Your Toddler -15 to 18 Months: Teething Again!
 
By: Pamela Gifford

Up until this point, your child has been on an incredible teething journey.  While irritability has been a factor while the incisors and molars have come in, the canine teeth are, without a doubt, the most painful and the most trying for your toddler.

The canine teeth are just beside the four incisors (front teeth) on the top and bottom.  There are four canine teeth and while they are erupting through the gum on your little ones, they look like pointy fangs.  They can cause intense irritability, fever, slight swelling, and pain.  Your toddler may pull at his ears or claw at his cheeks.  While sometimes this is a sign of an ear infection, it could also be the pain from the erupting teeth coming in.  Your child will also be producing extra saliva which can cause mild coughing, gagging, and loose stool, in the form of diarrhea.  Your toddler may also not sleep very well and wake up a couple of times during the night.

There are a number of products available to help your toddler deal with the pain.  Cold teethers and a cold washcloth are just two of the options available for her to chew on.  There's also a number of pain relief options such as Baby Orajel that can be applied directly to the gum to help numb the pain.  Homeopathic teething tablets are also recommended by some mothers but it doesn't work on some children.

Some doctors will say that fever associated with teething is a myth, however, from personal experience and from talking with a number of other mothers, I can clearly say that in many children, mild fever and teething go hand in hand.  I have recently spent  four days with my 17 month old, calming screaming bouts and trying to control his fever which reached up to 101.7.  The best way to help control a fever is to give your toddler some infant acetamenophen or infant ibuprofen.  Even though your child isn't technically an infant anymore, children's acetamenophen and ibuprofen are often not recommended for children under the age of 2.  When in doubt, always call your pediatrician for advice.

Note that not all toddlers will experience the same symptoms.  Remember that all children are different and will experience varying symptoms while teething.

It also goes without saying that a little extra tender loving care can go a long way in helping calm your toddler.  Extra cuddles, extra kisses, sympathy and reassurance goes a long way in helping your little one calm down.

And don't worry.  Most of the unpleasant nature of toddler teething will pass in about a week.