Seeking Advice to Help 2Mo Old Baby with Colic

L., I have a 4month old grandson try a warm bath ,that works for us . And soft music. GOOD Luck! mama4

I also have a two month old who sounds very similar. We are giving her 2-3 tsp. of gripe water throughout the day when she feeds. Also we rub a q-tip dipped in esential pepermint oil on her belly button every time she feeds. The gripe water we put in a bottle with my breast milk and she takes it better than from the syringe. You can get both of these items at target or a health food store. Hope this helps.

Colic can be very difficult to deal with, especially when you are sleep deprived. My oldest (now 4) was colicky starting around 8 weeks. I tried everything to keep her happy. I took her to the doctor all the time and they said it was a case of fussy baby. Finally around 6 months they decided to treat her for reflux, and it changed everything. It was like night and day. She never had any other symptom for reflux other than being colicky. Another cause of colic in my youngest(now 20 months) was horrible gas. In that case gas drops and pumping her legs always worked for me.

Of course every baby is different so all I can tell you is what helped with my son...
He HATED the swing(which sat him more upright) but he loved cradle swing they used at the daycare when I went back to work at 2months. He liked being laid flat or way more tilted to swing.
Also as the intensive care unit nurses(he was there for 10 days after birth) said to use simethicone for his stomach ills ($2.00 target) and that worked wonders if I gave it to him before or after a meal. Also I never used it but I have a friend who is much more into "natural things" and I guess the Wild Oats store(43rd and main) has a Newborn packet of natural remedies and one is for the tummy.
I must mention that my son was awwwful...until around 2 months and then he got better little by little.
best wishes,
E.

Have you tried gas drops? My friends baby was colicky so I recommended those, she tried them and it worked for her baby. Other mothers have varying degrees of relief with the gas drops. I've never had to try it on my girls so I can only give you second hand info. Hope you find something that works!

Hi. I am G., grandma to Cambron. when he had colic, his peditrician told me to go look at the store by the yougart, there is this small bottle of stuff, for digestive systems. I will see if I can find it today to tell you the name of it...but you put 2 teaspoons in each bottle, and it will start to work on their digestive system and calm the colic down. I worked wonders for my grandson whom I am raising. I used it for 2 months, and now he is fine at 4 months. check back here today because when I go get diapers I will find the name of it so I can tell ya. G.

Also what formula do you use, or is she breastfed? If you use Simalac, you can switch her to similac sensitive...that worked wonders for my grandson too.

Okay I found it...it is called Bio Salud and it has lactobacillus in it. You find it in the yougart section, and it comes in a liquid in little bottles, 5 or 6 to a package. The peditrician told me to give my grandson 2 teaspoons in each bottle...and it worked wonders...

L., My first had colic for her first 3 months, it was miserable! I found out it was from her inability to process milk. So, if you're nursing, don't drink milk or eat a lot of milk products, take a calcium supplement instead. If you're using a milk based formula you may want to try one w/a different base, also try using Mylacon drops before you feed her.
FYI: my oldest is now 16 and the others are 14, 12, 12, 10, 9 & 6...

Colic is happens when the baby's belly is cramping due to a build up of gas....some baby's get relief with putting a couple of drops of Gas-X in their bottles. If you're breast feeding, try putting the drops in a little water in a bottle. Hope this helps....:)

Might be time to start rice cereal. :)

Poor little one. It is so tough when they just won't settle down. My best advice for you would be to try your best & not rely on any crutches - ie swings, vacuum, walking, etc. I know it is hard, but you really want your little one to learn how to self soothe. Did you take her to the doc? Did they say she had colic for sure. If she truly has colic then there isn't much you can do. Aside from trying not to go crazy. Just remind yourself it won't last forever. I know w my first he just cried all the time for about the first 3 months, but it wasn't 'colic'. I would suggest a great book that got me thru my first & second babies. It is called BabyWise & honestly, it saved my ife. It talks all about setting up a parent directed feeding schedule that will get you success in the sleeping situation. I only say that bc it worked for me - twice! I hope you are getting some rest! Best of luck.

Hi L.! I'm a new mom with a 9 month old. He was the same way. He never slept. However, I was lucky to have his night sleep time be from about 6pm to 6am. Basically, we just accepted the fact that he would not sleep. However, when he slept best it was when he was swaddled or covered up with a blanket. He loved to be warm and all snuggled up tight and secure. Sometimes we would spend 20 minutes burpping him in several positions. And then he'd fall asleep. We also learned that what worked one time, didn't work another time.He didn't really fuss much if we were holding him or engaging him in some way. But, he wouldn't sleep. Although, for the fact that he would sleep most the night through outisde of a couple painless feedings, we were okay that he was awake during the day. Now he's older, he has at least one long nap every day, sometimes two good solid naps. And he's always always on the go! In any case, you're not alone and remember...this too shall pass!
-A

My son was colicy. I was fortunate that he was born at a warmer time of year (April). I would wrap him in a blanket and carry him around the block. He would usually fall asleep before we even got halfway up the street. It could be worth bundling her and giving it a try. A ride in the car may work too.

Another thing that worked for us was the "snowy" tv channels. I tried that one day when I was worried that I'd ruin my vacuum cleaner and was thrilled that it worked. I swear by Dr. Brown's bottles. They are a bit pricy, but well worth the comfort they brought my son.

Good luck!!!

You might watch the Happiest Baby on the Block DVD/video, available in bookstores and libraries. You are already doing many of the things suggested, but the trick learned in Happiest Baby is to trigger your baby's "calming reflex", which in turn helps baby to sleep a bit more.
I hope you get some help. Also, cranial sacral therapy, a type of infant (extremely soft and gentle) chiropractic work on baby's neck and head can be very effective in reducing colic. You won't get many pediatrician's suggesting this work, but it has known helpful effects in reducing colic! Normally takes about 3-5 sessions.
T. Crabtree, Mission, KS

I know this may sound a little strange, but it works. Take her to a chiropractor. My son had the exact same thing (except we went without sleep until he was 4 months old). He was a totally different child after he was adjusted. I've also had a couple of other friends that swear by it as well.

Welcome to the area L., I recently (June 2007) moved here from Raleigh, NC have begun to get settled. The first thing I did was join a local church...it's amazing how God blesses you once you take that first step to reach out to others.

I don't have any small children at home. My husband and I are empty nesters now with 5 grandsons - 3 in West Virginia and 2 in North Carolina. Since my grandchildren are so far I take turns at our church nursery. I helps when I really get to missing my grandsons.

Colicy little girl...I can't really remember what all I did in the past but I'm sure lots of new mothers will have suggestions soon. I did look it up on WebMD and saw some suggentions there. Here's the link for that:
http://www.webmd.com/parenting/understanding-colic-treatment
http://children.webmd.com/tc/colic-overview

I guess the main thing is to "try" not to let it upset you, as babies pick up on tension in their mothers. I know your sweet baby is so young that you probably would not want to leave her with someone so getting to know someone and having them coming to visit and help with the baby would probably be your next best option. My daughter who lives in Raleigh may have some suggestions as I'm sure she went through all this with her boys. I'll email her and see if she has any suggestions...Sorry I can't be of more help. My heart does go out to you at this time...I live in Concordia, MO...I wish I lived closer I would be glad to help out!!!

V. Mason
my church is Concordia Baptist Church

I have twins that are 13 months old. In the beginning, we thought one of them was colicy...it actually turns out he had acid reflux. The doctor prescribed him "baby Zantac" and the screaming ended. I think alot of new parents think their baby is colicy and it's actually reflux. Check with your doctor, but the Zantac worked wonders for us.
We also tried several different formulas for him (started with breastmilk, then Enfamil with iron, then Gentlease, and finally Nutramigen). The Nutramigen seems to work the best. Luckily I have a friend who works at a doctor's office and she was able to get cases from the drugs reps, which helped us quite a bit.
We also tried the chiropractor. I'm not sure that helped, but it didn't do any harm. When my son was adjusted, the doctor made the comment that he adjusted him in an area associated with tummy problems.
I'm not sure if it was a combination of everything or one certain thing that worked best, but he's a happy, healthy boy now. Good luck!

L., I believe babies are colicky for a reason. I know it's hard, especially mentally, you're tired and you want to help her but it's so hard to know what's wrong. I have a 3 month old and when he was six weeks and at the dr. for a checkup, before I said anything about his napping issues the dr. told my to beware, all they do is catnap during the day. And he still does that- 5 mins here, 20 mins there. It's frustrating because you can't get anything done! But I was lucky and since day one he has always slept good at night, waking up once or twice to be fed. Dr's are now realizing that it turns out a lot of babies that are colicky actualy have acid reflux. Ask you dr for a Zantac prescription for her, it won't hurt and see if it makes a difference. Another reason is that babies have a lot of gas and it's very painful for them, pick up some mylicon drops, it may take a few doses to take affect but I know it has helped my son. Also, are you breastfeeding? Try soy formula w/mylicon for a day and see if it helps, if she's already on formula try enfimil gentlease, my baby is on that and we both are so so happy with it! And it's great with gas. Every baby does something different when it comes to sleeping, at least she sleeps part of the night! I definately wouldn't put her on solids yet, her little digestive system isn't ready, and you will probably regret it, and she could have a lot of food allergies later on if started on solids too early. I'm a new mom and could definately use a few friends as I'm going through a lot of changes, so if you want we could talk!

Hi L.!
Welcome to KC! It's hard enough to have a new baby, without it being in a new location! We've lived here since July (I have a 5 year old, a 2 year old, and an 8 month old, all boys), and I love making new friends, so feel free to message me anytime. We live near 83rd and Nall and go to church up at 50th and Belinder, if either of those are close to you.
As for the colic, is she cranky and tired or just not sleeping? I've heard that some of them just need less sleep. One thing they did when my youngest was in the hospital is they rolled up blankets to make a u shape and put a blanket over it so it was like a little nest. He seemed to like that a lot. I guess it made him comfy.
I hope you find something that works! If nothing else, remind yourself that colic doesn't last forever and don't worry if your house is messy! (Are you able to adjust her night schedule so you can get to bed earlier, since I'm guessing you need to be up in the morning with the rest of your family.)

Being that uncomfortable and not sleeping at all like that sounds like a ton of gas on her belly. You can try everything under the son to get a baby to sleep but if you don't fix what's causing the sleeplessness you are beating your head against a wall!! I had a son w/ colic and here are some ideas that worked great for us, ...

Chiropractor! Find one good with infants (I took him the first time on the way home from the hospital). They get torked in utero and from just laying down all the time. Certain areas in the spine can cause gastrointestinal issues.

This sounds gross and I've put it on here before, but it is the BEST thing I did for my colicy baby = instant relief. My ped told me to get pediatric glycerin suppositories....place one half way in to the rectum, slowly stimulate it in and out a few times. You will freak at the gas it relieves and she will instantly have a bowel movement. I could make my son poop on command. Honestly, scary at first...but seriously I don't know why more docs don't have people doing this verses puming meds into them!!!!

Switch formula if you're using it. I went to Enfamil Gentlease. It helped..but pricey. There are other good ones too.

Fill ziplock bag with warm water, place a wash cloth on your babies belly and put the warm bag over the washcloth. The heat sometimes will stimulate a BM. Also, massage her belly in clockwise circles.

One last little helpful tip is the bicycle manuver. Lay her on her back, hold a leg in each hand and gently pull her legs up to her belly and make her legs go in circles like she's riding a bike. This helps release some gas and sometimes a BM.

This stuff works. They just lay there and sometimes their new little bodies need help getting going or just staying on track. If it's simple movement, (don't we go the more we move!) warmth, slight stimulation (some are born with tight rectums that makes it difficult to have a BM), or just switching their food that's not agreeing with them. All of these things helped me...as you can tell I've been there too! It'll pass I promise!

Hi L., I'm two hours west of you and wish you luck making friends. The little girl I babysit was severely colic. The doctor recommended a natural liquid from our local health food market. I can't remember the name but I remember you gave a couple of drops when needed and she calmed down instantly. So check with a local health market and see if they can help. You make have a hard week at first trying to get your little one on a normal sleep schedule but it should work.

D.

Hi L.! My babies were all angels so I have no advice on colic. It looks like you've gotten some great responses and I do believe Chiropractors are a great alternative to meds. I am a KS mom also so I just wanted to say hi and welcome to KS! Feel free to contact me if you need someone "close(ish)" to talk with!

H.

My youngest was very colicky, also. I was nursing and started eliminating things from my diet. That helped a bit, but he still cried 10-12 hours a day. I found that baby massage helped a lot. I did a lot of circular motions on his belly and that seemed to work for him. It was a long 5 months. Hang in there!

Hi, Hope you are doing well. My daughter had colic and we did everything you can think of. We drove,snowy t.v.,vaccum,all of it. Finally I bought the kick start gym. The one you lay the baby under and they kick the bar and the lights and music start to play. (She is 8 now so, I'm not sure what is out there now.) All I know is if I put her under it on a small wedge foam pad the you can place under the crib mattress and let her kick her legs and watch the lights and listen to the music. It all stopped. I don't know if it was the kicking of the legs to work out gas or, if it was the actions to stimulate her brain but, it worked. I would put with it for 20-30 mins. at a time and she slept thro the night and was a much happier baby from then on out. she was around 3 months when I bought the gym for her and it saved us. Hope this might help.

Well, I didn't deal with colic, so this is only what I've heard. Have you tried infant massage? I know that works for some people. I would try some soothing music along with that. I know some people say that it is gas that causes colic sometimes. There is a great massage you can do to help with gas. Good luck! I hope you can find something that works for your little one.

Hi, L.. Congrats on the new baby. My hat is off to you, though! You are one brave individual of having a baby in the house!! LOL! My youngest is 19 and there are days he acts like he's 2 months! Just kidding. (well sometimes NOT)

I'm trying to remember back when my kids were colicky. I know I had to hold, rock, burp, listen to the screaming/crying (the baby's too!). I know that peppermint water helped somewhat (I took a peppermint disk *like the kind you get with your meals at Sconic* and let it melt in a bottle of water for the baby. I'm not talking puting a full mint in a 4 oz bottle of water - if you use a 4 oz bottle, maybe you could break the mint up and use like 1/4 of it in the water. Mint seems to help upset tummies (kinda like Rolaids does for us grownups),and when they burp, at least they dont have milk breath.

My aunt is a retired pediatric nurse, and when my oldest (who is now 25) was a baby, I watched in amazement of how quickly my daughter calmed down when Auntie put my daughter (tummy down) across her knees and bounced her up and down (not the "riding a horse" type bouncing; just a gentle bounce. Colick is a gas buildup in the baby's system, and their body is not sure what to do with it all. It seems that when an outside pressure (like putting the baby tummy down across the knees) was on the tummy, this seemed to at least calm the baby down. Once she was calm enough (not screaming, all "tied up in knots", then she would be relaxed enough to burp and get rid of that gas-buildup.

I dont know if this will help or not. GOOD LUCK, and remember to chant "It's only a movie . . . It's only a movie . . ." :)

I can sympathize with you. My son had colic for 6 weeks and of course I naturally felt badly for him. Poor little thing. But at about week 3, I was feeling bad for me too. Thought I would pull hair out. The vaccuum cleaner thing worked for us though. We burnt 2 motors up because we weren't smart enough to think of recording. Hey...we were sleep deprived too! Anyway, since you've tried all the usual things mom's suggest already, have you seen the over the counter medication you can get that is supposed to help with colic? I've never tried it and it's supposed to be all natural. Something else we tried. We were overwrapping our son. He was hot. It was in the winter so we had him in a onesie and a sleeper with feet and then swaddled him. Out of depseration and last reort, I stripped him down to just the onesie and socks and loose swaddle and he drifted off. Poor kid. We were baking him. Hope you find a solution. Good luck.

I watched my nephew around a month old till he was 9 months everyday he would cry for hrs I would let him cry it out for a while after I feed changed burped rocked cradled nothing worked till my sis gave me some gas drops to put into his formula he did ok,but the crying wore me down and my 2 yr old.
Hold him love him swaddled him he will soon calm down.You can also try a baby sling to carry baby allday in you can find them at a maternity store interent baby magazines

If you are nursing, have you tried taking things out of your diet to see if the baby is allergic to something? Colic is an upset stomach, so that may be it. Also, Everything I have heard leads to the conclusion that America is the leading country for Colic. Most countires don't have it at all, especially the countries that carry their babies on their back or abdomen all day. Just hold the baby, or have someone hold the baby, as much as possible. They will sleep better, and the physical nurture will help the baby feel better, too. It is worth a shot until you can pinpoint what else might be causing the discomfort.

L.,

Take a close look at how your are feeding your baby. We thought our 3 week old was colicky, however it ended up being the way I was feeding him. I am breastfeeding, and he would gulp and choke on my milk. Then he wouldn't burp very well. Turns out, my milk was letting down too fast. I suppose this could happen with a bottle as well. To help slow the flow of milk, I first express a little milk before i start nursing. Also, I only feed him lying down or using the football hold, where he is nearlt sitting upright. The most important thing is to break their latch and burp every minute or so. He doesn"t like me breaking his flow, but it is working for us.

I would try some baby yoga.You can get a book from the library. I only took one class but I know it worked for my sister in law. If you turn your baby so her back is to your front and cradle her with you arm between her legs and your arm holding on to her chest and then do little knee bends while saying shshshshsh. My 2nd was a joy and I almost never had to use it on him but I know that my sister in law did this with her baby and it worked everytime. When Karson gets hurt ( he is now 2 and very accident prone) I do this with him and he still clams right down. It truely is amazing. Also I have heard have not tried but some people swear by a chiropractor. I have a friend who had her babies adjust with in hours of birth and she says her babies never have problems.

Hi L., my oldest son was colicy for almost 8 months! It took that long to figure out that his formula had alot to do with his discomfort. He was very gassy and had acid reflux. Nutramigen(sp) help so much. We also learned from a nurse friend that swaddling them tight like a burrito helps too. My son loved that so much that he wouldn't fall asleep until we wrapped him that way. He finally adjusted to the formula change after about 2 weeks and things got so much better. Best of luck, I know how hard it seems!

Does she cry a lot or just not sleep? My daughter had colic also and she would cry about 2-5 hours straight every night. I read the Happiest Baby on the Block, we did the techniques in it and it worked. Best of luck. R.

I honestly can say I have not experienced this (just what you wanted to hear huh :-)). However, my co-worker did. She swears by taking her child to the chiroprator. Her baby was terribly fussy with colic. She went to a chiropractor who specializes in children, and had great results. Of course, there is often controversy with chiropractors. If you choose to go to one, make sure you get some good reccomendations. I have been to Your Wellness Center, it is on 75th and Switzer, just off I-35. They have couple of Dr's who specialize in kiddos. Good luck!!!!

Are you nursing or formula?
They have a medicine out for colic.......but I don't know anythng about it. The best bet would be talk to the doctor.
But I know my step daughter nursed and she didn't eat right so gave baby alot of gas.and he didin't want to sleep long either. Some may have to do with whether the brest milk or formula is agreeing with her..and also alot of babies are troubled by reflux.......does she spit up alot?
Another reson to talk to the doctor. When my granddaughter had colic I didi alot of walking the floor........rubbing her back and just keeping her warm.
I know it is hard.......when you seem to try everything and no help.
Good luck.
KD

have you tried gripe water? our little gal suffered with "colic" for the first oh, 6 months or so. she's 9 months now and perfect! we tried gripe water when she was about 3 months and noticed a huge difference almost right away. it was like it soothed her gut enough to let her relax long enough to get to sleep. also, i wore her in a sling non-stop... it's wonderful!!! i got mine from a local shop... kids again(they're on-line)! but, the most important thing i did was read a book by dr. bryan vartabedian titled, colic solved. it was really easy to read and very informational! good luck and even though, it doesn't seem like it now, it will pass and you will be able to sleep again;)!

Hi L.! My son (now 10 months) was so colicy as well.... it was hard, for sure, but there is an end! I REALLY didn't want to have to ever switch him to Neutramagin formula, but let me tell you, it made a world of difference for him. Is she having alot of abdominal pain? That could be why she is so disinterested in sleeping.... I hope she sleeps for you soon!

A.
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