How to comfort a baby that has colic?
I am not positive my baby has colic..but she was a very happy baby the first 2 weeks and when she hit 3 weeks old she seems like she has really bad painful gas and cries a lot..last night she cried for over 3 hours straight. I don’t know what to do I plan on taking her to the doctors but I was wondering if anyone knows how to comfort a baby that has colic or bad gas..ohh and I breast feed
Dr. Brown bottles are suppose to be really good at helping with colic
Have you tried swaddling or babywearing?
Hold the baby by the stomach. And see a doctor ASAP they say they have medicine that heals wonders!
I found what works best is some cooled fennel tea… just a dropper full though! Make some of the tea by boiling water, letting fennel seeds sit in it for at least 15 minutes, strain and then put in the refrigerator to cool. Once cooled administer twice per day via baby dropper in the side of the mouth. Treats colic like nothing else.
It is safe too. My doctor, nutritionist and husband (also a doctor) said fennel is perfectly safe and in such a small amount would not harm or make my baby less hungry for breastmilk.
My daughter used to like when we would drive her around in the car or push her around in the stroller. Little tummy’s make a gas relief medication that might help!
Colic is a term used when there is no explanation for crying- it’s not an actual medical condition.
If you think it might be gas- try mylicon drops.
Since you’re breastfeeding, you might try cutting all dairy out of your diet for a few weeks and see if that makes a difference. My older one had some crying issues and cutting dairy out of my diet fixed the problem. Around 3 months, I was able to slowly introduce dairy back into my diet and everything was smooth sailing after that.
If it truly is colic, try the colic hold. Hold baby on your forearm tummy down with her face in your hands and her feet by your elbow. (It puts pressure on her belly that is soothing). Try making a “whooooosh” sound in her ear fairly loudly.
Good luck, mama…. I hope you get to the root of the problem. It has got to be so stressful to listen to your baby cry and not be able to figure out why.
I feel your pain, my baby would cry for 5 hours everynight. Finally I tried gripe water, which it didn’t cure, but helped, alot. Then try laying her across your arm, belly down, with her head in your palm. The pressure on the belly really helps. It will wear on you, and there is no miracle cure…but it ends eventually. Your Dr will have some further tips for you.
Also, white noise helps. The static channel on the TV, vacuum, etc.
Use your instinct to comfort her. It usually takes about an hour of two of crying- there is really nothing you can do to make it go away. Vary what you do – rocking, stroller rides through the house, laying on your chest/tummy while breastfeeding, just holding the baby, that’s about it. It will pass, it’s normal. Don’t worry about going to the doctor or spending your time online figuring it out. Just hold your baby instead – this precious time passes by so quickly:)
I am having the same problem.. but my son is only a week old. Have you tried Gripe Water? I plan on going o get some soon to see if it helps. I was supplementing with formula and 2 days ago ditched that & switched to breastfeeding exclusively…that seems to have helped him some but you said you breastfeed, right? Colic is actually acid reflux… same thing. They tend to spit up a lot also, in addition to the inconsolable crying, gas pains, etc.. The doctor will tell you there is nothing they can really do for it. I find that the only thing that really calms my son down when he’s having a crying episode is holding him against my chest, patting his butt, while I walk around. Not so much fun walking up & down my hallway at 4 am but it keeps him content. I noticed he always falls asleep in the car so I am going to try a short car ride next time he is up all night crying… you just have to find things that soothe your baby so that you can be prepared when he starts to get colicky.. don’t end up pulling your hair out over an uncontrollable screaming baby, they all can be calmed down somehow
Babywearing is nice. It stopped my colicky child… and put him to sleep!
Also, try watching, “the happiest baby on the block”, by Dr. Harvey…. it’s wonderful! he gives great tips that actulally work!
i use a product for new born babies, but talk to your GP first its called infacoli, mines just 11 days old. i breast feed too.
check it out
When my son was a newborn, and had colic, the doctor perscribed a very small dose of Paragoric, which MUST be dosed precisley, as it contains an opiate. But it worked very well, and all of us got sleep, desperately needed. In about a month my son was fine… but we gave him as minimal a dose as we were told to, so he wouldn’t suffer any ill effects. I’m not saying that all doctors would agree with that. But it worked for us. He was a very old-school family doctor, and knew his stuff. Saved all of our butts. Thanks!
It may be colic (basically what doctors call crying for no visible reason), but it may just be phase. Either way it’s exhausting and sad!
Try babywearing! It is proven to have many emotional and mental benefits, and calms fussy/colicky babies. I used a Bjorn when my daughter was tiny, and I now have a Moby and a Babyhawk. They are both amazing!! Here is a link with great information for you. Good luck, and yay for you for breastfeeding!