When Grace was about 8 weeks old she would start having fussiness and crying at about 5:00 most nights of the week, and every time it happened I would look and John and say, “do you think it’s…” and before I could say the word he would stop me. “Don’t even say it, don’t even think it”.
Colic is a word we don’t say at my house, because Jackson had colic and it took hold of his first few months of life and didn’t let go. John and I both remember the early months of Jackson’s life as being dark. It was winter, we were home a lot, the sunset early and as the sun went down the Jackson would start with the fussiness and crying. He would cry night after night from 5:00 till midnight. Some days if he wasn’t sleeping he was crying. When he would go to bed at night I would feel as if every nerve in my body was torn and frayed. Every small cry or whimper I feared would turn into an unrelenting fit of tears. One day he cried from 9 am to 1 am and I cried too. I sat in my living room with him in my arms and sobbed. I was completely defeated.
During that time I read a lot of parenting books and asked all of my friends and posted in parenting groups in search of answers for how to make all the crying stop. All babies have fussiness and crying, especially in the first few months of life. Crying is how babies learn, it’s how they let their parents know they need something and some baby cry a lot for no known reason. When a baby cries for 3 hours, at least 3 days a week, for over 3 weeks it is considered colic. I remember the feeling I had when I read those words, I felt scared and filled with dread, as days of crying turned into weeks.
Like most things in parenthood, colic is just a phase but until the phase is over there are a few things parents can do to try to ease a babies discomfort and save their sanity.
Solutions for Infant Fussiness and Crying
Swaddle, Sway and Shush
Yes I am suggesting that you “shush” your crying baby. But don’t knock it till you try it. When Jack had colic I read The Happiest Baby on the Block and this gave me a lot of great advice for how to sooth a baby. A good swaddle, some gently swaying (think that baby swing with the 10 different settings) and a white noise machine (or a shushing noise) can help a colicky baby to settle down.
Baby Wearing
Babies are used to the constant motion of moms body and baby wearing can help replicate that cozy feeling of being in the womb. I didn’t baby wear with Jackson but I’ve been doing it with Grace and during the first 3 months it was a real lifesaver. On extra fussy days I would play a white noise machine on my phone while walking around with her.
Take a Timeout
Being with a crying baby all day, every day can be really stressful. At the same time a new mom can tend to feel guilty about wanting time apart from their baby. But taking time to yourself can go a long way in helping you cope with all the crying. What I learned about colic is that it’s not only hard on the baby but it’s hard on the whole family.
Gerber® SOOTHE™ Solutions
Infantile colic can be a symptom of digestive discomfort, the type of bacteria in the infants digestive system may determine if a baby is colicky. This suggests that probiotics may play a role in helping support a balance of good bacteria in the digestive tract of colicky infants. Gerber® Good Start® Soothe formulas and Gerber® Soothe drops contain probiotics that can help ease infants digestive discomfort. Gerber® Soothe Probiotics Colic Drops are formulated with comforting probiotics L. Reuteri which is safe for infants. It has been shown to significantly reduce crying time in colicky infants and can be used if breastfeeding or formula feeding. Gerber® Good Start® Soothe powder formula is specially designed to ease excessive crying, colic, fussiness and gas while providing complete nutrition.
Less crying means more smiling for everyone. Did you have a baby with colic? If so what tips and tricks did you use to help with infant colic? If you need help or have questions about infant feeding or colic, Gerber has expert registered dietitians, certified lactation consultants and certified baby sleep consultants to answer questions online at www.Gerber.com/experts or 1-800-203-4565.
Colic doesn’t have to take away from all the baby snuggles, cuddles and milky smiles of infant. Colic is just a phase and soon all those tears will just be a memory.
I received a free sample of Gerber® Good Start® Infant formula and Gerber® Soothe probiotic colic drops from Gerber. My thoughts and opinions are my own.
That shushing works wonders!!