Baby colic how long

Change your baby's position. Sit your baby up if lying down. Let your baby face forward if you are carrying or holding your baby facing your chest. Babies like to see different views of the world. Give your baby interesting things to look at: different shapes, colors, textures, and sizes.

Talk to your baby. Sing softly to your baby. Rock your baby. Walk your baby. Give your baby a warm bath. Place your baby in an infant swing on a slow setting. Go for a ride in the car. The motion of the car often soothes babies. Try using something in your child's room that makes a soothing sound, such as a fan, a white-noise machine, or a heartbeat CD. The sound of a vacuum or washing machine may also calm a fussy baby. Hold and cuddle your baby.

But they can have problems later in life if they are ignored and their needs are not met as infants. Try using a pacifier. Keep any stimulation to a minimum. What are the complications of colic?

Colic may become a concern because: It is frustrating and stressful for parents Both parents and baby lose sleep A colicky infant may be overfed in an effort to stop the crying.

This might make the colic worse. Living with colicky baby Having a colicky baby can be very stressful for parents. When should I call my child's healthcare provider? Before assuming your child has colic, look for other signs of illness. These may include: Not sucking or drinking a bottle well Drinking less milk than usual Vomiting Having loose stool diarrhea Becoming more irritable when held or touched Having a strange-sounding cry Having a change in breathing rate or using extra effort to breathe Being more sleepy or sluggish than normal Fever of Key points about colic Colic is when a healthy baby cries for a very long time, for no obvious reason.

It affects some babies during the first 3 to 4 months of life. Colic usually begins suddenly, with loud and mostly nonstop crying.

Colicky babies can be very difficult to calm down. Changing how your baby is fed, and using different calming methods, can help to soothe a colicky baby.

Colic goes away on its own, sometimes by age 3 months. The milk at the end of emptying each breast, called the hind milk, is far richer and sometimes more soothing. If your baby still seems uncomfortable or is eating too much, offer only one breast as often as you want, over a 2 to 3 hour period.

This will give your baby more hind milk. Here are techniques you may want to try: Swaddle your baby. Wrap your baby snugly in a blanket. Hold your baby. Holding your baby more may help them be less fussy in the evening.

This will not spoil your baby. Try an infant carrier that you wear on your body to hold your baby close. Gently rock your baby. Rocking calms your baby and can help your baby pass gas. When babies cry, they swallow air. They get more gas and more stomach pain, which causes them to cry more.

Babies get in a cycle that is hard to break. Try an infant swing if your baby is at least 3 weeks old and can hold their head up. Sing to your baby. Hold your baby in an upright position. This helps your baby pass gas and reduces heartburn.

Try placing a warm towel or warm water bottle on the baby's stomach. Lay babies on their stomach when they are awake and give them back rubs. DO NOT let babies sleep on their stomachs. Babies who sleep on their stomachs have a higher risk of sudden infant death syndrome SIDS. Give your baby a pacifier to suck on. Put your baby in a stroller and go for a walk. Put your baby in a car seat and go for a drive. If this works, look for a device that makes a car motion and sound. Episodes of colic usually peak when an infant is about 6 weeks old and decline significantly after 3 to 4 months of age.

While the excessive crying will resolve with time, managing colic adds significant stress to caring for your newborn child. You can take steps that may lessen the severity and duration of colic episodes, alleviate your own stress, and bolster confidence in your parent-child connection. Fussing and crying are normal for infants, especially during the first three months.

And the range for what is normal crying is difficult to pin down. In general, colic is defined as crying for three or more hours a day, three or more days a week, for three or more weeks. Sometimes there is relief in symptoms after the infant passes gas or has a bowel movement. Gas is likely the result of swallowed air during prolonged crying. Excessive, inconsolable crying may be colic or an indication of an illness or condition that causes pain or discomfort.

Schedule an appointment with your child's doctor for a thorough exam if your infant experiences excessive crying or other signs or symptoms of colic. The cause of colic is unknown. It may result from numerous contributing factors. While a number of causes have been explored, it's difficult for researchers to account for all the important features, such as why it usually begins late in the first month of life, how it varies among infants, why it happens at certain times of day and why it resolves on its own in time.

Risk factors for colic are not well-understood. Any difficulties with feeding or spitting up may help you discover if there's a pattern to the crying. Although it's not harmful in itself, colic can still take its toll. For starters, it puts terrible pressure on new parents. Excessive crying is also associated with giving up breastfeeding, overmedication of babies, postpartum depression , and shaken-baby syndrome.

Colic is nerve-racking, but it's helpful to remember that it's also temporary. But colic is not going to tell you which, because it doesn't carry over. To prevent my baby from severe colic, I have successfully used Babies magic tea. I was giving to my infant in bottle and was also drinking it to pass it through my breast milk to my baby. He got soothed from colic within a couple of days.

What is Colic in Babies? Updated January 06, Save Pin FB More. Comments 1. Sort by: Newest. Newest Oldest. Read More. Load More Comments. Close this dialog window Add a comment. Add your comment