Helping teach my colicy baby to sleep.

[Lilac14]

My baby is 3 months old and has had colic since she was two weeks old. It has been really really difficult with HOURS of screaming each night. Because of this we have got her in some terrible habits when it comes to sleep. I feel like we are *maybe* coming out of the colic days now (please god!) as the crying at night is greatly reduced but she still relies on these awful habits. Basically I have to wear her in the sling and walk up and down the house in order for her to fall asleep and she also had a pacifier. I then keep her in the sling for an hour as she often wakes at the 45 minute mark and after that I put her in her cot. When she wakes in the night i feed her and try to put her back into the cot but occasionally she ends up staying in our bed. I do the same for naps but she always naps for a max of 45 minutes.

I have been thinking about doing some form of sleep training. After weeks and weeks of screaming I am not willing to do CIO. I was thinking of trying the baby whisperer technique of pick up out down but I don't really know when or if this will work or if there is another method people can recommend. I'm getting really desperate as she is chronically overtired and I want to try and get her in good self soothing habits as it is killing me to spend up to 2 hours walking around the house with her each night and for each nap!!

 

[Staceylou27]

I understand what you are going through my daughter had colic from a few weeks old, we stopped giving her the drops a few weeks ago when she was around 12 weeks. She refused to take the drops anymore she would spit them out so we followed her cue

This seems to have been going well. We used to have to rock little one to sleep through thr crying and still now on a night after her last feed she can cry and need rocking to sleep. Sometimes she will fall asleep whilst taking her bottle and will not wake during winding.

You will find you lo will start to burp themselves, they are able to sit more upright on their own so can burp easier.

My oh believes we have got into a bad habit of rocking her to sleep, this used to take hours but now it can be as quick as 10 minutes and only sometimes takes longer. He thinks we should leave her to cry and put her in her bed, I don't agree. Babies cry for a reason and I would hate to see her crying because she wants something and not getting it.

The last few nights when my lo wakes for a bottle and bum change she has one feed where she will not go straight back to sleep. Last night she fell asleep whilst taking the bottle and went straight to bed and slept for 4hr. During the 2nd night feed she cried and my oh felt she just wanted a cuddle. I felt it was something more and her teeth were hurting (started teething a few weeks ago!) I gave her a dummy and a cuddle and she fell asleep

It will be hard to change what you have started but I feel that because they're not in pain with the colic they don't need as much comforting, this might be the same did your lo.

What ever you decide to try you will have to both agree and be consistent and patient it will take time. I think weay struggle to move our lo into a cot so will use the method of going in to comfort but not saying anything, putting her back down and leaving the room then repeating.

I hope the colic passes soon and you find something that works for you

 

[clairebear22]

I'm going to be controversial!

My second Son had horrendous colic from birth to 7 weeks. If he was awake, he was screaming, unless he was drinking which he did a lot to ease his pain.

At 9 days old I honestly thought I was going mad and he'd be crying forever until I laid him on his tummy across my lap. He slept soundly for 3 whole silent hours!!! Next nap time I nervously laid him in his Moses basket on his tummy (no blanket or teddies) while he was awake and withing 5 mins he's raised his bum in the air and was snoring and state there for 2 hours, even with my eldest crashing around in the same room! I watched him like a hawk to make sure he could turn his head himself which he did easily.

That was it, since he was 9 days old he has been a tummy sleeper. Even now at almost two he sleeps 100% of the night on his tummy!

He still screamed when awake which was he'll but he got enough sleep durin the day and we all slept well at night

I'm not suggesting you try it, that's entirely up to you of course. I'm just offering you my experience. I hope your LO's colic eases very soon x

 

[Lilac14]

Thanks for the replies. I might just have to try the tummy sleeping. My husband did it once and I freaked out and turned her over but I have heard they get into a deeper sleep that way... But scary though but at this point she is so grumpy from never taking naps I am willing to try it I think

 

[Alipops1986]

It's obviously totally up to you and what you feel comfortable with but I found the following:

1. Definitely second the tummy sleeping when they have bad tummy pains.
2. I also put my LO on his side and then wrapped him up tight in his basket/cot. He found this comforting and recognised it was time for sleep when placed like this after a while.

I think the first place to start might be, continuing to hold her/rock her but when she becomes drowsy looking, putting her down perhaps like either of the options above, then keep your hand on her so she still feels you there. Then slowly lift/move away.

Also, google - wee bee dreaming - it has loads of help with routines and sleep routines, i can't recommend it enough. The sample sleep schedules are brilliant and really do work with helping you realise how long babies can be awake before they become tired etc.

Alipops x

 

[Applecrumble]

Yes when my baby has colic...she can only sleep on her tummy...one thing that helps us is we have a snuzahero, which clips onto her nappy so I feel a tiny bit self assured thatthe alarm would go off should she heaven forbid stop breathing. (It obviously should not be something soley relied upon but we see it as a second line of defence).

I also have spoken to many mums who co sleep and have babies that sleep on tummies, its alot more common than you think.

 

[TTT]

Our four week old will only occasionally sleep on his back in our bed which is a really soft mattress so he doesn't get straightened out like he does in his cot which he will lay in for no more than ten mins ever. We have our own business so were fortunate that my husband has the flexibility to work reduced hours and we take it in turns to sleep so baby either sleeps on his back snuggling up to me with my husband sat up in bed on his laptop watching him, or sleeping on my husbands chest while he sits on his laptop in bed. Or he sleeps on my chest while I watch telly downstairs or read a book. Iy means I have to start my sleeping naps at 4ish when my husband gets in from work and I just have to wake for feeds as he's completely breast fed. Its working for us so far and I am the same as the other poster, I cant bare to see them cry and couldn't ever let him self soothe.