Colic Baby Won't Sleep!

My baby is sleeping, my baby is calm, I am calm. This is a great Mantra for you, the baby is so tired, and just out of the womb, just wants to feel safe... I would recommend just doing whatever it takes temporarily to get her to sleep, especially working on the day naps, as this has been shown to improve the nightime sleep. (Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child by Marc Weissbluth has special chapter on colic). Dr. Harvey Karp from Happiest Baby On The Block says the first three months of life is the fourth trimester, in which there is a calming reflex that wrapping the baby causes them to calm/sleep, as they did in utero, this is what the baby knows, so probably why wants to be in sling so much. Baby in fetal position which is calming, they sleep better when wrapped. This may be a great option instead of sleeping on you in sling. So day time, Dr. Karp also recommends use of white noise, you can also use ocean wave sounds, heart beat, used the relaxing sounds machine they sell it at Bed Bath Beyond. You have a toddler, so might be nice to have something to fade out the noise and make sleeping environment more conducive to what the baby is used to (sound inside womb is like constant white noise). Take deep breaths, visualize baby sleeping, stop labeling, saying not sleeping, because we only attract what we focus on, take baths with baby with low lighting, play Mozart, relax, go for walks, go to ocean (white noise), get out of house, nice breeze relaxes. You can have baby wrapped in buggy while you go for walk, instead of carrying, just to give your body a break. But definitely nurture this baby. Baby is in stress mode, needs lots of reassureance, tell her, Lia mommy loves you , we are going to get through this, you are sleeping now, relax her by relaxing your self. Wishing you well,I wish you well,
try as many things until you find what works for baby. She needs her parasympathetic nervous system (relaxation response) to kick in more (stress decreases digestion, irritates stomach/digestion, hence colic), because she is tired and crying so much... find differrent ways to relax her, it begins with you being relaxed. This is all going to make you know her on a deeper level, and from this your relationship will blossom even more. Be patient, it is just temporary.
If you need to talk, or go for walk... call me ###-###-####. I live on Key Biscayne.
M.

1 mom found this helpful

wear that baby! take turns with dad or anyone who can help. also drink fennel, chamomile or ginger tea and it will pass through the milk if it is a gas issue. whole foods has lots of teas for this purpose. i use to carry my son upright and over my arm to press on his belly. remember, it's only temporary. you will get throught this. just try to enjoy being needed right now, because as you know they grow up very fast.

1 mom found this helpful

Hi
I don't really have advice... :( I went through it with my daughter as well. I just wanted to tell you that there is a light at the end of the tunnel! It goes away! Now my daughter is the best sleeper! Sometimes I would bring her knees up to her belly softly hoping to move the gas around. Sometimes that would help. Good luck!

Well I can say that I have had 2 different experiences with each of my sons. My first I admit I spoiled and would never just let cry. I am still paying for it and he is now 4 years old. With my second son I treated a little differently because I knew the consequences. With him as long as I knew he was fed, changed and not sick I would let him cry. Not to the point of being hysterical, when it got to that point I would move him, say from the swing to the bed, then the bed to the bouncy seat. At least he knew he was not going to be held every time he wanted. It took a few weeks but he did get better and got used to entertaining his self.

My friend did the same with her daughter who is now 5 months and the best behaved baby I have ever seen. It's one of the hardest things to do as a parent because your instincts tell you when your child cries to comfort them, but a little bit of tolerance will pay off in the end.
Even babies start testing there limits very early on.

Hope this helps.

Hi M.,

I just went through having a colicky baby as well. My daughter is 4 and was a great eater/sleeper. My son is 6 months and he had colic until 4 months old. We tried everything you mentioned. What worked best for us was boiling fresh mint into tea and mixing it with water and formula. I gave him 2-3 bottles a day of that and the rest breast milk. The tea is a natural relaxant of the colon (which is what colic is-immature colon that doesn't move food though the way it should). The good news is it does go away around 3 1/2 months but it is rough going. Of everything we tried, the tea seemed to help and it was safe and natural. I hope this helps. If you have any questions, you can email me at ____@____.com Luck

Hi M.!

When my 26 years old son was a one month old baby he has colic too. The pediatrician prescribed some drops that instead of making him feel better put him to sleep. I stop giving him the medicine and started to follow my mother and grandmother's advice. I prepare a tea with one star anise and you can add a leave of orange tree, for calming purposes. It works wonder. I advice you to consult the pediatrician. Hope your baby feels better soon.

I have a 5 month old that recently wakes up all night every 1 1/2 to 2 hours. He is teething also exclusively breast fed. I thought it was the teething, and I still think it is, but last night he had a Chiropractic adjustment and he slept 2, 4 hour stretches and is now sleeping again a long nap...where as lately he only sleeps catnaps.
The process of birth and being in the womb is very stressful on the babies body and more than not the neck and spine needs adjustment. Also when teething they clinch their jaw which throws the neck out of alignment.
I also have a 2 year old that is now getting adjusted and now sleeps 11 hour nights and 3- 3 1/2 hour naps. She used to wake up through the night.

If you are interested I can recommend 2 different Chiropractors that work with infants and children one in Plantation,FL and one in Miami,FL. I also used a Cranio-sacral Therapist for my daughter.

Did you try a swaddle?

HI M.,

My son had colic as well!! I can totally feel and understand what you are going through. I have to be honest I tried everything and nothing worked other than holding and rocking him to sleep. He too would cry for hours every night. They do eventually grow out of it. I do believe that when I was a diet eating foods that dont cause gas it helped a little bit. Like no garlic or onions or spicy foods. The gripe water didnt work for me either. Just pray and it will pass quicker than you think but do try staying away from those suggested foods I did see a little difference. If you have any other questions please let me know I will try to help you as best as I can.... I know it seems sooo bad right now but it will get better:)

How can people recommend CIO, your child is in pain or discomfort and you are just planning on ignoring them. How sad, I feel bad for those children been ignored by their parents when they need them the most.

Anyways, M.. Lots of other people have given you great advice.

Also, star anise is not recommended because of the high levels of lead in it.

If you are planning on supplementing seek the advice of cert. Lactation Consultant first. Formula can make the problem worst and diminish your supply.

Good luck.

HI M.
It may help to start a bedtime routine with her earlier. I have shared this with many moms and the "colic" seems to be more related to over stimulation. I talk more about sleep patterns and sleep cues. Also as a Lactation Consultant we discuss feeding changes related to babies developmental stages. You can join us at Nurturing Your Newborn on WEds 10:30-12 noon. It is a free mommy and baby group I run in Boca. My email is ____@____.com if you want more info.
J., RN

My son cried for 5 1/2 hours at a time for 9 months. My daughter was 2 at the time, so I was being pulled in lots of different directions. I did get some relief from putting him in his swing but it was hit & miss. I know you said it is not your thing, but I think you should revisit the cry it out method. If you have done everything you can and she is still crying, there is no sense in holding her when you have another child in need of your attention and (I'm just guessing) piles of laundry, dishes, and various other things that aren't getting done. I did the walking and rocking thing for a while. I was so immune to his crying that I could fall asleep with him on my lap - while he was screaming! The day I carried him in his room, put him down, and shut the door, was like receiving a gift. I shut the door and literally let out the biggest sigh of relief. I checked on him constantly but at least he wasn't screaming directly in my ear. My stress level went down, and my stuff got done. Obviously, do ALL that you can first. Then, remember there are other people depending on you too. She will be fine, babies are resilient.

I'm sorry!!! It's so difficult while you're going through it and you're sleep-deprived, etc. All my kids went through a time when they cried for hours in the evening. I never thought it was colic but I guess it was. I'm not a dr but I would say that it's just a phase. She will sleep from 12-6 so that's a good thing. Most 10 week olds don't sleep for that long. As for during the day, I would just hold her in the sling for now. She's so little so you should do whatever she wants for now. Maybe it just feels like she wants to be held all day because she's your second and you're busier with your first and other things around the house. My 3rd child hated the stroller, swing, bouncy seat, everything but being held. It seemed impossible to put him down. But I also realized that I had so much to do compared to life with my first. Anyway, hopes this helps. My youngest is now 3 and he just woke up!
Bye!

I feel your pain! My daughter was colicky as well, and also had acid reflux, so she wanted to be held all the time, basically exacly what you are going thru. I couldnt let her cry for long as she would throw up her formula. All the experts told me to "give in" to her needs...which meant holding her. Something about the warmth of your body next to theirs, and beingin the womb they grew accustomed to that. Have you tried a cradle swing? Movement might help...it did a bit for my daughter. Shes now 18mths and has improved greatly on both her issues, but I have to say...she still likes to be held alot!! Good Luck.

Sorry to hear about your challenging sleep issues. Have you tried the sleep/swaddling wraps? I used one with my 3rd son and he was an amazing sleeper. Might have been luck of the draw for me but my first 2 sons were horrible sleepers so I figured I had to try something new. I think I used the Kiddopotamus (sp?)brand. What I liked about it was that it was adjustable with velcro tabs so you could make it looser or more snug as she may prefer and it also contained his feet so he was less likely to startle himself awake and maybe felt more secure when he was put down to sleep. I wish you luck with Lia and may this be a quickly passing phase!

You can try ginger root tea, from the real root, not a bag. You shuld consult your pediatrician before you give her anything, but, in my country, that what we gave the babies. It should be very light and sweetened. Maybe you can finds a recipe on line.

I had the same problem getting my babies to sleep but they had reflux. Do you have a swing? Try swaddling your baby and putting your baby in the swing while you talk or sing to her. Perhaps you could try the sleep baby system by sounds of silence, it is a CD of womb noises with very little background music. Or there is the book, The Happiest Baby on the Block. You could get it from the library, I heard it is very good and I asked my husband to get it from the library for me as I am still struggling a little with the whole sleep thinng. I have tried the swing and the CD. They both helped. You could also change the formula. I used enfamil AR and that also helped. My babies also took medication for reflux and gas. I didn't think much of the relux medication but the gas medication is pretty benign and I think that helped. Anything that will give the baby a sense of comfort or familiarity will help also. So comfort items/measures or routine will help eventually if they are consistent enough. A dark, quiet, cool room can also help. You could also try gentle massages , especially on her abdomen (some for you does wonders too). Or the cylcling motion also helps. Burp your little one often while feeding also. Sometimes nothing works and once you have paced the floor and the baby is asleep, lying down yourself, comfortbale and upright with your baby on your chest, is the only way either of you can guarentee sleep for BOTH of you. These are desperate days! Take heart because once my babies started to crawl and were not lying flat on their back, things got MUCH better. I hope that what I did for relux helps with colic. Don't ever think that you are not good enough or your baby is upset with you... or you should be able to stop your baby crying. Just relax as much as possible and keep trying. Once day something will work!

It can be so difficult to have this happen, I'm sorry! The only thing I would suggest is make sure she is eating enough. All 4 of mine were breastfed. But with number 4, he cried and cried for hours and constantly wanted to be held. After two months of it some one suggested that maybe he wasn't getting enough to eat. Stress or whatever may have been affecting my milk supply and I didn't realize it. I started giving him a bottle of formula between nursings. Within a day, the constant crying had stopped. Within a week he was sleeping through the night too. At first I felt guilty for the formula, but in the end it was the best thing for him, and my sanity. That doesn't mean this is your daughter's problem of course. It could just be, like the other said, that you are going to have to hold her and love her and wait for it to pass. But it is worth a try to see.

Check out this website http://www.icpa4kids.org/testimonials/colic.htm

Hi M. - My middle son, who is now a handsome 20 year old man, was also a colicky baby. The great news is that there is an end in sight -- at about 3 1/2 months, it magically ended. A couple of things to try that may or may not work -- make sure you are not eating anything that can cause her gas. What you eat, she eats. You have to be so careful. You may want to stop breastfeeding and try alternative non-milk formulas. Back in the day, there were carbon based formulas that were a little bit easier to digest. The poop just stinks, but it helped a little bit. They have all of these gas-x type of drops that you can try. Sometimes they help, sometimes not. But my biggest piece of advice is to just be patient and live through it as best you can. I always said the only time my son would stop crying was when I would be in the shower. The reality was -- I would need a mental break so I would put him safely and comfortably on one side of the house, close all the doors in between, and get in a nice soothing shower and sing at the top of my lungs. By the time I got out of the shower, I had the necessary patience to love him and soothe him with all my heart and soul. Best of luck!! It will end.

K.

Try the hair dryer! My son who was born JAnuary 17th loves it. He can be screaming one minute and quiet the next. Some people use the vaccuum cleaner or clothes dryer. I am going through the same thing as you.

I am so sorry to hear about your problem! Although I have never gone through it before, I have friends that have, and they too had to hold their baby constantly. I am sure you have talked to your ped.,has he suggested anything? My friends basically wore their baby in the sling all the time and went for a walk during those peek moments while holding their baby. something about the fresh air soothes baby. They also slept with their baby. I know that cosleeping isn't right for every family, but at this point, whatever works right? Not sure how helpful I am, but good luck! As they say, "This too shall pass."

I am so sorry you are going through this. I do not have any wonderful advice, because I have not been there. My sister in law went through this; her daughter was also not gaining weight. The dr diagnosis her with colic but come to find she was not getting enough to eat. My sister in law refused to offer any supplements or cereal. If you decide to offer any supplement formula I would try good start it is (according to my dr) the easiest on a babies stomach. Maybe you can pump and see if she is getting enough to eat? I am so sorry you precious baby is going through this. I know it is miserable for you to feel like you can't soothe her, but it must be miserable for her too. Good luck.
J.

M.,
I feel for you. While my daughter was not colic, she had her "unhappy" hours which began around 4 P.M. and lasted until about 8 P.M. daily. The only way she was happy was to be held. She was also exclusively breastfed. I tried Mylicon (sp?) drops, the swing, bouncy seat. She only wanted to be held...and only by me. The upside to this is that they DO outgrow this stage. It may take longer than you hope or it could just spontaneously end. She's small enough to fit into the sling...so just bear with this difficult time and enjoy holding her...she obviously gets comfort being close to you. I know how difficult this is being that she's your second baby. When I endured this with my second daughter, I had my 2 1/2 year old daughter to care for as well. Rely on your husband to help out with your first child. I also do not agree with the cry it out method. Some other things to try are soft soothing music, like classical music. I used to put my daughter in the baby carrier and attach it to me so she was facing my body. She got comfort from it and it made it more bearable to deal with her need to be close. Do you have a bouncy seat that vibrates? When my first daugther would get crabby, I put her in her vibrating bouncy seat and she was happy as a clam. We wore out the darn thing and had to buy another seat for our second baby. Sometimes babies have to cry and although it's not technically "crying it out," but sometimes you just have to put the baby down for 5 minutes and walk away. Go to the bathroom...take a walk out to your mailbox. Moms need a break from a crying baby too so don't be so hard on yourself. Nothing terrible will happen to her if she crys for a few minutes while you try to reclaim your sanity. I know it's hard but you can do it. And you owe it to your baby to come back feeling somewhat refreshed instead of being with her the whole time while you are feeling frustrated. Babies pick up on our emotions and feelings. Good luck..and may God bless this situation for you.

When I was breastfeeding my daughter and she was crying from colic the pediatrician suggested eliminating yogurt from my diet. Worked like a charm. Worth a try if you eat yogurt. With my first child it seemed to help when I eliminated raisins from my diet. Good luck! In any case, don't give up breastfeeding! It is worth it! Kathy

Hello, sorry to hear about your daughter with colic. It's rather awful, because they won't sleep. Although my twins were bottle fed with formula, they were both colicky and had acid reflux on top of it. We tried everything. We found a little success with gas relief drops, part just prior to and part just after eating.
When we first complained about their hours upon hours of screaming and the spitting up, the doctor told us that the spitting up was a laundry problem, and that babies cry! AHHH!!! This went on for 6 months. Finally after begging, he prescribed prevacid (for kids-like five milligrams once a day) for the acid reflux (which also helped with gas relief) they were completely different babies the same day! Maybe the colic is just a bit of acid reflux, although there might not be anything coming up. Does that make sense? It took about 2 to 3 months and no more problems.
Best of luck to you. Hope this helped a little.

Dear M.,

Hello. My daughter was also diagnosed with Colic a few months after birth. After several doctor visits it was finally found that she has a severe allergy to milk, eggs, peanuts and soybeans. Even though you breast feed your baby if you are ingesting something such as milk or dairy she is getting it through the breast milk. My daughter did not just cry all of the time she screamed for 5 months. You should consider getting her a rast test, this is a simple blood test that will check for any and all allergies and if it is found that she has a food allergy you will be able to help her. Also my daughter was found to suffer from severe acid reflux disease, which causes a lot of discomfort, she now takes Axid and has been pain free for over a year. I don't believe in colic, I believe that is what a doctor labels your child when they do not have any answers. I would ask your doctor to have these tests done on your baby.
R. M
Merritt Island Florida

I had a son like that! He, too, was breastfed and I eliminated wheat, caffeine and chocolate from my diet for 3 months to no avail. He was "diagnosed" with celiac disease which in turns out later, he did not have. Being held was his only comfort. No, he did not grow up a spoiled man so hold him as much as you can. Now on retrospect I would have warmed up his bed so that being transfered from warm body heat when held to his bed he wouldn't be put on a cold sheet. Good luck!

Los cólicos en los niños son desesperantes. Mi abuelita lo solucionaba con te de anis estrellado, en pequeñas dosis. Actualmente hay una polémica con su uso porque en grandes dosis puede intoxicar. el mejor remedio es el amor y la paciencia.

sobre mi
tengo una nieta de 9 meses! Me encanta pintar en acrilico.
creo que aprenderás español conmigo ;-)

Hi, I've been there and done that with my breastfed baby and trust me, I know your pain. My daughter who is now 11 months had colic also. We tried gripe water, oval drops, you name it. I stopped eating dairy products, nuts, certain seasonings, etc. Finally, we decided to order this thing off of the internet called "colic calm". It worked like a charm. The active ingredient in it is charcoal, which is good for stomach upsets and pains. It also has peppermint, ginger and a few other ingredients. I never thought I would order medicine that I knew nothing about and give it to a brand new baby, but desperate times call for desperate measures. We ordered 5 bottles and we are still using them. We use it if she has an upset stomach or seems a little cranky. If you don't want to use the colic calm, a friend told me that she has been putting a few drops of peppermint in water and giving it to her baby to drink.
You'll get through it, not to worry.

sounds like reflux to me.
colic is a cop-out, especially if it's all day/night.

Get to a ped GI ASAP.

If stools are not 'normal' mustardy/seedy breastfed baby stools, then perhaps it's some protein in your diet- usually it's milk proteins or soy proteins. but if the stools are 'normal' I wouldn't go changing your diet just yet. if stools are consistantly (not just here & there) green and/or mucousy (Stringy)then it 'probably' is a protein intolerance (your diet). If stools are green & watery or green & foamy (like shaving cream) then it could be foremilk/hindmilk imbalance (also known as OAL, Overactive Letdown)& you can read up on this at www.kellymom.com

YOu are the mama! DO NOT let doctors dismiss you & your baby! hang in there!

Hi there! I just wanted to suggest that you get a second opinion on your daughter's colic to rule out allergies or reflux or something else. Also, it can be really hard to eliminate all dairy from your diet. You have to check ingredients for words like whey and casein. It also takes about 2 weeks before all the dairy is out of your diet, so it may be a little while before you are able to notice a change. Dr. Sears (askdrsears.com) has an elimination diet on his website that should help you a lot. If you have an Amby bed though, maybe you've been there. Checking out Harvey Karp's dvd The Happiest Baby on the Block may give you additional ideas. The video is excellent!

I know at 10 weeks, I was still in survival mode with my daughter. You do whatever works if that's wearing her in a sling or rocking her, that's what you do. My daughter didn't have colic, but she wanted to be held all the time too. She also went through that phase where she immediately woke up the second she felt herself being lowered in the crib. She was not a good sleeper. She even coslept with us for a while (and she sleeps in her own bed most of the time now). For such a needy baby, she's remarkably independent and confident as a 2 year old since I responded to all her needs as a baby. I'm not a fan of CIO anyway, but especially for a baby with colic. I know it's hard when you're going through it and it's difficult to see the light at the end of the tunnel, but she will eventually outgrow this! This too shall pass!

When you feed her try to sit her as much as possible. The more she lies back the more air she will suck in and provoke more colics.