Infant Fussy Baby - Las Vegas, NV

I am so glad to hear others are going through what I am.. My new daughter will cry and cry unless she is being held and I have a 2 1/2 year old also plus I work from home.. I wish I had all day to hold her but realistically I just dont. It is getting so frustrating and stressful for my husband and I..

Babies like to be held-when she's with you she stops crying. The time goes by so fast-as soon as she crawling/walking she won't need you so much. It definitely changes the amount of time you have to get things done but-there's plenty of time for that. I found a front pack worked-she was with me but i still could get things done.

Hi A., i am a mother of two, my youngest is now 7months. Congrats. What a beautiful name for your baby. All babies kinda go through a fussy stage. It is a new inviroment and it is going to take some time getting used to. I went to the health store, (SPROUTS) and got "Gripe Water" It worked really great. It is all natural and it is very safe to gice fussy babies. Their body is trying to grow and develope and maby the formula is not sitting well with her stomach, I fed my first formula and my second i am still breastfeeding. I will tell you having donw both, the formula takes some time to adjust too. I thnk i went through 3 different kinds before i finally got a good fit with my baby. They have so many new kinds that are for fussy babies. Also make sure you are burping real well, gas is very likely in new borns too. It will pass though, i think around three months it keeps getting better from their. Hold her if she wants to be held, it doesn't last very long, they grow up soooo fast. Enjoy your newborn while they are so cute and small. Good luck and give her a great big kiss. :) J.

A.,

My son is breastfed but we had a really similar issue. We figured out he is intolerant to both dairy and soy proteins. In my case, I had to cut all dairy and soy out of my diet (both obvious and hidden) and he was fine. In your case, you should talk to your doctor about trying hypoallergenic formulas. There are some sold in the grocery store. Similac Alimentum and Enfamil Nutramigen are the ones you can usually find. Some babies do fine on these but if your babe is as sensitive as mine, you may have to use Neocate which is an even more hypoallergenic formula. Neocate is special order. You can get it off the internet or havea pharmacy near you order it. You should talk to your pediatrician but don't be surprised if he/she doesn't know much about food intolerances. I had to ask for a referral to a pediatric GI doctor. My son has reflux too. You can find a pretty good explanation of reflux here http://www.askdrsears.com/html/10/T106000.asp My son has silent reflux. He didn't spit up much and he was gaining weight well but he was just miserable. Treating his reflux did nothing for his food intolerance problems. Dealing with his food intolerances dramatically improved his reflux but didn't cure it. He was on Prevacid until he was almost 1.

To me, it sounds like your baby is in pain and I'd bet that it is food intolerances and/or reflux. If you doctor tells you it is normal, ask for a referral to a pediatric GI doctor. I don't think letting a baby remain in pain is acceptable for any reason.

T.

Some babies just need more cuddling. Try wearing her in a sling. Both of my sons were that way and it allowed me to still get a few things done and they would sleep. My youngest ended up being dairy intolerant which caused lots of gas and discomfort, he would scream and cry shortly after a feeding. I bf so I have cut all dairy out but with formula you could talk to your ped about it and see if it is the prob and swith to soy formula or a hypoallergenic kind. HTH

Is there a possibility that she has gas? Does she burp easily or well after feedings? With our daughter we had some of the same things with her crying quite a bit during the day and we got some prescription gas drops which helped her enormously!!

She may still be hungry. do you feed her a larger bottle at night? At that age it's really hard to figure out how much they should be eating and how much they want to be eating. Try increasing the amount of formula by an ounce and see if that helps. If she still slurps it down and cries try a little more. When she's full, she'll stop eating. There may be a little wasted formula while you try to figure it out, but it will be worth it in the long run. She also may just be testing you. Kids are surprisingly smart and she may have figured out a way to get you to hold her non stop. My daughter was like that and her being my first I was lost. My poor youngest gets to cry more than the other 2 did, but he stops on his own when he realizes I don't buy into the tantrum. Your little one is only 1 mo old though, she still needs the extra comfort. Good luck!

HI A.,
Your daughter might be gassy. I would try burping her alittle longer after feedings as well as laying her on your lap with your legs togeher and her feet are on your belly and her head on your knees and gently bend her knees and press her thighs into her belly and then pull them out straight and do that a few times as well as bending her legs into her belly and rotating them in a circle, gosh this is hard to explain but I think if you try it you'll get it. But that should help relieve some of her gas. Also while she's feeding burp her after every ounce to help keep too much gas from building up in her belly. My youngest would scream the most horrible screams during diaper changes and if we laid her down too, when she was a newborn, and her doctor suggested it might be sinuses as well. Check to see if she seems alittle stuffy and you can drip some saline solution in her nose, like 1 drop with an eye dropper per nostril and it will make her mad then use a bulb syrenge to suck it back out and you should get some boogers out with it. YOu can also very gently use a Q-tip to sorta "pick" her nose and get some gunk out that way too. That will also make her mad but if she breaths better you know you did the right thing. I hope this helps you out. I would also say if all else fails see her doctor. Good luck and congrats on the new baby, they are so wonderful, cherish every moment!

C.

I was in a similar situation when i had my second child. Well i had the time to stay home and just hold her. But you work and do other stuff. Have you tried to put her in her bed and make the room dark. There are also these sling you can put her in so that she is near you. She was in your tummy for nine months and that was her comfort spot, now that she is in a big world she needs to feel the closeness to you. i don't know if i will be of any help. Good Luck!

Hi A.,
I know it's not much advice, but to me it sounds like GAS! Try to put her on her tummy and rub her lower back, she will fuss until she farts or burps!! Try other positions as well and patting a little bit harder wont hurt her. Good luck I hope this helps.
K.

I hope your concern had already been solved. I still wold would like to advise you to be careful with her feedings. Some times that is the main source of the problem. Remember that your baby's stomach is the size of her fist and the more you feed her the more fussy she will be. Also, up to age of 3-4 months if i'm not mistaken they still have what is call the "sucking reflex" which is a very important survival reflex. They do this for may reasons: tired, bored, cold, hungry, itchy, etc. and it confuses us parents for hunger.

I hope this helps you and your baby.

M. E.

Could also be reflux... is she fussy more than usual right after eating or when you lay her down after eating? If so, you might ask your pediatrician about reflux.

Here's what you can do...just hang in there. I had the FUSSIEST little boy and everytime I went to my friends or family for help they would suggest that I change something that I was doing. Pretty soon I was blaming myself and thinking I was the worst mother because NOTHING seemed to work. He was just a fussy baby, as probably is your daughter. It does get better though. As they get more freedom, sitting, crawling and then walking of course, fussy babies become much more at peace. Just never blame yourself.

Get a sling! Wearing your baby will help you AND her. I know nothing about formulas, but could it be an issue? Finally, babies want to be held. Traditionally, they WERE held all the time. We as a species crave touch. Some babies just need to be held. I know it sounds hard, but treasure holding her. She will grow up so fast and soon you'll wish you could hold her more (says the mom of a just turned six year old). I know that's hard to hear in world of carseat to high chair to stroller.

Have your tried wearing your baby in a sling or wrap? When my son was fussy and needed a nap during the day, I put him into a sling and he zonked right out. I was able to get things done carrying him around, and I think he enjoyed being close to me. You may also ask your pediatrician about the formula you are giving her. It may be bothering her system, which is why she reacts after she's done eating.

Just a few thoughts for you.

My daughter had a "weak" back. She was spitting up a LOT and always seemed to be fussy when she was cradled or in a car seat. We took her in to see kinesiologist/chiropractor and he took care of her. She had weekly adjustments for 6 wks until her back was strong enough to hold and now she's doing great. She would get adjustments every 6-8 wks for awhile but now at 14 months, she has no problems. If you need more information I can pass it on.

I would assume your baby just has collic. One of our twins did and they really do outgrow it miraculously at 3 months. If so, just hang in there and it will get better. A couple of other things we tried are Mylicon drops (Over the counter. after each feeding) and elevating the head of her crib/pak'n'play. Mostly though, it was just grin and bear it until 3 months and now she is fine. Good luck! I would check with you Dr. though just to make sure nothing else is going on. We went so far as to get an upper GI, which showed us nothing was wrong.

give her gripe waters. Its available at any drug store and you can order it in bulk on the internet. Its all natural/herbal liquid that is naturally sweet and babies LOVE IT. I swear and promise you will see a difference in 5 minutes. I have a 7 month old that was called "colicly" when she was tiny too and this worked like MAGIC on her. I still give it to her now that we are trying new foods. It keeps the poops soft and comin! Really, this is a WONDER CURE and can be used by adults too! Check it out, do your homework, and I'm SURE you will love it as much as I do. I took it to my daughters daycare and now nearly all the babies in her room are on it too! Parents and Babies LOVE this stuff and so do care providers :) Good luck!

I am glad to hear that is happening to someone besides me. Our son is almost 8 weeks old. He is the same way. He sleeps great at night but the day is a whole different story. My mom says that I should be happy he sleeps at night when it is most important. I guess thats true but I get nothing done during the day. I know exactly how you feel.

Sounds like my baby. She slept 8 hours a night when she was only 5 weeks old but didn't want to sleep in the day much....maybe 30 mintues here and there. She did not like the swing at all so that was a waste of money. She didn't like tummy time.......have you tried that...layng her on the floor to look around? I actually held my baby all the time....I wanted to though. It didn't bother me one bit to hold her every second of the day if I had to. I truly believe it made our bond and her confidence level high. As soon as she started crawling though it was bye bye mommy. She had other things to do. She is now 2 and she know I am always here.....she stays close to me and doesn't wander away from me to sneak around. She is not the type of kid that wants to be held all the time which is the stereotype for kids that are held too much when they are babies. She is very cuddly and loveable but not clingy in anyway...that would drive me crazy. So I say hold that baby as much as you can and forget the swing or glider..........not all babies like them. Good luck

I am a Doula, and here is what I recommend to all my clients:

The Miracle Blanket - swaddling blanket (GUARANTEED to work!)
also, the Happiest Baby on the Block DVD.

BOTH can be found at: www.amazon.com

There's a great book called "The Happiest Baby on the Block" that I read (my son is now 6 mo's old) which was very helpful!! It talks about swaddling, shhhhing, white noise, etc to help calm a fussy baby.