1 year old screams & cries constantly - could it be painful teething or is he just clingy??

onceuponatime · 2006-08-14T12:34:27+00:00

My 1 year old DS seems to have screamed and cried constantly since he was born. Recently it seems to have got worse, he cries all the time & won't let me put him down even for a moment so makes it really hard to do anything. He eats well (loads!!) but is up once or twice every night and then awake between 5 & 6 in the morning yelling for us. I kept putting it down to teething but not sure whether it is? - the constant crying is really getting me down. I also have a 2.5 year old daughter and she was like a dream compared to this!! Any tips/advice????

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Megglevache · 14/08/2006 13:38

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Original poster

onceuponatime · 14/08/2006 13:43

Yes, she does sometimes but he still gets upset if I'm out of sight. I feel sorry for her too as she often has to fend for herself while I'm tending to him & I think the screaming gets her down too!

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lazycow · 14/08/2006 14:00

ds was like this but the good news is it gradually improved. He is still quite demanding but the really bad crying seemd to tail off from about 12 months onwards . He definitely improved as he got more mobile and as he could communicate more.

He did cry less if he was carried more too. A sling worked well. In fact we still use a hip sling now quite a lot and he is 21 months old.

Original poster

onceuponatime · 14/08/2006 14:01

Thanks, that's helpful. Thought he was too big for a sling - what sort of thing did you use & where did you get it from?

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lazycow · 14/08/2006 15:44

You can use a normal ring sling to sit him on your hip but I use this.

ellaroo hip sling

It is really comfortable and can be used up to about age 3 I think. I used this on Friday when ds wanted to be carried a lot and I wanted to cook dinner . Dh also used it a lot to carry ds on trips rather than use a pushchair all the time (though we use that too)

It feels like he is being carried on my hip but I can use both hands. You have to make sure the strap fits across the shoulder though - if it is on right it is incredibly comfortable.

It does cost £50 but this website does sling hire for two weeks for £10 so if you don't like it you can send it back and not have forked out too much money. You may want to look at some of the other carriers - you might prefer a back carrier instead. Most of them are suitable for toddlers not just small babies

lazycow · 14/08/2006 15:47

You may also want to look at the pouches as these seem to be the cheapest and are really easy to use for toddlers

Wacker · 14/08/2006 16:21

Might be considered to be a bit of a 'hippy' idea, but have you looked at a cranial osteopath? I know people who have had amazing results from this with children with very similar symptoms - especially since you say he has been like this since birth and doesn't sleep too good.

A look here will give you some more details:

www.cranial.org.uk/page3.html

Never say never !

mummyhill · 14/08/2006 16:29

I may be well off the mark here but is he crawling or cruising yet? Only reason I ask is if he isn't would they re-examine his hips for you? My sister was like this and it turned out that her hip was dislocated.

CantSleepWontSleep · 14/08/2006 16:30

My DD did this for the first few months of her life, and it turned out to be caused by an intolerance to cows milk protein, and also silent reflux. CMP is in formula and can be passed through your breast milk if you are bf. Does gripe water make him any better, as if it is CMP intolerance then it may help the stomach pains?

Also second the cranial osteopath recommendation.

Original poster

onceuponatime · 14/08/2006 17:18

Thanks for all the advice - really helpful. Did wonder about the cow's milk thing as he was quite colicky and refluxy when he was younger and often cries a lot after eating. Have already ordered a sling as suggested and will also look into cranial osteopathy - anything worth a go as he's driving me to distraction!!!! (but i still love him loiads!!)

OP posts:

Original poster

onceuponatime · 14/08/2006 18:45

Just realised I've posted this thread 3 times - anyone know how to delete the other 2??

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mummyhill · 14/08/2006 20:37

Send a mail to mumsnet towers

whiffy · 15/08/2006 11:19

Another thumbs-up for cranial osteos. If you are near London or Manchester call the osteopathic centre for children as they treat nothing but children and I'm sure will help recognise anything physical if that is a cause. My DS was in tears constantly and we eventually discovered it was glue ear, which osteo fixed for us in 3 sessions. The Osteo centre site is on occ.uk.com

Sjane21 · 31/12/2021 22:50

I feel what your going through, my daughter is now 16 months old and most days are a battle with crying, from the day she was born it was so hard to get her to sleep and when she did go sleep it would be for 15 mins in the day twice a day then night time she would wake up every hour crying, soon as I put her down she would cry, I wasn’t aloud to sit down and cuddle her I would have to stand and walk around and if i stopped she would cry and she’s still the same now, iv got to be constantly on my feet. she’s a better sleeper now but the crying just doesn’t stop, it’s like it’s getting worse from when she wakes in the morning straight away crying, I get migraines quite often now because of it. I understand baby’s cry it’s part of them growing and learning they depend on us for comfort etc but at the min I’m wondering when will the crying calm down. Gets me so down

chelxo · 25/01/2022 17:47

@Sjane21

I feel what your going through, my daughter is now 16 months old and most days are a battle with crying, from the day she was born it was so hard to get her to sleep and when she did go sleep it would be for 15 mins in the day twice a day then night time she would wake up every hour crying, soon as I put her down she would cry, I wasn’t aloud to sit down and cuddle her I would have to stand and walk around and if i stopped she would cry and she’s still the same now, iv got to be constantly on my feet. she’s a better sleeper now but the crying just doesn’t stop, it’s like it’s getting worse from when she wakes in the morning straight away crying, I get migraines quite often now because of it. I understand baby’s cry it’s part of them growing and learning they depend on us for comfort etc but at the min I’m wondering when will the crying calm down. Gets me so down

I feel this. My baby is 11m and has screamed from the day he was born. It's drove me to postnatal depression at 3m and I still struggle with it now. He hates everything tolerates nothing. He did have reflux as a baby and after omeprozol he got a bit better but still screams all day. Only time he's really quiet is if he's eating. He is a good eater and enjoys his food. Please tell me your little one is starting to get better now xx

Poojag92 · 29/11/2023 21:06

@Sjane21
my daughter is 14m old and we are in a similar situation. She has been crying since she was 3 month old and still continues. We feel something is wrong and have got several examinations done but everything seems to be fine. We are still not sure why she is so unhappy and fussy baby.
i wanted to know did your situation improve later on or is it still the same? Just wanted to know if there is an end to these horrible phase in my life.

Poojag92 · 29/11/2023 21:15

Hi all

My daughter is 14months old, She has been crying since she was 3 month old and still continues. We feel something is wrong and have got several examinations done but everything seems to be fine. We are still not sure why she is so unhappy and fussy baby.
we struggle with feeding her as she is reluctant to accepting new foods. She is not a good sleeper as well and wakes up several times in the night. I have been sleep deprived and am tired all day long. Her constant crying and whining over Every small thing drives me crazy.
I have been very unhappy recently and have been diagnosed with depression as well.
Just wanted to know if anyone had a similar child and what did you do to improve?

Also does this horrible phase ever ends?

SiouxsieSiouxStiletto · 29/11/2023 22:17

You have my sympathy @Poojag92, my DC1 was very similar. Good news is that he's a very lovely and quite content teen now.

One thing that I do think contributed to the crying was Tongue Tie. Does your LO have any of these symptoms?

Poojag92 · 29/11/2023 22:25

@Sjane21 thank you so much for your reply. Feels so good to know that things can be different a few years from now.
To answer your question, No she doesn’t have a tongue tie but she does have an excessive need for oral stimulation. She puts everything in her mouth and has this constant urge which makes her even more fussy.
Did your child have any issues as such which were identified and then resolved the crying ?
we are just unable to find if my baby is in pain or this is just a behavioural issue.

SiouxsieSiouxStiletto · 29/11/2023 22:27

we are just unable to find if my baby is in pain or this is just a behavioural issue

Well the usual way of dealing with that conundrum is to give them some pain relief and see if their mood improves .