Happy stories about colic babies please

[Cafeaulait27]

My baby is 5 weeks and has colic. We’ve just had the worst evening so far for screaming, to the point where I handed him to my husband and literally ran up the stairs and into our bedroom in hysterics saying what have we done to our lives. I’m also now reading horror stories about colic not going away at 12 weeks, and also about colic babies going on to have issues later in life like behavioural and sleep wise.

Please tell me this gets better and one day I will have a happy baby that will sleep at night and I won’t be so tired and depressed all day

I just want to get through without crying all day long

My DS was just like this. If he wasn’t screaming the house down from mid-afternoon to midnight he was regurgitating much of his last feed. I do wonder whether it was partly because he was picking up on the fact his parents were rank amateurs. The only thing that worked was going outside for a walk.

Once he started to smile properly at about 6 weeks it improved somewhat (possibly because we realised we were at least doing something right) and then from about 3 months he was fine.

It’s a horrible time, but it will get better.

Sorry forgot to add - and don't receive it as criticism; I fully understand the dread and exasperation- but my observation has been that they tune in to a stressed upset parent. I was a midwife for 18 yrs and an HV for 8 and often had the 'magic touch' with a colicky baby. I wasn't magic for my own babies! I was just calmer! Holding them really really tight - in a womb like way so they can thrash - and tune into the crying to recognize that overtired stop start cry reassures that there is nothing else wrong. Don't bounce or rock; dummy; silence. Takes 5 /10 mins usually.

I had a colicky baby, he calmed down considerably at 8 weeks. He still doesn't sleep well though at age 3.

It's literally torture (holding something in uncomfortable positions for long periods of time accompanied by a loud, uncomfortable noise while being sleep deprived) but you will get through it. The hard part is not knowing when!

@MrsPatrickDempsey

https://www.babydoc.com.au/faq/colic-bore-your-baby-to-sleep/

Solidarity here - it's really tough. I think a lot of coping comes from accepting that it is normal for some babies who struggle more with the 4th trimester transition. I hope the above article is helpful.

I'm going through similar OP. Thanks @MrsPatrickDempsey found this article so helpful!!

I'm skeptical about colic. I'm sure some babies have it. But I think a lot of parents of babies with undiagnosed reflux (or silent reflux) and/or allergies get fobbed off with the "diagnosis" of colic (as PP said it's not an actual diagnosis).

So my advice is to look into the symptoms of reflux, silent reflux and cow's milk protein allergy, and rule those out before resigning yourself to the conclusion that it's "just" colic. Of course it might be, but if it's reflux and/or CMPA, there's plenty you can do to help.

One of mine seemed to be miserable and cry incessantly for ages.This was before the days of treatment for reflux or indeed cmpa unless severe allergy. It was put down as 'colic' and may have been. He started to settle at about 12 weeks and was by far the best sleeper of my three children going through from about six months. It goes away but is awful at the time.

I agree with @NameChange30, I do think there's always something underlying going on. My little one had colic but not all the severe symptoms of CMPA. Nevertheless giving up dairy (as I was EBF) seemed to help a lot. I think people often think allergies have to be causing extreme symptoms to be an allergy but often it can be an intolerance rather than severe allergy.

Also bouncing on a birth ball used to calm her down like magic. And a walk in the pram on a bumpy path.

My DS has silent reflux which a Dr referred to as colic. I hated the word at the time. It lasted up to 6 months although got better gradually within that. But as a PP said it has made all parenting easier since. Don’t get me wrong, having a 2.5 yo isn’t easy but it’ll never be as hard as those first few months !

Things to help depends on what the cause is but we used a rocking chair because the rocking motion soothed DS. I used a sling to keep him upright when out and about. And we got through it as best we could with support from family.

I’m pleased to say that our boys colic did disappear at 12 weeks. The colic was so horrid I can now barely remember it.

He is also on omeprazole which has helped his silent reflux.

He’s always been a pretty good sleeper, only waking once or twice in the night from about 4 weeks. From 8 weeks we started a 7.30 bedtime and from about 13 weeks he has slept through 12 hours nearly every night.

He’s still pretty sensitive but overall is a happy smiley boy. It gets so much better!!

My DS is 5. He's the most awesome little dude ever. He sleeps really well and has done since he started sleeping through. The first 6/8 months were pure hell. The silver lining to that is that EVERYTHING since then has been so much easier to deal with. Like, everything! So Mums in my mum's group hit times where they were struggling with teething, feeding, potty training, tantrums, terrible twos, threenagers etc and I kind of sailed through it all. Not because my kid didn't present some challenges along the way, but I found I could deal with them all SO MUCH EASIER because I'd been able to get a decent nights sleep!
It feels like while all the other parents hit their real challenges later in, we'd got that all out of the way first thing.
I know it doesn't feel great now but that was honestly the silver lining for me!

@DropYourSword thank you! That bodes well for our boy who is an amazing sleeper so far. Already we’ve had a few challenges which we just don’t find that bad because the colic was still the worst! Xx

Thank you for updating this and I’m so glad things are better! It’s always good to see progress from the original poster in the position.
I have come across it because I think I’m in a similar position. My little girl is 5.5 weeks and the crying and generally being unsettled has been getting worse for the last week.
I don’t know if it is colic or she’s just very unsettled at the moment (she’s never been the most settled of babies, but was much better until last week!). Or maybe silent reflux, though it would have to be very silent, she’s never been sick once!
Her feeding is all over the place (EBF, crying and fussing a lot so is ‘snacking’ I fear), as is her day time sleeping - night time isn’t too bad once we get her to sleep at the moment, thank goodness! When she’s awake in the day she mostly cries until I get her back to sleep, which isn’t easy as she no longer feeds long enough or calm enough to fall asleep) but the evenings she just cries. We can settle her, but it doesn’t last that long… until she finally zonks out then sleeps in 3/4h chunks.

It’s just so tough as I also have a 2 year old I feel I am neglecting during the day as I’m constantly trying to settle or feed his sister. I can’t put her down anymore and she hates the sling. Mum guilt is so real!
But hopefully it will pass again soon and I’ll have a happier baby and be happier myself… it’s only 9am and I’ve been on the verge of tears most of the morning already, but trying to hold it together for my son.

Anyway, thank you- I just needed to get that out and for people who understand what it is like to read it!

@Flowersandrainbows2017 I’m so sorry to hear that, that sounds really hard especially with a two year old as well. Try not to feel guilty, you’re doing your best in the circumstances. I know it’s easier said than done though.

One of my friends said that she thinks a lot of babies just find the first 3 months very hard, and I agree with that. It’s like they’re just not ready! Are you able to talk to a health visitor or doctor about silent reflux? Omeprazole has been a godsend for us but it took about 4 weeks to work.

Our baby has never been that good at being settled (other than at night) he always wants to be busy and can’t just be left in a bouncer for a few minutes while I do something.

I didn’t breastfeed so can’t really advise on that, but I hope it improves soon! Glad my update helped xx

I remember at around 9 weeks, it was the first night that I hadnt needed to put my baby in the sling and bounce on the exercise ball for hours just to stop the crying. That was definitely a turning point and I think was a lot better by around 12 weeks. It is so hard and feels like it lasts forever but he is now 10 months and hardly ever cries unless he is unwell x

See a private paediatrician - our nhs doctor was useless. Our baby was crying in pain for hours on end for weeks once he went over to formula and I was told to just wait it out. I know something was wrong a lucky got recommended a private paediatrician who said my baby had a milk protein allergy - he wrote a letter to my gp who then prescribed him the milk be needed straight away and he was fine after that. It was torture for my baby and the doctor pretty much said nothing I can do about until I went private. The milk isn’t cheap so that why I think they don’t like to prescribe it it’s disgusting that they can let a baby and the family suffer like that. To anyone going though this it will get better but keep seeking solutions there is a reason why your baby has colic x