We're dealing with a case of colic over here.
I'm getting approximately 45 minutes of sleep at at time. Blogging just keeps falling to the bottom of the "to do" list.
We've tried walking, rocking, swinging, gripe water, mylicon, the chiropractor, infant massage, the miracle blanket, a baby sling, singing, dancing, and standing on our freakin' heads. (Ok, not really that last one but I would do it if it would work.)
I'm willing to try anything. Hocus pocus, a faith healer, acupuncture . . . am I leaving anything out?
Ahhhhhhhhhh, colic. I hate colic.
7 comments:
Driving around? Only thing that worked for us....
I am sorry it sucks big time. Usually passes fairly quickly in the big picture but seems to go on forever.
Oh, rats! When I saw "Ahhhhhh" on my RSS feeds list, I thought--fantastic! Lisa got some sleep at last! Sorry that wasn't the case. Hang in there!
Oh no:( My baby Emma was a colic, and we went through everything in the book. We used to take "dry" hand towls, heat them in the microwave, roll them like a log and lay Emma over the log belly down. The warmth of the towel put her to sleep and the slight pressure seemed to help. In all honestly we stuck together though and waited for her to outgrow it (it took 6 weeks). Stay strong.
I wish you all the best in finding a solution for your baby's colic. Looks like you've tried almost everything. I like "Our Family" idea of the warm towel. I know it feels terrible when you can't seem to help them feel better. All the best.
We had the same problem with our little boy - and it seemed like it would never end.
The only solution we found was the Miracle Blanket. At first, we didn't think it was working. I actually wrote them an email asking about a refund. (I'm SO glad I changed my mind!) They sent back some tips that made it work perfectly. I couldn't believe it.
I just found the old email and I'll copy/paste the tips part of it here. Hopefully it'll help. (It's kinda long - I hope this comment area holds it all, because it's got a lot of good info.) :
"Firstly, once of the most common reasons people give for returning a blanket is that they believe their baby likes their arms up. In case that's your experience as well, I should mention that a baby is too young to have enough motor control to intentionally raise his arms up like that - so it isn't that he prefers them there, that's just where they go. This is very common, and is the reason so many babies accidentally scratch their faces and bonk themselves in the eyes. You may have noticed that he also twitches a lot when he sleeps. This is called the Moro Reflex and almost all babies have it. Many people see this and think that the baby is struggling to get out of the swaddle. In fact, it's just involuntary muscle twitches that would wake the baby if they weren't swaddled.
So, the question becomes how to make him super-duper comfortable in the blanket when he's moving around so much.
There are a few things that really help. Firstly, be sure that the top edge of the blanket is below the shoulder line. The most common mistake made when wrapping a baby is to wrap the blanket above this line, which causes it to ride up when there is movement. Eventually, the blanket touches the face and triggers the rooting response which wakes the baby and causes crying when they can't find a food source. So keep that top edge below the shoulder line.
Next, don't be afraid to make it TIGHT. Obviously, we don't want his eyes to bug out, but most parents are very surprised at how tight they can wrap the blanket and still have a comfortable baby. You are trying to emulate conditions inside the womb, and that was a really tight environment. Most babies, when wrapped tightly enough, will fall asleep in under a minute.
Another thing to make sure of is that the armflaps are laying flat under his back. The flatter they are, the more friction there will be so they won't come undone. (Also, it is more comfortable for him when they aren't bunched up.) The easiest way to make sure they are flat is to put them on before putting his legs in the footpouch so that you can lift up his bottom and reach under there to flatten them out.
You may also find that he'll fall asleep fastest if you wrap him before feeding so that his arms don't flail around and get in his way during the feeding. This will let him feed more thoroughly. Plus, then he'll already be wrapped up when it's time to lay him down after the feeding. Many mothers tell us that the blanket makes breastfeeding much, much easier, and that having their baby already wrapped makes for a smooth and soothing transition to sleep.
Finally, and perhaps most importantly, remember that most babies are very resistant to change - even change for the better. It could very well be that he's only fussing because the blanket is something he isn't used to. About 80% of babies take to the blanket right away. About 10% need a day or two to get used to it, and the other 10% take three or four days. But once they are used to it, almost every baby we've ever tried it on will stop crying and calm down at the mere SIGHT of the blanket. It's an amazing effect. So don't give up after just a couple tries. If your baby gets used to it and starts sleeping more, you'll be glad you stuck with it for a few days."
Well - that's what they told me, and armed with all that info I gave it another try. And it was AMAZING!
Good luck with yours. That colic ain't fun. :(
Hi Lisa, I have stalked your blog for about a year, you are an amazing person and love to read about your life. About 12 years ago my baby had colic, my mother-in-law suggested giving him chamomile tea, i sweetened it with a bit of brown sugar. I wasn't to sure about giving him tea, but it worked, it calmed him down and also I kept light pressure on his tummy as I walked hours with him, the tea seemed to help the gas move on out. Just a suggestion, I won't feel offended if you don't use my advice.
Thank you everyone for the tips, especially to Anonymous for the info on the miracle blanket. We've tried it for a couple nights now and I think it may be helping! Thank you so much for that info.
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