My daughter is 3½ weeks old, and has started crying...no...screaming non-stop all day for the past week.

The research I've done all points to colic. I know there's not a lot that can be done for this other than let it work itself out..I think I just need support. I think I need to know I'm not the only one.

She screams from about 10:00am to 3:00pm every day except for the daily noon-time drives in the car. She also stops screaming when I feed her (we are b/fing). She is an excellent baby in the evenings and sleeps pretty well during the night...only waking up to eat every 3-4 hours. I feel fortunate the screaming is not interfering with sleep for us, but it's getting tough because I'm home alone with her in the day and have nobody to pass her off to...can't take a shower...can't cook anything for myself...etc.

I just bought some gas drops today, so not enough time yet to know if they are helping at all. She does have a lot of stomach rumbling and gas. I'm hoping this will help a bit.

Can I just put the gas drops right on her mouth, or do I have to mix them with something? The instructions really aren't very clear.

Gayle

Put the gas drops right in the mouth.

Go out and buy the book - The Happiest Baby on The Block. Read it and do everything it says. Everyone recommend I get it and I kept thinking I would be able to do something without buying the book. I got it and put it all into practice and it made a night and day difference in my DS. He was about the same age as your baby when I was at my wits end. Also go out and buy the Amazing Miracle Swaddle Blanket. I didn't want to spend the money but it was so worth it.

Yes you put the drops right in her mouth. I used to buy the Wal-wart brand it's so much cheaper than the Mylecon (sp?) and it has the same ingridents. Have you tried the colic hold? Place her face down on the length of your arm, I think that having the head closer to the elbow instead of the wrist is easier. You can use your other hand to pat her back. Have you tried a warm bath, alot of times that helps them to calm down? I'm so sorry that you are having to go through this. Neither of my babies had colic. They were fussy sometimes but nothing like what you are describing.

Sorry to hear your having to go thru this. While my little guy never really cried, he did have tummy troubles. It also started around 3 weeks. Instead of crying he was real irritable. Gripe water was a godsend for us. But even through the Gripe Water made him a new baby, I knew he'd still have the problems if I didn't give it to him and wanted to know what was wrong with him. He was diagnosed with Reflux, and put on Enfamil AR (Added Rice) and put on Zantac. After about three days we had the perfect baby. Once in awhile he would get a tummy ache, and the gripe water would solve that. We weaned him from the Zantac about a month and a half ago, and are currently getting him off the Enfamil AR. We haven't used the gripe water in over a month, And he's still a VERY happy healthy baby!

Does your daughter spit up a lot? Also, as 2fast4u said the swaddle blanket could be a good purchase. Swaddling her tightly and putting her in a swing may help soothe her.

I thought we'd never find "The Magic Touch" to make my little guy happy, but we did, and you will too. :D

My 1st was a big time crier. Their poor little belies. Keep a close eye on what you are eating as it can really mess with their tummies. I agree with Karen, Gripewater is good stuff. Worked much better than Mylecon for us. Also, try laying your baby down and gentily pumping her legs. That helps to get the gas out. Also try warm baths to soothe. Also like Karen said, you will find that "magic touch"...you'll have a whole bag full of tricks soon. Our biggest trick...Playing old doo woppy James Brown. The second DS heard that start he immediately calmed down (I think it was the heavy beat) We played that probably 3-4 times a day for months and months :)

I would recommend the book The Happiest Baby on the Block but would also contact your pediatrician. If you are breastfeeding, it could be a reaction to something in your diet. I have heard of babies having milk allergies (it is very common) and sometimes it helped to cut out dairy. Before you cut anything out of your diet, though, I would talk to the pediatrician. If it is colic, the book will give you a lot of suggestions to deal with the crying and help your baby calm down. I'm sorry you are going through this. My first DD was a crier but it was all the time, especially at night. She had a milk allergy so we switched her formula and she was much better after that.

Hi Gayle,

Sorry this is being rough for you. I agree with many of the above suggestions. I would also add to the "must have" library the book "Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child". It is aweseome! I realized that my little guy has not been sleeping enough and that could be a major contirbutor to his grumpiness. You can buy this book for under ten bucks on Amazon. It is good because it goes stage by stage of their lives so you don't have to read the whole thing at once as I know time to read is probably short.

Hang in there.

-Jen

I went through this also. She didn't sleep well, she ate good, but stopped breastfeeding and then went to the Emfamil Formula - Latco Free Lipil and she is a changed baby too. She was labeled Colic also - started about 2-3 weeks old and lasted until she was about 3 months old (She is now 3.5 months!) I swaddeled her - that seemed to help.....I held her a lot - stomach to stomach - that helped. We used the gas drops and did the leg pushes too.....all helped. The book that has been recommended - The Happiest Baby on the Block - also provided good information too. I have not tried the water - but have heard good things. Now, she coos - smiles and talks and we also added a little prune juice to her formula so she has and easier time pooping. Also helped. She also sleeps through the night too. She didn't do that before as she seemed so unhappy and in so much pain....remember - babies insides are not fully developed and Colic is a part of that......they have "tummy troubles"....hang in there it won't last forever. She might also be hungry - it could very well be something in your diet if you are breast feeding too. Stay away from too much diary and veggies that cause you gas. Remember the rule of thumb is if it gives you gas - it's going to give her/him gas too......helped me when I was breast feeding for 8 weeks.....let me know if I can be of more help....

This is all good info.

I'll go to the bookstore today for the Happiest Baby on the Block.

I'm really thinking about my diet and can't think of much to avoid or change. I don't eat eggs or dairy except for maybe the equivalent of a piece of cheese a week...I just don't like dairy. I don't eat much meat and have been drinking decaf coffee since January (back when I found out I was pregnant). I eat primarily fruit & vegetables (I don't have a problem with gas myself)...and no citrus becasue the pediatrician said that's a fruit to avoid if they get fussy. I do eat snacks foods sometimes (chips, candy bar) but that's only about twice a week. I drink Diet Rite pop...I'll remove that from my diet.

It's still less than 24 hours since I've been trying the gas drops, so no update there.

My husband has been working hard with burping her and informed me this morning he thinks he figured out how to burp her better. I'll get a lesson tonight.

Thanks so much for the info so far. I feel better just getting out my frustrations. I'll let you know how it's going in a few days.
Gayle

Hey Gayle, Miss you on the pregnancy board, glad all is well with the exception of the crying. I highly recommend Mylacon. My son preferred it to the off brand, due to the difference in taste. Its all natural so you can give it every feeding. A couple other suggestions, on burping if you are having trouble getting her to burp. My son was hard to burp as a newborn, what worked best was sitting him in my lap with one hand supporting his head at his chin the other I put on his back and gently rocked him back and forth. And you can also lay them on your lap where one of your legs is at her tummy and pat on back (this worked for my sister's oldest). I have also heard if you can leave them sitting upright (bouncy chair carseat carrier or swing) for 30 mins after eating that it can help. If you are breastfeeding some moms have to be really carefull about their diet cause it can effect the baby. I know my friend couldn't have any chocolate cause it would tear her baby's tummy up. If you don't have a swing, it may be a good purchase to help calm her and give you some free time to do something else. Goodluck, keep us posted.

I am a mom of 4 including twin girls. They all were colicy and after trying everything... a full belly,dry diaper, and a fan close by on med or high, not bright or dark in the room did the job for me.
I wish you luck, Lisa aka-mom

I'll add another vote for Gripewater. My DD certainly isn't colicky but I've given it to her a few times when she has had bad wind and has been screaming. Within a few minutes she's always brought up a good burp and become calm again. It's horrible sticky stuff and I found it hard to give to her but it's well worth the effort!

Spanish

try boiling up some bayleaves as a tea, and giving it to your infant. my boss swears by this for her babies with colic, AND edgar cayce (psychic healer) has also recommended this for colic in babies.

Let us know if it works for your baby.

It's been 6 days now since I posted this question, and thought I'd give an update.

Went to get the book "The Happiest Baby..." and it's on order at the store, so I haven't got to buy it yet.

The gas drops are helping more than I thought, and I'm now pretty positive her crying is from gas pains and not in the Colic category. I called the Ped about the crying and they also figured it was gas by my descriptions. I'm finding as long as I stay consistent with the gas drops, I have an overall happier baby.

I'm also making sure I'm lightly burping or massaging her in some way whenever I hold her, instead of just doing the act of burping only when she eats. I think this is helping too.

I cannot find the Gripe Water locally so I'll keep trying other methods and maybe order this online if nothing else works.

I am working on my diet...I really think carefully about what I eat before I eat it, but I seriously eat quite healthy overall. I'm not convinced so far that my diet is a huge contributing factor to it. I rarely eat dairy because I just don't like it much, and no caffiene. I eat a lot of fruit (no pineapple or other citrus according to my pediatrian, but haven't been eating it because it's not in season).

Anyway, I'm pretty sure it's mainly gas. I accept the fact that babies will cry for many reasons...I just knew something was causing the excessive crying & think I've got it firgured out.

Thanks so much for the ideas!!!!!!!!!!
Gayle