How To Soothe A Colic Baby

 Isn’t there a drastic difference in – what you perceive early motherhood to be,  than what it actually is?  Well!  For me it has been poles apart, and I can blame colic for it. I have had babies around me all my life, they would cry at times and that appeared to be absolutely normal.

Soon after my baby was born and I was recovering from the C-section surgery, my pediatrician spent about an hour with me explaining the nitty-gritty of raising a baby. He spoke about exclusive breastfeeding, burping the baby, massage and bathing techniques, pee and poo counts, and COLIC. Little did I know then that colic would become an integral part of my motherhood journey.

The medical definition of colic is unexplained crying for longer than three hours a day, more than three days a week. Colic or excessive crying in babies is not a disease but a behavioral pattern.

I asked four different renowned doctors to define colic and list its causes, they had four different answers. But what is common is the length of baby’s crying, time and age of the baby. 25% of babies fit the description of colic. Symptoms usually begin around 2 to 3 weeks of age, peak in intensity around 6 to 8 weeks of age, and begin to subside around 3 to 4 months of age.

Every baby cries, that is the way she communicates. But colic babies cry with a force and focus unequaled. At frequent times, even strangers have asked me “what is wrong with your baby”. At every social gathering I attended with my infant, I would walk with my baby outside the venue, while my cousins and friends joyfully passed their babies from person to person. You can only understand what I am talking about if you have a colic baby.

Whether a baby is colicky or not may be a matter of opinion, but doctors usually analyze the following traits to decode colic:

Colic babies usually become predictably uncontrollable at the same time every day, especially during the evenings. However, this may not be the only time when the baby cries. Most often at night, when our baby was asleep and my husband and I would yearn some restful slumber, he would wake up and cry uncontrollably.

Colic babies look like they are in terrible pain when they cry. The cry loud, arch their back, press their legs against the stomach, clench the fist, often crawl out of the arms.

Colic babies characteristically don’t respond to usual attempts a parent makes to calm the baby down. Rocking, cuddling, holding may make the baby cry louder.

 Since the cause of colic is ambiguous, one cannot list a fool-proof method to soothe colic. You may also have to rely on trial and error method to relieve colic, as what works for a baby may not work for another baby at all. First and foremost make sure you get your baby diagnosed by your doctor to rule out the possibility of any underlying medical condition or difficulty that could have caused the crying. Do not try medicines, kadhas,  antacids or even gripe water without your doctor’s consent. Ideally a baby is supposed to be fed only breastmilk or formula up to the age of six months.

Here are a few tips that have helped me calm my colicky baby.

–  Hold the baby upright :  colic babies are definitely more gassy. This may not always be the cause of crying but becomes the result of excessive, continuous crying. Hold the baby up right on your shoulder and rub her back gently to help her relieve excessive gas.

–  Walk around : Hold the baby upright and walk around. Place her in a rocker or a crib to generate motion.

–  Mimic the womb : A few experts claim over stimulation to be the cause for baby’s crying. A baby takes in a lot of information from the environment and may get a little overwhelmed to lead to crying. Making the baby feel like she is in the womb helps calm her down. Play a background sound or soothing music, switch on the vacuum cleaner or microwave oven, play natural sounds like waterfall or raindrops, play mantras on your music players.

–  Silence: Sometimes babies may want quiet and stillness. If the place is too noisy, take your baby to a quiet and calm place.

– Massage : Gentle baby massage has been very beneficial for soothing my baby’s crying. Massage the baby’s stomach in circular motion and with gentle upward and downward strokes. Press the baby’s legs against her stomach. Make the baby do some hand and legs exercises.

– Warm water bath: Bathing the baby with warm water in the middle of her colic period will distract and relax her.

– Get outdoors : If the baby continues to cry take her for a drive or a stroll outdoors.

– Hing :  comes in a powdered form, is an extract of an herbal plant Ferula and is used in many herbal medications.  Hing (asafoetida)  is a traditional way of curing gastrointestinal problems. Hing cannot be given orally to babies. Make a thick paste of powdered hing and water and gently rub it around the baby’s naval. Avoid applying the paste on the naval. Allow the paste to dry. Once dried, wipe it with a  wet wash cloth. You can apply the paste when your baby is cranky.

–  Swaddle up: Swaddling will make the baby feel snug and comfortable.

–  Watch your diet: There has been plenty of controversy and conflicting advice even from experts on whether certain foods should be avoided by breastfeeding moms. Observe your diet and your baby’s crying pattern. Is there  a certain food that you eat that leads to a gassy baby. Try eliminating dairy products from your diet as some babies are sensitive to proteins in cow’s milk.

– Achieve the perfect latch: make sure you hold the baby in an inclined position while breastfeeding. Allow the baby to latch on the areola so as not to allow any air to pass in to them mouth.

– Burp the baby well –  Hold your baby up right for about ten minutes after each feed.

– Babywearing : Babywearing has been a  boon for me in those days when I was frazzled dealing with my baby’s colic. When you wear your baby, it keeps her close to you making her calmer. Babywearing also allowed me do other chores while my baby was still close to me.

Stay Calm!

I know when it comes to parenting Stay calm is easier said than done. Colic is a phase that can leave a parent downright exhausted leading to frustration. I have been angry and judged as well. But it’s always better to leave the baby down and walk out, sip some water and calm yourself down instead of letting the child witness your frustrated side. Don’t ever let your anger or frustration reach to a level that you end up venting out at the child.  It’s absolutely okay to ask for as much help as you need. It’s a matter of a few months, you are going to tease your preschooler in a couple of years because he was such a  cry baby. You will probably brag about having dealt with a difficult child even to your grandchildren.