Is it normal for babies to become fussier as they get older?

[escher]

My son started life as an extremely calm baby--everyone commented on how he almost never cried, and when he did cry we just had to take care of whatever was bothering him (wet diaper, hunger, whatever) and he would immediately stop crying. He is now 3.5 months old, and over the past couple of months he has become increasingly fussy. He isn't crying for long periods of time (usually no more than a few minutes), but he is crying much more frequently, much more loudly, and it is no longer always easy to figure out why he is crying. On the one hand I assume that he is just getting more opinionated and more aware of the world. But I also worry that maybe something is hurting him or bothering him that I could fix if I could just figure out what it is. He is our first child, so I have no experience with this. Any thoughts on if this is normal or what might be going on? Thanks!

[justrose13]

hey, lady! i feel like it was like this with S... but maybe a little sooner, like around 2 or 2.5 months. things are just now getting a little better. i think the reason for S was what you suggested above. more opinionated. he is a very opinionated boy now. he is just over 10 months and very determined. it took me forever to reconcile how "demanding" he became... it's still exausting to keep him content! he needed "help" to sleep from early on, maybe 6 weeks; he needed "help" playing until just recently, he never liked sitting alone and playing, still needs company most times as he plays but doesn't necessarily want me "involved" in his activity. he needed constant entertainment, still does. he just seems to have this drive thats... idk, ahead of his development, i guess. any time we weren't/aren't meeting his needs for "help" he fusses. it's getting better now that he cruising and crawling because he's more and more able to do things for himself/entertain himself. we are also able to comfortably let him fuss a little to let him figure out how to "entertain himself", most times he will fuss for 30sec or so until he realizes that he doesn't need us to "help" him do whatever it is he's trying to do. i'm just trying to imbrace the determination that seemed to come from the fussy guy he was from 2-7 months old. i think it should translate into a good quality as an adult. i hope.

anyway, i digress. i hope some of my thoughts help you in some way... xo

[artekah]

It may be the beginning of teething!

There is no one "normal" pattern that all babies fit into. But yes, constant change is pretty universally normal. As soon as you get used to the way things are and are feeling comfortable, your child will enter a new phase and everything will change.

[LivingSky]

My DS had pretty much the same pattern. He was a very, very easy baby up until about 12 weeks, then he definitely developed a much more opinionated personality! Actually, I think he really just developed more of a personality, period. The first three months all he wanted/needed was to be held, to nurse, and to be kept clean. After that he started needing and wanting more than just the basics. After talking to some more experienced moms, it does seem that this isn't uncommon.

I did find that the more demanding nature was completely worth it when compared with how much more interactive he became

[CMMMMM]

Our son got fussier because as he got more aware of the world he had more troubles sleeping. When we discovered that a baby that age should not be awake more than 2 hours at a time and needs 14.5 hour of sleep in a 24 hour period we realized that our DS was not sleeping enough. We started doing anything it took to get him enough sleep and we all became a MUCH happier household. For us it was long walks in the Ergo, car rides, or nursing to sleep for naps on my lap. I felt like I spent most of the day trying to get the baby to go to sleep or stay asleep, but when he did get sleep he was SO much less fussy when awake.

[justrose13]

Originally Posted by CMMMMM 

Our son got fussier because as he got more aware of the world he had more troubles sleeping. When we discovered that a baby that age should not be awake more than 2 hours at a time and needs 14.5 hour of sleep in a 24 hour period we realized that our DS was not sleeping enough. We started doing anything it took to get him enough sleep and we all became a MUCH happier household. For us it was long walks in the Ergo, car rides, or nursing to sleep for naps on my lap. I felt like I spent most of the day trying to get the baby to go to sleep or stay asleep, but when he did get sleep he was SO much less fussy when awake.

I forgot the routine! S does soooo much better with a solid routine. he needed to go down no more than 2 hrs after waking, and he didn't show (obvious) signs of being ready nor did he go down easily!

gotta go, baby woke! :/