If your baby is teething and waking in the night but quickly settles back to sleep when given a cuddle or a dummy, teething is probably not the real cause of his waking. A baby who is gen uinely bothered by teething pain would be difficult to settle back to sleep. He would also shows signs of discomfort during the day, not just at night. It’s a good idea to check the section on excessive night waking and early morning waking to eliminate other reasons your baby may be waking. Usually at around six months of age many babies begin to kick their covers off, which can cause them to wake in the night. The major ity of parents who contact me regarding their baby’s teething and night waking report an immediate improvement when they follow my advice and put their baby in a sleeping bag at night.

How to cope with teething in babies

If you are convinced that your baby’s night-time wakings are caused by severe teething pain, I suggest you seek advice from your doctor regarding the use of paracetamol. While genuine teething pain may cause a few disruptive nights, it should never last for several weeks. If your baby seems out of sorts, develops a fever and suffers from loss of appetite or diarrhoea he should be seen by a doctor. Do not assume that these symptoms are just a sign of teething. Often what parents thought was teething turned out to be an ear or throat infection.