Baby emergency!

[wisteria_]

Hey, friends! This auntie needs your help. The baby has severe colic and won't stop crying, and my poor sister's having a really hard time. A screaming five-week-old can bring you to your knees, even with your family around! (My parents and her husband are helping out; I'd take the next flight to Dallas if I could

Comments

[munchkin62]

I have no kids and can offer only my sympathies and earplugs (I kid, I kid).

Also, I am borrowing your icon "Nephew!" because in August I will be auntie to a nephew too! Hope that is alright.

[bkwyrm]

Poor little sprog. A friend of mine recommends "gripe water," which she gets at a local health food store. It's got a mix of homeopathic stuff like ginger and valerian, so it's soothing and calming for the baby. Another friend of mine learned that it wasn't the swaddling her little girl wanted, it was being close to Mom, so she got a sling and that helped considerably.

[christinenj]

I can't recommend gripe water enough. We went through bottles of it with my daughter. It helps a lot with gas pains.

The other thing to check out is Hyland's. I swore by their teething tablets. They melt almost instantly so I never had a problem giving them to my kids even when they were only 8 months old.

[nvrpromise]

I'd recommend http://www.thehappiestbaby.com/ and either picking up the video or the book first of all because the tips have really helped with my daughter. But um, I'd say go with white noise for the time being. Try vacuuming around the baby or sitting with him near running water.

Oh and I read somewhere that babywearing/holding your baby a lot can help shorten the colic time.

[indigo419]

I have no direct experience with colic, other than the usual crying baby thing, but my friends with colicky babies said they had some success with the techniques from The Happiest Baby on the Block. (It comes in book or DVD format, for the time-challenged parent!)

Also, if they don't have one yet, a baby swing is a huge help for those wee hours when you absolutely cannot hold the baby one moment longer! (I imagine they already have an iPod and headphones - those are also sanity savers.)

Alas - my understanding of colic, like yours, is that it's just one of those things that babies have to grow out of. *hugs* to your sister

[jinxed_wood]

About 50% of all colic cases are caused by lactose intolerence (which usually clears up at around three months).

If it's this form of colic, it's treatable with Lactase (but if he belongs to the other 50%, my heart goes out to you )

Here is an article explaining more:

http://www.foodreactions.org/colic/index.html

[jesouhaite47]

Ditto the advice about Happiest Baby on the Block. It was a LIFESAVER with my now 10-month-old. He recommends 5 things to soothe: swaddle, white noise, motion, side hold, and suck (pacifier, bottle, breast, etc). I used to swaddle my daughter, then take her into the bathroom with a fan on (until I bought a cheap white noise machine). It really works! The book is short and easy for those sleep-deprived to understand.

For the future, tell your sis about http://miracleblanket.com.. It is the best invention ever. I had two for my daughter, and they were amazing.