Why oh why are we cursed with the colicky babies? Parker showed colicky behaviors from 4 weeks to 8 weeks and I remember it being challenging but I think Peyton is even worse. She decided to get an earlier start then Parker too...at 1 week we had our first night of colic behavior. We quickly were thrown back into it all! She now is 4 weeks old and we are just at our wits end with it all. Luckily it isn't every night but the times where it is two nights in a row is almost more than we can handle. Joel and I both stay up to tag team because it becomes very evident why people shake babies and we don't want to leave each other alone. One minute you are handling it fine and the next you find yourself transitioning them to different positions in a not so gentle and loving way and you want to throw them across the room! Literally that thought has crossed my mind and it seemed like a rational thought...not good!
Peyton is a model colic baby. It happens about three times a week, it always happens at the same time in the evening, it last for about three hours (in our case we are sometimes blessed with it lasting longer!), and they say it should be done by the time they are three months (I am hoping that last one is not true and it ends much sooner than that). It is probably almost comical to watch Joel and I during these times...I am always on the Internet looking up new things to try and Joel is usually the one trying the things I read. We have tried...
Different positions
Burping her
Burping her in different ways
Bouncing her
Putting her in the swing
Letting her cry it out in another room to give us a break
Feeding her
Swaddling her
Driving her around in the car
Running the vacuum right by her
Swaying her
Shushing in her ear loudly
Rubbing her tummy gently
Bicycling her legs
Giving her Gripe water
So far the vacuum has been the most successful thing. We struggled with knowing how long was too long to keep the vacuum running in the same spot...so we got creative and recorded the vacuum on the iPad and so we now play the recording right by her ear. Joel was concerned that this was going to effect her hearing but the Internet says (and it is always correct!) that the womb is twice as loud as a vacuum...that is why they like it. You are supposed to simulate the womb during these colicky times.
Joel and I are hoping some day we are able to look back on this time and laugh about it...right now that isn't really happening!! We are just in survival mode and hope that we all make it out unharmed! We also hope this does not affect our desire to want another child at some point in the future!
That's very challenging and at moments like this, advice can be annoying! So, if that's the case, just ignore this but a couple things that worked with Jada was a warm bath in the sink (we used no soap since we did it almost every night) and an infant massage with lotion. The internet will give you tips on how to massage but i always found it best to start with the legs. We also went to the chiropractor which seemed to help as well. It can be stressful and I found myself laying her in her bed and walking outside for fresh air and fresh perspective. Hang in there!!
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