Colicy Baby (I May Lose My Mind)

I've been here!!! Two suggestions that worked for me... Happiest Baby on the Block and the 5 S's that it talks about (book or dvd!) and Colic Calm. Colic Calm helped right away... a homeopathic medicine that you can get online or at walgreens I think. It really did work for my youngest!

I would take her to a chiropractor. A simple adjustment can do wonders. And, try homeopathic chamomilla. And, remember that this stage will pass. I had one colicy baby. I felt so bad for her because it seemed like she was in pain. I just rocked and held her, sang to her, bounced her, all. night. long. This was before I knew anything about chiropractors and chamomilla. Hang in there. And, breast milk is best for her. If she is having digestive issues, the formula is definitely not going to help. The breast milk is most easily digested. You'll make it through, I promise. ;)

My daughter had colic and I cut out broccoli, onions, garlic, cauliflower and heavy spices. I don't think it really helped a lot but it did not hurt either. She would cry from about 5 to 10 every night no matter what I did. She cluster fed from 10 to midnight and then would sleep 2 hours at a time and nurse every 2 hours though the night and day. She was calmest in the late morning. I did wear her in a sling and she could even nurse in the sling while I was taking walks, etc. However, she was my first and I had no other urgent things to do but take care of her and me. I napped whenever she did so I could get rest. The only thing I can tell you is what the pediatrician we chose told us: even if she has the worst case of colic, all babies with colic are a lot better by 3 months and all outgrow it by 6 months. And low and behold, around 6 months she calmed down a lot and by 7 months I let her cry it out at night and she slept through the night ever since. She is now 13, is doing very well in school and has a small group of close friends, and has always been a highly sensitive child (=HSC, there is a good book by Elaine Aron available on Amazon that may help you in the future if your colicky ones turns out to be a HSC, it is set up in age groups with very practical advice). And this same pediatrician also said that if you have made sure she is fed, clean, nothing is poking her, and she just won't stop crying then LAY HER DOWN in the crib for 15-20 minutes and go to the opposite side of the house. This may seem cruel and I had a hard time doing it, but did occasionally or I might have gone insane. Take a break from her and trust that this is a phase and it will end.

Silent Acid reflux? baby's are soothed by feedings with silent reflux. My son had it.

try the 5 soothing techniques from Happiest Baby on the Block. It's a DVD that demonstrates the methods (it's also a book but the DVD will be MUCH easier and faster). I've seen it at Target in the baby section or check the public library.

I used the techniques on my DD and they worked great. Usually had to do all 5 at a time.

Swaddle
Side (put baby on side in backwards breastfeeding pose)
Suck (pacifier)
Swing (or you can gently jiggle on your lap back and forth)
Shush (say SHHHHHHHHHHHHHH next to her ear as loudly and as long as she is crying-- he says to do it right in the baby's ear but I did it on her head)

It's better to see him demonstrate them in the DVD.
Colic usually ends around 3 months so hang on-- you're almost there.

Dear mom, this may not be what you want to hear, but it's not surprising your baby calms down when he"s latched on. That is your answer, not formula bottle feeding or the binky. The binky is derived out of a baby's need to suck, some more than others, mom's breasts. How can you blame a baby who prefers the soft and warm skin to a rubber or silicon nipple? Yes, it is hard to care for a demanding baby, being the first or the third, and I feel for your 1 year old who is probably having the hardest time, but you may want to try to ask for help when it comes to taking care of the dogs or house. You can't do it all or shouldn't. Your new baby is #1 priority and a crying baby is not a happy baby. Do try wearing your baby in a sling or other form of baby carrier, but position your baby near your breast, meaning carry your baby skin to skin with easy access to your breast so that you are able to do some work without having to stop and nurse him. Unless you have ver large breasts, you should be able to nurse him in a bay carrier hands-free. If you need to be shown how, do a search online for nursing and your sling name and you will get several youtube videos showing how. It may take a bit of practice, but once you get the hang of it, you and your baby will love it. Some babies need mom's touch more than others, some babies have a higher need to pacify themselves and the great advantage of letting them latch on as opposed to forcing them to use a binky is the fact that they can nurse if they want to or they can just pacify themselves. Also, a breastfed baby is less likely to take in air than a bottlefed baby and colick may have to do with air intake. I wish you good luck mom and hope you have a supportive husband who will help you. Kuddos to you for breastfeeing your baby. A happy baby is a happy mom and a happy mom is a happy family.

Updated

Dear mom, this may not be what you want to hear, but it's not surprising your baby calms down when he"s latched on. That is your answer, not formula bottle feeding or the binky. The binky is derived out of a baby's need to suck, some more than others, mom's breasts. How can you blame a baby who prefers the soft and warm skin to a rubber or silicon nipple? Yes, it is hard to care for a demanding baby, being the first or the third, and I feel for your 1 year old who is probably having the hardest time, but you may want to try to ask for help when it comes to taking care of the dogs or house. You can't do it all or shouldn't. Your new baby is #1 priority and a crying baby is not a happy baby. Do try wearing your baby in a sling or other form of baby carrier, but position your baby near your breast, meaning carry your baby skin to skin with easy access to your breast so that you are able to do some work without having to stop and nurse him. Unless you have ver large breasts, you should be able to nurse him in a bay carrier hands-free. If you need to be shown how, do a search online for nursing and your sling name and you will get several youtube videos showing how. It may take a bit of practice, but once you get the hang of it, you and your baby will love it. Some babies need mom's touch more than others, some babies have a higher need to pacify themselves and the great advantage of letting them latch on as opposed to forcing them to use a binky is the fact that they can nurse if they want to or they can just pacify themselves. Also, a breastfed baby is less likely to take in air than a bottlefed baby and colick may have to do with air intake. I wish you good luck mom and hope you have a supportive husband who will help you. Kuddos to you for breastfeeing your baby. A happy baby is a happy mom and a happy mom is a happy family.

I am so sorry! She sounds very similar to what my daughter did. My ped recommended making a food diary and also track the spitting up and fussiness. My daughter is sensitive to milk. I can't eat anything with milk. Once I cut out all milk and dairy products out of my diet, my daughter was a new baby, it was amazing. For me it took about 8 hours from the time I ate it to the time it was in my breastmilk and upsetting her tummy.
Good luck!

Dr. Harvey Karp, author of The Happiest Baby on the Block, has a lot of advice and magical techniques for helping fussy babies. Your baby is in what he calls the Fourth Trimester, and is right in the most difficult/intense part of her transition into the outside world. Get a copy of his book, quick. And in the meantime, watch how he comforts crying babies here and in related videos on You Tube:

How-to's: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G6KnVPUdEgQ&feature=re...

Enhanced sleep: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tk5MUOMecHI&NR=1

Interview: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iu0TtxO-ocY&feature=re...

You will probably also have a much calmer baby with fewer spit-ups if you make sure she's been thoroughly burped after each feeding, and if you wear her in a sling during the day. She'll get the contact/warmth/movement she was used to in the womb, and your hands will be free to get a few other things done. She will begin to settle in the next few weeks, but her needs are running her (and you) right now – she can't help it.

warm peppermint water they now have colic tablets they didnt have when my oldest was little my youngest never had it so I dont know if they work or not. swaddle her. watch what your eating and how her colic is. it may be what your eating I would think more its going to be a dairy product you may have to use soy milk for a while. mylacon drops

try this amazing method: http://www.babyslumber.com/happiestbaby.html

what worked best with my baby was swaddling, shushing, sucking and swaying, but you're baby might like all or 1 of them. Good luck!

Our little guy (now 4 months) had a LOT more "personality" than his 2 older siblings! I literally held him 24/7 for the first 2 months of his life.

And I STILL hold him A LOT! He sleeps in my arms all night long. I just had to learn to let the house go.... I had my dad make me some meals so my family could eat something decent for a couple days. And then I'd make food when my husband was able to hold him.

And my older two (3 1/2 and 5 1/2) just played together A LOT. They would have to come to me when they needed something or wanted me to do things with them. We just made it work. Now at 4 months, he seems to be "settling down" some and I am able to get things done most days now. He only nurses as well but does take a nuk. It took some time but we got him to use it some times now. (Our 2nd child used me as his nuk but this one refused. If he wasn't hungry he would NOT suckle, even for comfort. But yet wanted to suck on something........LOL>)

Good luck.

Oh, J., I am so sorry!
Have you tried Mylicon drops for the gas? Also, bicycling the legs while the baby is lying on her back.
Each of my kids liked a different kind of carrier (backpack, sling, and front pack).
Can your husband or a friend take her for a walk, just so you can breathe for a minute?
I have heard things about gripe water for colic.
Try this article also: http://www.kellymom.com/babyconcerns/fussybaby.html
Blessings to you!
Could also be a food sensitivity as previously mentioned.

J. I feel for you. I too am in the exact same boat. It is mentally, physically, and emotionally draining. The baby cries all the time and you try not to cry because you have the other children to tend to. I was first told my son had colic (7 weeks old), then reflux, now they are not sure and we are seeing a GI specialist on the 10th. I have been doing some research and I have read great things about the advantages of probiotics with babies who suffer from colic and reflux. Breast milk is better than formula for babies with these conditions, I read you are breastfeeding, try to keep that going. Remember to take care of yourself as your supply can suffer. All I can say is it has to get better as many moms out there have endured it.

We were told to use Mylicon drops for the gas (helped a little). We also did the bicycle legs for the gas. Check out Dr.Sears books or websites. They have a lot of information on this stuff including a list of "fuss foods" that you might be passing through the milk to your baby.

Hi J.,
Don't loose your mind! You're going to be fine! I have 2 suggestions. I have 4 kids ages 14-18 and all of them had some trouble eating and sleeping but only till I figured out why. With my first, at about 6 weeks, I called the Dr. for help. He'd told me that fussy babies were made not born, so, I called and said "Help! I've got a fussy baby and he cries ALL the time!" This was his advice to me "First, stop eating any dairy....babies find it very hard to digest, but if the lack of comfort is due to an upset tummy, you'll know within hours of not having any dairy." "Second, put him (in your case her) on a 3 hour schedule. He's crying all the time already so to hear him cry while you adjust the schedule won't make a difference. Feed him well and then let him go. He should eventually begin to eat, stay awake to play a bit(I used this as bath time), then sleep up until the next feeding. After he is on a 3 hour schedule, you will be able to track what he can't digest. The food you eat will enter your milk 2 feedings after you eat it." So, this is my suggestion, no dairy and then schedule. I know it goes against the grain of common nursing and new baby advice, but it worked for us for all 4 and know lots of mom's who've gone through the same stuff and it works for them too. Best wishes. K.

Maybe she's lactose intolerant or intolerant of something in your diet. I have heard of nursing babies who were intolerant of the milk their mothers were drinking.
Try cutting different things out of your diet. Give it 2 or 3 days before you move to the next item.

Hi, for the gas drink fennel tea since your nursing. Buy the seeds from any spice rack in the grocery store. Boil a cup of water the soak 3-4 seeds for a few minutes then drink it. You can always up the seeds for a better result of gas release. I don't know if it helps with the spitting up but it might if its a digestion problem.
Fennel seeds are in most Italian foods and sausages because it helps with digestion. My son went through a stage where he was REALLY gassy but not spitting up. He was old enough to drink it from the bottle for a more instant result. I drink it myself when needed.
For $4.00 and enough seeds to last at least a year it's worth the try. Send someone out for you A.S.A.P. : >)
Good luck
K

oh J., I am so sorry...I have just come out of this nightmare for the third time...there is not much that can help true colic other than time and for each of my kids, the screaming stopped at 3 or 4 months overnight. i did see a pediatric gasteroenterologist for my second and third kid and that did make a difference...he told me to cut out all the allergy foods -milk, whey, soy, nuts, seafood, lecitin, ....which made a big difference...i am currently on this elimination diet still as my kid is now almost 6 months...my kids also had reflux and were on prevacid until 9 months...the best advice i can give you is to find someone to give u a break for a few minutes a day....but finding a dr to test your babies stool can tell you if it is allergy related...for my older two, i had them tested at 11 months for allergies and thankfully they were fine by then...all the best, H. ps. i hated the book by karp about the happiest kid on the block because it gives you solutions that DO NOT work for kids with real colic...the best book that understands this is Happy child healthy sleep habits by Dr. Weissbluth..it will end and your will be glad to have your baby...by the way, with my first i remember nursing her all day bc that was the only time she seemed okay but actually it was not a good thing and made her worse...

My son had severe GERD or reflux from birth and this sounds exactly like him. I thought I was going to go nutz! Ask your ped about prevacid solutabs to try for 2 weeks to see if it helps

My son had horrible colic and it was my diet. He screamed all day long. When he was a year old, we found out he had a severe egg allergy and peanut allergy. Maybe start by eliminating the high allergy foods from your diet- milk, eggs, nuts, etc. Give it a few days, and see if things improve.

Don't have much advice, but have you looked into GERD? or maybe acid reflux?? Try and give your ped another call. Maybe they can schedule you with a different one while the other one is on vacation. I once used over the counter drops for babies that helped with the gas. ( sorry I forgot the name) sorry I don't have much else. Hope things get better. Please update us!!!! :)