How did you survive colic?

Hi! Boy, do I remember the colic "thing"> Our oldest son cried non stop for hours every day and every night. My husband was out at sea so it was just me and baby! I was listening to a "baby expert" one day on TV and remember him saying that putting the baby in his baby seat on top of the dryer when it is running seems to soothe some babies. Also just saying "Shhh" over and over again into their ear and also laying them on their tummy on your lap and gently patting their back seems to help. It turns out that my son was allergic to the formula and subsequently to milk. I didn't find this out until much later. (after many, many sleepless nights) My son is all grown up now 5'11'' and over 200 pounds. So colic did not hurt him at all. It was much hard on ME! Best wishes. As you know things will get better soon. Hugs Snuffie

Our now 3 year old had colic - I sure can sympathize with you! It was horrible!!! The nurse at our pediatrician taught me to hold her in front of me facing outward with my forearm squeezing her stomach gently. The pressure on her tummy did make her feel better a lot of the time. She also told me to bundle her, but dd wanted nothing to do with that!

Mine had colic -- only hers was 11pm to 1am, just like clockwork. We did find a "cure": Mylicon drops and a vibrating chair. The Mylicon is expensive, but I'm telling you, I'd've paid twice the price, they were so valuable! We got to the point where we just automatically gave her the drops before her last bottle and didn't need the vibrating chair. Give it a try!

First thing to remember is that "this too shall pass", colic doens't last long in the grand scheme of things andif you have to hold her for a few months it's not as big a deal as it seems now. My secnd thougt is RUN don't walk to the book store and pick up a copy of "The Happiest Baby on The Block" by Dr Harvey Karp. It is all about colicy babies and the seven stratagies to soothe them. It worked for Miranda who was.... well shall we say "high needs" in those first few months. lisa

A friend's baby was very collicky for the first 2 months and she would have to stand up and bounce him back and forth for hours each evening to keep him calm. Then her sister reminded her that she had a milk allergy as a kid and they switched to a soy based formula. He was better that night!!! (I wish it was this easy for all of us!!) I remember a guy on Oprah several years ago talking about the 5 "S"s for calming a baby. Anyone else remember what they are? Swaddling Swaying "Sh"ing Sucking (I think) And one more!! Sorry, wish I could remember more about it. Our daughter was a bit collicky for a while and was only quieted by sleeping on her belly on one of us!! I don't know if our heartbeat or breathing comforted her, but it worked. (and we would do anything for sleep) It went away in about 4-6 weeks. Good luck.. Michele

A few of our "remedies" were to wrap baby in a warm blanket and go outside at night. The shock of cool air sometimes helped stop the cry, then we found baby could gradually calm down. Husband would also take baby into the dark garage wrapped in a blanket, with the pacifier, and cuddle baby to his chest and stand swaying back and forth. It usually took about fifteen to twenty minutes to settle baby this way. We did a lot of hold and dancing during the evening hours.

I went through that with my DD who is now 13 yrs old. She is lactose intolerant and still has her reflux. I would switch to soy formula, have them checked for reflux and you can use homeopathic remedies found at your local co-op or health food store. Hope that helps!!

hi martha, my sympathies! dd still has colic at 4.75 months old, ignoring the doc's lecture to her that she should have outgrown it by now:-). it turns out that most of dd's screaming was due to acid reflux and milk allergy. We bought dr. Brown bottles (okay they are 5 dollars each but worth every penny), switched her formula (first tried the soy, an improvement but caused painful constipation, then went to the nutramigen, and bingo, no constipation and much less gut trouble). We later at 2 months old, gave her liquid zantac and saw a marked improvement in her screaming after about 4-5 days. now she screams like clockwork at 5pm, for about 45 minutes, sometimes longer. you can set your clock to this young lady's lungs. She cries whether she's had a ton of sleep just before or not. I think she just liked hearing her screams reverberate throughout the house:-). The cats are so traumatized it isn't funny, and we often say they are trying to figure a way to sell her on ebay. in the past week we are seeing a bit of improvement (two days went by and no screaming, but screams returned the next day). We are hopeful that in the next month or so she will stop. we tried swings (she hates them), and that kick and play by fisher price (she hated it at first but now she likes it for about 5 minutes tops). She did like the swaddling, so we carried her in a sling for the first couple of months, then in a baby bjorn-she refused to be put down for the first two months, leaving mom in tears many times a day. My advice, other than trying the things above, is to pace yourself, get earplugs (I'm convinced she has damaged my hearing in a way that concerts never could), and don't be afraid to set your baby down if you need to walk away. Having a part time nanny helped (i nearly cried tears of relief the first day when she arrived and took dd away:-). Make sure your hubby does his time with baby. we now switch off staying in her room to deal with her, so the other can get a good night's sleep. We both work, but I spend more time with dd than he does. Plus I stuff her in dd's arms when he arrives home from work (he gets 5 min to pee and change:-) and blissfully walk away to make dinner and get my stuff done. do not be your daughter's only comforter- you will hate yourself later. hand her to dad and others to take care of so she can get used to them. take care and keep in mind that these "high maintenance babies" are worth the time:-), LisaCA

Been there. My baby girl was colicky until she was 6 months and then she went into teething and then ear infections! I remember my husband and I taking turns comforting her. I recommend the Dr. Brown bottles, swaddling and Mylocon drops. We also tried a bunch of home grown recipes that never worked. We have no other children so she received our utmost attention. Now at 22 months she still expects all of our attention. Good luck and remember that it will end.

I have not read the entirety of all of the posts before me, so if my advice is repetitious, I apologize. My oldest (and second) child was extremely colicky for months and months. This was 22 yrs ago, and few, if any, knew of too many sure ways to help. We did the swaddling, the swings (which he liked, but once the 10 minutes were up, he'd start crying again.) The swing thing was abandoned as well, when my dh and I were afraid he'd grow up swaying back and forth the rest of his life! May I suggest you enroll in a local BABY MASSAGE class. We live in a very rural area, but the local hospital (20 miles away) offers one. I have learned many techniques for our baby (though not colicky, but has other problems) that have helped tremendously. I know baby massage is supposed to be very good for colicky babies, and it certainly helps in so many other ways too (bonding, relaxation, etc...for both of you). I know that with my son, it was even hard to bond with him, because I was totally caught off guard. Our first baby (adopted as well) was the 'perfect baby'. I hope this information helps, and I wish you luck. Colic isn't fun, I know! Sincerely, Linny

My nephew had colic and my sister could not handle it so he got posted to my house for the first three days of life(half time). As a baby, I carried him, and massaged his tummy and back. I layed him belly down on my knees and bounce my legs. I built a lot of muscles in the first month of doing this and listened to him fart a lot, but it seem to bring him some temporary relief. With my little nephew he was in a lot of pain and got to the point where he did not want to eat, so feeding time was hard and the pain lasted for about three hours after he ate..... I did a lot of trial and error. I tried something, if it worked, I tried it again; if it didn't, then I temporary dumped it and tried it another time.

God, do I remember those days. my dd had colic for 9 months. I remember sitting in the middle of my floor at 6 months of age and thinking, I really suck at this parenting thing and balling. I will make you laugh though. I got really skinny fast cuz the only way to calm her was to run a certain track around the house over and over for like an hour straight. I don't know why it calmed her but it did. It will end though. Good luck, and know you are not alone!!Kathy

I also highly recommend the Dr. Harvey Karp's book on happiest baby on the block. 4 years ago our son had colic and I wish we had his book at that time. DH and I both sustained shoulder injuries carrying him around. I wore ear protectors some of the time b/c the screams were supersonic! M

Lisa mentioned earplugs and that made me remember, we kept a pair of power tool head phones on hand. I can't keep earplugs in my ears, and these are much more comfortable.

All you're replies have helped so much. I am going to try to buy the "happiest Baby on the Block" book today. I have started to put her down periodically and let her cry for about five minutes. It seems to wear her out and I can take a deep breath. I did go out to the store last night BY MYSELF! I must have looked aweful whe dh got home because he told me to go take a break. I got some Mylicon drops, haven't seen any improvement yet though. Once she falls asleep at night she gets up about every three hours but usually goes right back to sleep after her bottle. But once she's up in the morning the screaming starts.I must be doing some nervous eating because I've pu on about 5 pounds. Once she turns 3 months old, I can take her to the childcare place at the Y and go workout in the mornings - I am counting the days. Anyway, THANKS EVERYONE!!!!! Martha P.S. Linny - I really like the baby massage class idea - I am going to try to find one!!!