Crabby Baby Seeking Help...

The sling is a good idea. Also with the reflux, keep her upright for at least 30 minutes after eating which the sling is great for. Also let her sleep in the bouncy seat rather than lying her flat or raise one end of the crib. Try never to lay her flat at any time except for changing. 2 months is too early for a schedule. By 3 months she will have established a routine that works for her and usually most of the other symptoms will improve at that time. So, hang in there, only 1 more month to go. I am a postpartum doula and if you have any other questions, you can e-mail me at ____@____.com

the first thing I would do is bring her to a chiropractor...

my sisters daughter had colic, they brought her in once time and it was gone...

we bring both our kids in when they are constipatied and/or gassy...

the day I was released with both boys, we went right to our chiropractor to have us all get adjusted....I would also recommend this to anyone.

Hi R.!
My baby also had/has reflux. We also tried the meds but then stopped them due to constipation (plus they really didn't help much). I don't know what to tell you about a feeding schedule. my baby is almost 9 months and I still can't get her on one. Her reflux still isn't gone. She has to eat smaller amounts or else she throws everything up. So I gave up on that.

However, I did take my baby to a chiroprator. Now, the chiropractor didn't tkae away her reflux completely but I was amazed at the results for the fussiness! Where she had cried all day before she was now content just sitting in her seat watching everything! It was great and we still go back for check-ups. If the thought of a chirtoprator for a baby scares you...don't let it. They are very gentle and all the really do is rub and manipulate certain areas - no cracking or jerking or anything. I hope this helps, hang in there, it does get better!

Try colic calm. Its a all natural kind of gripe water. It works great for my son. He is 3 months old and we tried Zantac for acid reflux as well, which didn't work. We give him the colic calm and he is quiet and sleeping within 5 minutes. He also has a lot of gas problems and it helped with that too. The only problem is its black in color and stains clothes, so beware. Go to www.coliccalm.com Its worth a try. I know we just made a shot in the dark and tried. Good luck.

I agree that having her lay on an angle will help. You can use towels underneath the bassinet or crib mattress or buy a wedge.

With our colicky/acid reflux baby, I loved the Miracle Blanket. It was the only thing that helped to calm him and a normal swaddle didn't work. Also, check out The Happiest Baby on the Block book. It has a lot of great suggestions.

Good luck!

Hi. I hope things get better for you soon. It must be hard. This may be something you have already tried, but can you make time to just hold/cuddle her in a quiet room for a few minutes throughout the day? We have a newborn who has reflux & can't breastfeed (has a feeding tube right now) and that is what seems to help her calm down. I try to sing softly or hum...and it calms her down. This will give her some time to get to know you, your scent, and she will connect that with being calm. I also just stroke her head & she loves that. The other thing is a front baby sling- this way you are holding her & she feels secure...but you can get things done as well.

You may have tried all of this already...I just wanted to pass on what works for us. Best of luck to you- and make sure you take time for yourself so you don't get that burned-out feeling (if you haven't already!)

Don't rule out sound! I haven't seen anyone respond about sound, so maybe my baby is just different. She was way colicky for the first 3 months. I never slept, until I discovered that she responded to sound. She almost always stopped screaming when I turned on Janet Jackson's latest CD. Not sure why, but who am I to question her choice of music? I still had to hold her a lot and rock her or bounce on the stability ball with her, but at least the screaming wasn't in my ear. At night she listened to a CD of ocean waves (kinda loudly). Ana had severe colic, though, so hopefully yours will let you put her down every once in awhile. Keep up the good work and remember that it won't go on forever!

Hi R.! Two of my friends had colicky babies & ordered gripe water offline and it worked! Let me know if it helps in your situation also!

~M.

It sounds like you are doing such a great job already. It is hard to get a breatsfed baby on a schedule, especially when they are so little and have high needs. I have 3 myself. My oldest was colicky and I didn't know what to do. I nursed him constantly, which probably made his tummy feel worse. With my third I gave him one boob about every 2 hrs to keep him satisfied, without overfilling his tummy. It really helped.
I'd say also, find anything that seems to make her happy and let her do it. My oldest swung A LOT. If it makes her happy, it can't be that bad. Good luck!!!!

The only advice I've got is: Put your left or right arm out, with elbow touching your side, palm up. Lay the baby on her belly over your arm and walk with her...supporting her head of course. The pressure on her belly will help with any gas, plus I have found that most really like this position. They like the motion, the way the floor moves and the pressure on their belly.
Maybe you could ask a friend or family memeber to take the two older one for a few hours or even just an hour for a day or two a week, this way you can focus on the baby and the older kids get a special treat. Have you signed up for the ECFE classes, they would help tremendously.
Hang in there and good luck! We all know how tough it is to handle a colicky/cranky baby.

If holding her seems to help, I saw get a sling and wear her around. I got 2 when my son was a little guy and it worked wonders in his mood and helped me to get things done. The ones i got were a hotsling www.hotsling.com and a freehand mei tai http://www.freehandbaby.com/ .
You can even nurse in the hotsling because the baby will be laying kinda hammock style next to you on and angle.
I really think 2 month is far to young to try and schedule feeding times, as your baby will have those few growth spurts. Scheduling that young might hurt our supply also, so I wouldn't chance it.
good luck and try to take it one day at a time

Boy, you have a lot going on! My three kids are all two years apart and that third baby is rough. I never had a colicky baby (although my middle baby did have reflux), so I can only imagine how exhuasted you must be! The sling recommendation is a good one. One friend had a sling that was really just a long piece of fabric and she could wear it different ways. I wish I'd had one with my youngest. He's now 19 months old and way too heavy to carry!

I'm going to disagree a little about scheduling. My opinion (and it's only my opinion) is that getting your baby on a flexible routine could help both the reflux and the colic by giving your baby's tummy predictable feeding and rest times. I will say that even if you start scheduling right from the beginning, it still takes a good 6-8 weeks to figure it out. It might take you a couple of weeks to a month to figure out what works best, given your baby's situation. But I found having routines to be a lifesaver for me (most of my friends scheduled as well to one extent or another). Obviously, you should be keeping track of your baby's "output" and growth, which you're probably doing anyway. And at this point, she's probably already moving towards some sort of routine on her own. There are lots of books on establishing routines. You'd have to read reviews to find the right one for you. The one I used (with all three kids) is pretty controversial, but it's not as bad as people think it is. And I modified it to fit my baby and my lifestyle, as you should with any book on any parenting issue.

Considering your whole situation, I think it would be worth giving scheduling a try. Some babies really resist it and it's not worth it to add to your stress by feeling like you're fighting with your baby! But, it could be a huge relief for you if it helps. :) A crying baby is really stressful for a mom, so I hope you're taking care of yourself (by getting a long massage or whatever relaxes you - LOL) in addition to caring for your kids.

Good luck!

Hey there! I am a mother of 1, and he had reflux from day 1. We implemented a schedule at 3 weeks (meaning I feed him every 2 hours, and that meant both sides, for a full feeding, a lot of which the time was spent keeping him awake to feed - mostly by tickling his feet!), and, let me tell you, it is the best thing for a baby with reflux. At 9 mos old, he eats every 4 - 5 hours (except at night, he sleeps from 9p - 8:30 am). I think you do need a schedule, and, it may involve your baby crying (ask any person over the age of 60 if their baby ever cried... it's like we're all freaked out if a baby actually cries for a bit) for a time, but they do learn what's going on - because you have to lovingly teach them a routine. A sling is okey dokey, I used it mostly when I HAD to get something done. I also reassured him things were ok, and sometimes, when it was time for him to sleep and he was over-tired, I had to let him cry (albeit after making sure he was bundled, had a dry diaper, etc...). I hope this helps, again, it takes time to find what will work for you, but remember, you are the teacher of your baby - treat them with care & love...give them guidance.