Inconsolable Crying? How Mom Can De-Stress
February 23, 2009 at 7:01 AM by Cafe Cynthia - Comments (9)
Hi, Cafe Cynthia here, paying a visit to Baby Buzz today.
As a Toddler Mom, my life is all about the whining right now. It's been a few years since I've had to deal with an inconsolable infant, but, boy, are those days still fresh in my mind!
Both of my babies had acid reflux, and despite nursing, swaddling, pacifiers, rocking and everything else I did, they cried ALL DAY LONG. Half the time the crying intensified when I held them -- a lot of the time they clearly did not want me to do that.
Nothing, absolutely nothing, worked. And I was stressed to the max. Some days, in tears, I'd call my husband at work begging him to come home and relieve me.
I'm not sure how I survived, but I did. Recently, an anonymous mom in Answers asked other moms what they do to de-stress and keep a cool head when dealing with an inconsolable baby. Here are some of their answers:
-- Put your baby in a safe place (crib, playpen). It's better to step away than be frustrated and raise both of your stress levels. -- anonymous
-- When my lil guy cries and I can't figure out what to do with him, I sometimes jump in the shower and put him in his bouncer in the bathroom with me (the steam calms him down). -- Zacherysmommy08
-- I laid my 4 month old in his crib, gave him a binkie and a kiss, closed the door, and went outside to have a smoke. -- SamanthaAgain
-- I would dance around in the kitchen to feel goofy. That should relive some stress. Do some sit-ups or push-ups -- anything to push you to your limits on SOMETHING else! -- HottMamaRossx2
-- Try a sling or baby wrap that might help your baby feel close to you. Your hands are free to do what you need to do during the day. -- abellvalerie
-- I found myself crying a lot. But walking away is the best thing to do. -- Morgan.
-- A white noise maker -- for you! We bought the Obus Forme Sound Therapy at Walmart for $20. It saved us! And ear plugs till we found the noise maker -- anonymous
++What do you do to chill out when dealing with a crying infant?
FILED UNDER: child care, colic & crying, newborns, newborns
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Oh man! I have been there! My oldest dd, now 15 (!) had colic. She cried and cried---I would get in my car and drive around to get her sleep some nights..it worked.
All of those are great advice when you don't have the option to hand the baby off to your hubby until you can chill out.
i would just tell myself over and over "babies cry. that's the only way they can express themselves." that and walking away for a few minutes. but mine always quieted down if i walked around holding them and sang softly while i walked.
Both my girls had colic. I often just had to lay them in their crib and take a breather. I was so happy when my hubby could take over for me so I could be away from them for a while.
I can't understand walking away. Two of my babies had acid reflux and yeah it was stressful. But the last thing a baby needs is to be left crying. That just makes acid reflux hurt worse and letting the baby cry makes them feel abandoned. I just plain felt bad for them.
walking away is what I do, it's better than getting so frustrated I'd do something I would regret. I hope I don't get bashed for saying this. I would feel awful If I got so stressed and hurt my babies, so yes, I put them down and walk away, I give myself 5 min. to remind myself that there is something wrong, I just need to figure out what it is, stay calm, and they will eventually be calm too.
I have a one and two year old and they still get in their very whiny moods. What I do (if DH is not home) is put the boys in their room put on a movie for them then go take my frustration out on the old punching bag!!
I have a 4 week old granson that the Dr's think has acid reflux. She has changed his formula twiced already & he cried constantly . He never seemed to get full, waking up to eat every hour & a half. I went to a Nutrition center & she said alot of doctors wrongly diagnose acid reflux in babies & it sounded to her like an overgrowth of yeast in his tummy. She suggested we put baby probiotics in his formula to get the good bacteria leveled out & he is a happy baby again. He only wakes up every 4 hours to eat during the night now.
http://infant-toddler-health.suite101.com/article.cfm/probiotics_for_infant_health
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When I worked at the hospital, we swaddled our kids. There's something about a warm blanket wrapped tight around the abd. It usually calms the child. Another thing I did was whisper. The child can't hear what you are saying so, they quieten down so they can hear you singing or just talking.
POMMOM335 Feb. 23, 2009 at 10:05 AM