REVIEW: Raw Baltic Amber Teething Necklace

ANOTHER REVIEW!?

Yup!  Another review :)

I really rely on finding alternative ways to deal with pain or discomfort and healing.  I hate having to give the kids medicine.  Both girls have asthma and need inhalers and every once in a while, need steroids.  They both have eczema and after a doctor told us that cortisone cream progressively damages the skin and leaves it very thin, I sought out ways to treat it more naturally.  Any way, when the girls where babies, they started teething just at 4 months and I would give them acetaminophen or Hyland's Teething tablets.  Nixon started teething at around 3 months and when I mentioned this to my midwife, she told me to look into amber teething necklaces.  I did some research and thought "OH HELLS YEAH!".  Ben on the other hand was very skeptical, but he doesn't like pumping the kids full of medicines so he was cool with giving it a shot.  So we bought a necklace and I wanted to share with you our experience :)

Nixon is a genuinely happy baby.  I really feel so blessed because this kid rarely has a bad day, even while teething.  The only notable difference in his behavior was that he wasn't sleeping well.  He normally sleeps too well!  Every nap is between an hour and a half to 3 hours, but when teething was in full swing he was napping for about 20 to 40 minutes.  He also drools so much more!  Our girls were pains while teething, lots of crying , chewing and crying!  Nixon is a breath of fresh air in this category.

I found the necklace we bought on Etsy.com.  I originally was going to buy from a page that I'm a fan of on Facebook, but she was sold out of the amber color we were looking for.  We wanted the cherry colored amber (which looks almost black), but while I was hunting on Etsy we came across a store that offered a multi-colored necklace that had all shades on it.  We both really liked it and decided to go with it.  The site has a good selection and prices are reasonable.

Ain't it cute!?!

We were nervous that it wasn't going to be long enough.  It was 12.5 inches in length and we thought "Damn, that seems long" until we had it in our hands.  It ended up looking surprisingly tiny!  

Then, we got another shock when it turned out to be long enough to rest comfortably on his chest, just past his chin.

Several people asked us about concerns with him choking.  He hasn't ever noticed it.  He is 7 months old (GAH!) and he has never once even pulled on it.

We take it off at night for bed time and for his baths, put we make sure to put it back on asap.

After about a full day of having it on, we noticed a big change in his sleeping.  He went right back to sleeping for long stretches and waking up good and smiley!  So, if you're thinking that it was a fluke, a few weeks ago we lost it.  We lost it for 3 days.  It had fallen behind my nightstand overnight and let's face it, that's the abyss.  He was just terrible.  He wanted to cuddle but occasionally fight us off, he would sleep for no more than 20 minutes at a time and wake up so pouty.  Well, when we put it back on, he was right back to good naps and happiness.  IT WORKS!

This is the shop we bought our necklace from.  I'm proud to say that it's quality, REAL amber.  Plus, the store has a lot of other amber options, because the benefits of amber aren't just limited to kids.  There are a few ways to test the amber to make sure it is real.

• Put a few drops of alcohol on the amber's surface.  After it has evaporated, check to see if there is a tacky surface.  If it is tacky, its fake.  Alcohol evaporates of real amber without leaving residue.
• Take a needle and scratch the surface (try doing it on a part that won't be seen later).  If it leaves scratch marks, its genuine.  Amber is a soft stone.  If it doesn't, well..you know :(

Caring for your amber teething necklace is easy too.  Be sure to take it off before showers or baths and definitely before any swims.  Use warm water and a soft cloth to clean it and you can even wipe it down with some olive oil to restore shine (again, take a soft cloth to it afterwards so that excess oil is removed).  Be sure never to use soaps on the necklace.  Keep amber away fro heat and direct sunlight.  Bam.  That simple.

All in all, we are really, really satisfied with Nixon's necklace and I can tell he's pretty happy too.

Have you purchased an amber teething necklace, or are you considering it?  I'd love to hear feedback from you!

Hope you find this helpful :)  If not, listed below are a few more sites to feed your need for info.  

http://thethriftywife.com/amber-teething-necklaces-work/

http://organic-mama.ca/2012/05/24/win-an-amber-regina-amberregina-baltic-amber-teething-necklace-teething-natural-parenting/

Hugs til later,

Domesticated1022