Duh! Teething!

Lydia will be turning 4 months in a short 4 days. It really had only momentarily crossed my mind that teething could be the issue at hand but it fleeted out of mind just as quickly as it entered, since I was dealing with my own separation anxiety. All the signs point to teething: excessive drooling, constant chomping on her hands, toys, blankets (anything really, she is a good grabber), wanting to nurse more often than normal, waking up more frequently, and unexplainable fussiness. In the wee morning of last Sunday, I looked at a parenting app on my phone and saw an article on teething. I went down the checklist and sure enough! She fit the mold. The thing that should be understood about teething which I also didn't know, until a mommy friend told me is that teething isn't like turning on a switch. It comes and goes. There are moments of high discomfort and some without any at all. It takes months for teeth to come in and one day they will just pop in, but until then there will be periods unrest.

Thankfully for my own peace of mind I have to believe that its teething. Monday morning my child had a complete and total meltdown in a way that one only sees in movies! Her little face was redder than I had ever seen and Eliot kept swearing that she was screaming MAMA! Now do I think she was actually screaming for me? Not really. She does make a lovely mmmmmmmmmmmmm constant sound but the cognizant connection of sounds to address her mother, not likely. Though, reason does not seep in at that very moment. So I started crying. She was so angry she wouldn't nurse but she finally took a bottle which made my guilt and sadness multiple. I had to leave for work. My face was puffy and my eyes ached all day. Eliot reported that shortly after I left she took a long nap and more than likely she was just exhausted. So me waking her to nurse at almost 4 months old was not a good idea. That is where that don't wake a sleeping baby thing comes from. She has transitioned from infant to baby. It turns out she did nurse after a couple of bottled ounces too. I just couldn't get her to latch in the middle of the fit and the bottle nipple is easier to stick in there.

Yesterday I didn't wake her before I left and today after she slept once again for 7 consecutive hours, she happen to be awake so I nursed her. Turns out, things have been just fine. This week is almost over and this weekend is a long one. Hooray!