Colic

What is colic and why does it occur?

Colic
Many babies and parents experience colic. Colic is a term used to describe a prolonged period of unexplained crying in infants. Colicy babies tend to be fussy for 3-4 hours at a time around the same time each day. For some babies, colic lasts a few days or weeks and for other babies, colic can last months. The first episode of colic can be a particularly disturbing experience. Out of nowhere, your baby will start crying and there is nothing that you or anyone else can do to soothe her.

New babies do not usually show signs and symptoms of colic while in the hospital because colic is rare within the first few days of life. Because new parents off move their newborns to the nursery when they cry in the hospital, the parents may rarely hear their baby cry during the first few days. Once you bring your baby home, you might notice that your perfectly well-behaved newborn suddenly begins to scream. Usually, colic will strike in the evening with both paretns at home. Why? The cause is not known. New parents and experienced parents usually do not know what to do. You might wonder if the baby is pain, whether the situation is an emergency, if your baby is hungry, hot or uncomfortable, etc. Usually feeding, changing and cuddling your baby does not offer any comfort to her. Occasionally temporary relief can be found when the baby begins to suckle on a fist, pacifier, bottle or breast, but then the objects are violently rejected. Parents of colicy babies often call their child's doctor in a panic or rush their baby to the emergency room thinking something must be wrong.

Typical colic has a number of features that usually begins after the second week of life and peaks at about three months of age. For this reason, it is sometimes called the "three-month" colic. Usually, symptoms of colic decrease after the age of three months. It is unusual for colic to begin after three months of age. Because colic generally occurs in the evening hours, many parents often wonder if it is because their baby does not like the increased activity in the home during the evening hours. For some parents, their tolerance levels may not be as high after a long day at work.

An attack of colic often ends with a passage of gas or stool and gas is often blamed as the problem. However, abdominal pain is not necessarily responsible for the unexplainable bouts of crying that newborns often experience. Your baby should seem perfectly fine before and after the attack and no fever, vomiting or diarrhea should be noted. If you notice fever, vomiting, diarrhea or if your child is less than 2 weeks old, you should call your child's pediatrician. Your baby may have insufficient lactase and need to switch to a different kind of formula. If any attak lasts for more than 4 hours, give your child's doctor a call. The doctor will do a thorough examination of your baby to make sure there are no signs of illness.

Home treatment for colic has been treated many ways. Every baby is different and the methods do not always work for all babies. Colic usually cures itself and does not generally require any treatment. If your child is experiencing true colic, there is no reason for any medication to be adminstered. Research has shown that increasing the amount of time you spend holding and playing with your baby during quiet periods can be effective. To reduce the chances of your baby experiencing gas, make sure to burp your baby every few ounces and between breasts when nursing. Gas drops help break up the gas bubbles and can relieve any gas pain that your baby has.

Colic can be extremely frustrating for parents and caregivers. Colic can cause new parents to become depressed and lose confidence in parenting. Colic is not related to how you parent and your child will outgrow colic. If nothing works for your baby and you are losing patience, do not be afraid to leave your crying baby in a SAFE place while you go into another room and regain sanity for a few moments.

Common Soothers For Babies

Rocking
Cuddling
Playing soothing music
Walking with baby
Taking baby for a car ride
Wrapping a baby snuggly
Pacifiers
Backrubs
Warm bath
Placing baby on his stomach over your shoulder or lap
Swinging
Bouncing gently

Comments: Colic

Comments 1 to 24 of about 24.
1

JoJos Mommy - 19 days ago.
my baby boy is 3weeks old tomorrow and im almost sure he has colic. almost every night somewhere btwn 11pm and 4am he starts screaming and crying for hours like some one is seriously hurting him. my husband and i are trying gripe water but i cant say that its helping. we jus take turns napping and walking around the house wit him until he goes to sleep (and he sleep doesnt last very long)...there has to be a better way. im going to try the blow dryer thing tonight because it is very frustrating. i feel like i should be doing more, but nothing stops the crying.

anitasmum - 29 days ago.
Oh and mummy's who use white noises for calming their babies. I got a REALLY SERIOUSLY good CD from Ebay with all different white noises on it. It is so calming and relaxing. Even I enjoy it :) I can take it away with me and it's like I have my hair dryer, rain, all sorts of different sounds with me all the time. love it x

anitasmum - 29 days ago.
Hi mummys, I am Anita's mum and she is 4 months old and still very colicky but I found a new cure for her problem and thought I share it with you. Have you ever tried Wellements Gripe Water? It is a really really good organic product. My baby didn't show any signs of colic until i stopped breastfeeding her at 2 months old. I used infacol for a while but it gave her nothing but constipation. Then I moved to Hi, have you tried Wellements Gripe Water? It is a really really good organic product. My baby didn't show any signs of colic until i stopped breastfeeding her at 2 months old. I also used to use infacol, Hi, have you tried Wellements Gripe Water? It is a really really good organic product. My baby didn't show any signs of colic until i stopped breastfeeding her at 2 months old. I also used to use infacol, dentinox, colic calm, colief, everything in the market. Then I just wanted something organic, i just didn't want to put anymore chemicals in my baby's 2 months old body. so I bought Wellements and it did wonders. I bought mine from organixbaby.co.uk and i think that is the only place in UK that you can buy it from. give it a try. it is seriously good.

wishingpink - 72 days ago.
what a great idea on the blow dryer. I found some great info on colic here too: http://www.chatterscene.com

artemisxlr8 - 158 days ago.
My son's colic lasted 3 1/2 weeks. The magic bullet so to say 'MY BLOWDRYER'. If he's not wet or poopy, has eaten, not in pain, has passed gas, and is still fussy... when I turn on the blow dryer on the lowest setting the crying stops immediately. I cannot tell you how much my blowdryer hates me right now. I have to buy a new one soon. Not for my son, for me, so I can blow dry my hair. I also found that the soy formula he is on makes him amazingly constipated, so the dr. told me 1 oz of prune juice (not diluted) a day will help ease his stool. She said the sugars helps with the constipation. Or white grape juice or pedialyte non flavored. He can't stand the pedialyte. The white grape juice he only marginally likes, but the prune juice, he sucks that down. Go figure.

Mother of Mi Raye of Light - 199 days ago.
My baby had colic for a few weeks but then it went away. my mom told me about gripe water. IT REALLY WORKS. It made her feel better most of the times. Babys r us and Walgreens sells it. I can't guarantee that your baby will stop crying instantly but it will make her feel better and it won't be much longer before she stops.

jhbmom - 212 days ago.
My 2 girls had terrible colic, I was told about a physiotherapist here that specialized in babies with colic so took them there as a last resort as I was at my wits end. After only 4 visits, they were completely cured and were the most content babies thereafter. Seemingly, when the baby is born by C section, their spines do not always align properly which causes the colic (similar to an adult with whiplash) which makes sense that a physio or chiropracter can help. Just make sure you see someone who specializes in babies though. Good luck mommies!

tamm - 213 days ago.
my baby is 15 days old. he was so quiet and easygoing in the hospital, and the first week wasn't so bad; he mostly slept. This week has been a nightmare; he screams and cries even while in his swing or bouncer; i have to walk around with him shooshing, rocking, patting, soothing for at least 5-10 minutes sometimes before he gets tired and falls asleep, but he'll just freak out again if i try to put him down. Diaper changing has become such a dreaded task; he screams the whole time

♥Lucky♥ - 231 days ago.
i used colic calm for the first 2 months of my sons life. it does work a treat just the colour of it puts me off we had so many stains on bibs and clothes as he used to try and spit it out all the time

zajaceks - 231 days ago.
The colic calm is great. It works withtin minutes. Its so nice to see him in peace.

lynsey-3 - 235 days ago.
hey, my baby boy is 3 weeks old and has colic, i have tried infacol, dentinox, he has anti colic bottles as well, the 1st 2 have done nothing to help him, i have now just bought a bottle of colief which seems to be quite good just expensive. i have also found that white noise helps, u can download it for free from the soothing sounds website. xxxx

Bek 30 - 236 days ago.
I also did the chiropractor for my daughter when we thought she had colic also, and I swear after every treatment she was ok for a day ( turns out she had severe silent reflux), but I still kept up with her 3x a week sessions, seriously it does help give them relief, and every time that the chiro would touch a certain part on her back, she would fart and burp, they also teach you how to do it, so u can keep up with it at home. Some chiros actually work on babies for free until they turn 1, mine did, you just have to phone around and find one.

zajaceks - 236 days ago.
My son has colic. He doesnt spit up he is just very gassy and the mylicon drops just help gas in the stomach and not the intestines. Has anyone tried the colic calm.?

mccraig - 255 days ago.
http://www.miracleblanket.com/161.html I swear this thing works. And helps my boy sleep all night!

jessw7998 - 322 days ago.
Hello, my son is 6 weeks old, and every night he starts crying and screaming, kicking and swinging his arms until all hours . We try certain things to soothe him running the shower or the dryer which I read about 'white noise' soothing babies, he doesn't really nap much during the day. Now we're in the habit of him sleeping on our chests on the couch, but that's the only place he will sleep. I just put a call into his pediatrician, and am waiting for them to call back, but its really getting STRESSFUL. I'm not really sure what's going on, this is our 1st baby, so its all new to us.

mgmommy - 322 days ago.
Hello to all the stressed out mothers with a colicky baby! My LO is now 4 months old and the colic is still going strong! I have tried literally EVERYTHING on the market and the one thing that seems to help is Hyland's colic tablets. They are inexpensive unlike all the gripe waters - which I have tried them all; and they seem to be pretty effective. Now they don't take it all away, but now my baby seems to be able to rest much better and is starting to take naps during the day and sleep at night! It may not work for your baby, but it is definitely worth a try! It's only $5 for a bottle with 125 tablets - My Walgreens doesn't sell them, but some do, I pick mine up at the local health food store. Another thing that really helps me is taking my baby in the bathroom while I take a shower - I just put him in his bouncer on the floor and the sound of the running water calms him - at the same time, I get a shower in - woohoo! Just some other ideas for y'all -hope everyone is staying sane!

acidmoonfairy - 323 days ago.
ha, my baby is colicky...pretty bad. im doing it all myself. dad just complains about it. he doesnt help much...baby is two months old and dad has not changed him once....i dont even ask though, so i guess its my fault. it is pretty agrivating sometimes, but i just feel bad that my baby has to cry all the time : (

Bek 30 - 334 days ago.
Always remember it may not be colic, it could also be gerd. I was told for 5 weeks ' don't worry it's just colic' but 5 weeks straight of crying and screaming I knew it wasn't colic ( I had seen several dr's in that 5 weeks, who all told me the same), eventually I was given a referral to a specialist ( only cause the dr wanted me out of his hair) and my daughter was diagnosed as having severe silent reflux ( I flew back to my normal dr and threw the results in his face). If it dosen't feel right to u, keep persisting with the dr's till u find one that won't just say colic without checking baby out first.

sexylil1 - 334 days ago.
I am dealing with this the best I know how. She starts about the time we wanna go to bed. I did buy a homeopathic med for colic at Akins health foods, and it does help her calm and sleep. It still comes back the next day, but if you haven't tried it, do it. Sometimes it's realy stressful!

janice12 - 337 days ago.
oh and if you are desperate turn on the vaccum next to the baby. Its works a charm. Im suprised the motor hasnt blown in ours. :)

janice12 - 337 days ago.
I just wanted to say that if you think your baby is colic get help. Don't try to do it on your own. I think a person can go insane after a while. Get someone to babysit or drop the baby at a daycare for young babies and take a break. I have to say that my baby's colic ended 2 weeks ago and my nerves are still rattled.

janice12 - 337 days ago.
I read the 'happiest baby on the block' book as well and it did nothing. My baby was definitely colic and as far as im concerned there is nothing you can do about it. I tried infancol, gripe water, the five s's etc., etc.. Nothing worked. In the book he says that babies in other cultures dont get colic and I do not believe this at all. He says its because mothers in other cultures hold their babies constantly well I had to hold my baby constantly to try to calm him and it usually still didn't work so the holding is not it. All of a sudden he turned 7 weeks old and it completely disappeared. Just like that and nothing in our routine had changed. I mean he screamed bloody murder for 7 weeks and then one days it just stopped. I do believe that some babies are just really sensitive and things upset them easier than others but as to the whole explanation of colic I have no idea.

rose - 372 days ago.
Hello again, I worked out what is causing my baby's wind! Lactose overload! Theres a sugar in breastmilk babies find hard to digest. I am breastfeeding and after some research discovered that there is lactose in the foremilk which causes baby digestive problems if they get an uneven balance, theres little in the hindmilk, so to fix the problem i feed twice on the one side before changing sides. I let bubs drain one side over two feedings, burb after as usual and have noticed such an improvement. I advise you all to do a little research into this if you think it may be your problem too, but it has worked for me. I will still watch what i eat as i know that also causes problems for my bubs, good luck to you all!

rose - 378 days ago.
Hi to all new mums, just sharing a bit of advice with regard to colic and wind pains. My bubs is 6 weeks old and found he definately reacts to foods ive eaten, i have cut out everything, theres so much i cant eat! Onions or onion powder is in everything, gravy powder, beef stock cubes, salad dressing and pepperoni is the worst! This caused a two day colic period, for my little one. Dairy, garlic, citrus and the list goes on I have to check everything, but it does pay off. After eating barnicale bills (prawns, chips, fish) for a few days no colic! Im not saying you have to eat that but it goes to show that eliminating the culprits it does help. Also for those of you in Australia Infants Friend is amazing, it really does help. Its all natural and helps bubs clean out there bowls, it's from the chemist. I find sitting my bubs up in a sitting position, weather in your lap, car seat, rocker etc help them to pass a bowl movement or wind. And it usually happens quite soon after ive given the Infants Friend, i think in the US they have a product called Colic Calm, but i havent tried it as im in australia, hopes this helps a little during this difficult time, good luck to you all with helping your littlies.