your experience. I think this is where we're at. I know she's in pain and I just feel so bad no matter what I do. Just last night I gave ibuprofen during her pre-bed breastfeed. She woke up an hour later crying very upset, even though she put herself back to sleep a few minutes later. She woke up again a few hours later and after she didn't put herself back to sleep I went in with the Tylenol (and then fed her). It's very unlike her to wake this often in the beginning of the night, I know she was in pain.

When I have bad pain, I take a painkiller. I don't want her to feel pain. But then I don't want to give her junk medication either if it could be avoided. To the amother who mentioned chamomile, thank you. I'd completely forgotten but I do recall reading that you can put chamomile tea on a washcloth and freeze it for them to suck on. I wouldn't put her to bed with it, but maybe it would work during the day to help her.

amother

Diamond

Thu, Jul 29 2021, 12:08 pm

amother [ OP ] wrote:

You’re Doing the right thing