To despair of my hyperactive baby?

[thenorthernluce]

My daughter is 6.5 months old and she is exhausting!

Never content with being still, she wriggles on laps, kicks and twists and flails her arms on her back, and rocks back and forth in her high chair (terrifying!). Gone are the days when I could leave her in a bouncer to look up at dangling toys while I dare to go to the loo. She also shouts a lot, making me the most popular person out to lunch or on the bus.

She is my first, so I have no comparison as such, but I held a friend’s baby of the same age recently and I almost cried at how simple it was. No grabbing for my hair/nose/mouth, no demanding a position change every three seconds. It goes without saying that feeding is a nightmare, as she’s so distracted by noise and lights.

She sleeps well (because I Ferberised her), usually coming in at 13 hours a day over night time and three naps. She has reflux and a suspected CMPA (undiagnosed but treated as such). She is between 50th and 75th centile and has been on solids for about a month.

Is this sounding familiar to anyone? Any advice?! I sometimes fear for a lifetime of hyperactivity, although some people have said she’ll probably calm down once she can crawl or walk. I truly hope so!!

I love her so much, but I’m struggling too.

I used a playpen, with a bed protector sheet underneath to cushion any falls. Obviously not for long term use, but it gave me 10 mins here and there for a few months to get on with things (like using the toilet!). I found it was easier once mine was walking (though he doesn’t half try climbing on everything).

My daughter is 7 months and while she isn't quite as active as yours sounds, she does need constant attention and also shouts/whines, wriggles, twists about, gets distracted by every little thing when feeding, and grabs at my face and boobs, to the point where I have marks all over them! I guess it's just a developmental phase and a bit of frustration that she can't yet crawl or stand, though she would dearly love to. It will pass when they can do a bit more for themselves i'm sure. Do you have anyone who can help with her so you can get a break?

Oh, and just to add: my daughter has a jumperoo, which she loves. It buys me ten minutes here and there to make a cuppa, put laundry on etc. Highly recommended.

Was going to say jumperoo or door frame bouncer! Could u set up a travel cot downstairs as a little play pen just to buy you some time to get things done?

I get you! Its interesting in that my ds had colic and reflux after and it honestly was just miserable.
He could sit up unassisted by 4 months and was full on crawling at 5.5months. Everyone was impressed that he hit his milestones so early but I just dreaded it. He's now 20months and just so active.

Its not so much the activity but he needs me constantly. I could never leave him to play with something alone, always had to be climbing over me and it was truly exhausting. We've put him into nursery was 14 months as I just couldn't handle it and we all are coping so much better. I'm not sure if this is even what you were asking, but for us it didn't really change.

I have twins and one of mine was a complete whirlwind. Never stopped unless he was actually asleep. Ran everywhere and top speed and climbed on any available furniture. Changing a nappy was a nightmare.

10 years on he is beautifully behaved, every teacher he’s ever had has loved him and his traffic light has never moved from green.

He does play an awful lot of sport though!

Be careful using the word hyperactive. Your baby isn’t hyperactive, just active!

Babies are all different.

Sounds exactly like my 6 month old. The jumperoo is my saviour and my glasses are tightly fitted to may face do he can't pull them off lol. I also have a play ring doughnut thing that he'll happily sit in and play with toys.

Yep sounds like my 7 mo. She’s exhausting! I have a jumperoo which is great until she gets bored....

Sorry, just thought of another thing! My daughter likes to be with me all the time so sometimes I put her into a baba sling (hip/side carry) , can't manage it for long because she's big for her age and heavy, but she will happily sit in it gumming on a teether and watch me washing up or cooking for 15 mins or so, it's another way of getting a little peace and chance to get stuff done!

Normal behavior. Some babies are more active than others. Not hyperactive but more energetic. Get a travel cot. Pop her in it with soft not hard toys, also nothing too big. Don't use all the time, just when you go to the toilet or have to pop to the kitchen. Get her outside for fresh air. A walk round the park and on nice days (if you have 1),pop her in the garden on a picnic blanket. Let her excercise frequently as this aids her crawling etc. Play with her plenty too. You will get a break by sitting with her and she will love building block towers etc with you (good bonding too).

I have 3 and they are all like this (and all intolerant to cows milk too... Probs just a coincidence). All walked before they were 1, constant runners so need watching closely if not enclosed, haven't ever sat in coffee shops or had nice lunches with friends because they don't sit still, always moving their limbs and wriggling, all very physical and have great muscle tone.

Basically I have no advice, it's really hard work (and crazy when you have 3 under 5), but it's just their personality. They are full of beans and strong little humans. I make sure I walk the legs off them all morning so they have slightly less energy for when my afternoon slump hits!

She just seems normally active to me!

My third was like this. At 6 months he could roll at top speed from one room to the other. I remember taking him to baby group and all the other babies were kicking about and chilled on their backs and mine was whizzing about....He's still the same now at 10. I've put him in swim club

Mine was the same! The jumparoo was a godsend at that age. And swimming. Also baby groups, baby yoga etc as she enjoyed watching other babies. I took her to noisy cafes a lot so she could shout and bang without disturbing people!

Once she figured out crawling she was much happier. I made the lounge into a big safe space with lots of toys and activities, treasure baskets etc and she'd crawl around exploring. She walked early and was very content once mobile. I think all the shouting and thrashing and kicking was frustration at not being able to get around and investigate things. Now 2.5, she's still hyperactive but good at entertaining herself if you set up activities. She loves running, climbing, gymnastics and swimming.

It will get better, hang in there!

Thanks, all! It’s so nice to hear I’m not alone. Just to clarify that I use the term hyperactive as a description more than a label, I suppose, as I don’t want to pigeonhole her so early, despite my desperate-sounding OP!

We have a jumperoo, which is a godsend for 10-15 mins, until she gets over excited and cries. I also regularly put her in the sling facing forwards to calm her down and get shit done. We have a nanny for one afternoon a week to allow me a break and some breathing room; sadly, no family nearby.

I was already thinking about a playpen, so I’ll get that sorted! I’m so looking forward to the spring and summer and using our garden at last, as she loves the fresh air, even in the pouring rain like yesterday (as my soggy trainers attest!).

It’s good to hear stories from the other side, too. Her inquisitive nature and alertness seems to make lots of people think she is/will be a smart cookie, but occasionally, I’d like to trade some of that for an hour of calm cuddles (far too boring for her is cuddling). Oh how I miss the days of endless feeding on the sofa in front of the telly! Never thought that’d be possible!

Oh, never compare to other people's babies - it'll drive you nuts!

Mine is 10 months and has only just started having (very occasional) naps of longer than half an hour. At 6 months she would happily go through the entire day without a nap in sight, and I was so jealous of my NCT buddy whose baby reliably napped from 10-12 and then again from 2-4! I still think enviously of everything I could have done with four free hours in the day. But you get what you get.

My eldest was much the same as you describe. He had awful reflux and I think being still just wasn't comfortable for him, he was constantly stretching, kicking and trying to move. My friends' babies of the same age would lie beautifully, gurgling and chilling on a playmat yet my son would be the one pushing himself under a sofa/pram and having to be pulled out and put back on the mat. All. The. Time.

Baby and toddler group were just a blur of rescuing this little caterpillar of a baby from whichever gap he'd wiggled in to. If I had him on my lap it was like to trying to hold a coiled spring, and I swear it was a better workout than any gym!

He crawled early ish (4.5 months) and walked at 9.5 months and whilst people used to think it was funny watching this tiny dot of a baby stumble round like a drunk sailor, it was exhausting. He was too small and too uncoordinated for me to ever take my eyes off him. Nappy changing, trying to stop him throwing himself up/over/onto things and keeping hold of him everywhere meant that until he was about 18 months and could be shown how to safely do things (go down slides, stairs, get on and off beds/sofas etc) I didn't sit down much :-)

He's now a strapping 13 year old, and is still very physically active, but it's directed at hockey, football, running and rugby now, and not my furniture, which is a massive relief! Friends who used to give me faux sympathy about my 'full on' child, now wistfully look at him as their teenagers refuse to move and he's off running and playing sport with enthusiasm.

I totally get you, my 12 month old is and has always been like this. She is always "on", she never seems to just chill out. The car and pram are the worst, she won't tolerate them for longer than a few minutes before the whining and moaning starts.

A week ago, I took her to meet a friend in Starbucks who has a boy a month older than her. DD has just learnt to walk and therefore spent the entire hour and a half either complaining about being in her highchair, wriggling in my arms, or attempting to escape and waddling away from me. Meanwhile, her little boy say in his pram the entire time, eating Cheerios from a bowl...I could have cried when I left

I guess this might not be that reassuring, only in that you aren't alone!

My 7 month old is like this and has CMPA. I use a travel cot as a playpen/safeplace when I need the loo etc. We spend a lot of time on the floor playing with toys, preferably noisy ones.
My mother tells me I was the same and improved by the time I was five.

My first was like that. Still is! My second - nothing like it!

Both reflux babies I know are like this, both heavily medicated for it too but never sit still.

Yes - I had two of those (with a very chilled baby in between).

The worst bit was when DD1 learnt to roll. As soon as you took her nappy off she'd roll over and crawl away - no matter how poo-covered she was.

She's not particularly active now at 16. Her younger brother is still very very active at 12.

@Ski4130 I could give you an un-mumsnetty hug for typing that out - you’ve just given me some hope for the future that I’ve been needing recently!

And it’s interesting how reflux/CMPA has cropped up more than once in PP and therefore could be a common denominator.

2 of my 5 have been exactly like this and they were the 2 with reflux. There must be something in that going by the previous replies!

My 4 month old doesn't sit still for a second, constant rocking and bouncing. She won't cuddle nicely like a baby she is kicking and flailing her arms around all the time she's always happy though just incredibly active!

My elder child that was the same is now 7 and has SEN (including adhd) and is a real handful. I'm going to hope it's just the reflux they've got in common

Mine has been like this since being in the womb! I had images of going for long walks and visiting cafes with a sleepy baby - it never happened because he was so distracted by everything. I had no idea newborns were able to hold their heads up from birth. He hardly slept for the first few days because he wouldn't stop wriggling. He didn't nap for longer than 30 minutes at a time until he was 6 months old. Coincidentally he also had reflux.

Trips out were fine as long as there was plenty going on around him. Feeding anywhere other than a quiet room was a nightmare. As soon as he could grip he would pinch and pull at me as he fed which hurt (he is freakishly strong!) but this was a fairly short phase.

We got a playpen when he was around 5 months to contain him which didn't always go down well, but it meant I could put some washing on without him interfering and he has learnt to play on his own for a few minutes at a time.

He is 17 months now and still doesn't stop moving, even when he's asleep. I'm pregnant again and it's exhausting! Similar to previous posters' babies, mine was so much happier when he learnt to crawl/walk. I can leave him for a minute or two while I pop to the loo and he will be entertained by TV or toys. We can just about have a cuddle (if CBeebies is on!) for 5 minutes but he's happier standing/walking.

My next worry is getting him into a toddler bed. I just cannot envisage him ever being able to stay in it!