help me please! screaming inconsolably until i put a paci in his mouth

[aisraeltax]

i just do not know what the deal is. for the last 4 nights, Ethan has been screaming bloody murder! i have been giving him Gripe Water every night (sometimes twice...which means the screaming last for more than 4 hours). Last night the GW did nothing....i got out of bed to rock him and play white noise (have a CD player that has that on there) and he's OUT LIKE A LIGHT! get back in bed, he awakes screaming within minutes. repeat that about 5 times and then i am just soooo bonkers i don't know what to do. FINALLY dh wakes up and asks if he can help (won't even comment on that) and asks to hold him. i knew this wouldn't give me much relief so i grabbed a paci out of the basket next to my bed and put it in E's mouth...total silence...FOR THE REST OF THE NIGHT!! What is up with this? Of course i tried nursing him the entire time and he mostly rejected the boob...he slept from around 2:30 until after 6 this morning with the paci. in his mouth. i feel horrible about that but does anyone know WHY that worked???

[mkoontz]

The only thing I know is what I've read in "Happiest baby on the block". It says that babies need to suck and maybe he rejected the breast cause he was actually getting some milk (which he didn't want, only wanted to suck)

Don't know how true this is, but thought I'd throw it in there for comment.

[perditafoster]

i pacis...no guilt either...

[witchbaby]

Originally Posted by mkoontz

The only thing I know is what I've read in "Happiest baby on the block". It says that babies need to suck and maybe he rejected the breast cause he was actually getting some milk (which he didn't want, only wanted to suck)

Don't know how true this is, but thought I'd throw it in there for comment.

that's my boy. i have a crazy oversupply and overactive letdown and he gets PISSED when he wants to comfort nurse and milk comes out. when he wants to just suck, only a paci will do (he refuses a finger). i'm not happy about it, but i'm not going to let him scream because he can't find comfort, ya know?

[aisraeltax]

well, tonight it isnt the paci...nothing is working tonight...just screaming. this is the 5th night in a row or so.

[allnaturalmama]

Awww, Rach, wish I had some advice, but just wanted to give you a

There's nothing worse than an inconsolable screaming baby. I sure hope this phase ends soon, like now!

PS UTN ends today - saw your name on the list.

[anonymous4_20]

I think our sons are about 2 weeks or so apart and Stuart had 6 days of screaming straight just about 2 weeks ago! He's always been a bit colicky, but that was just too much! The pediatrician said that some of this comes from them changing their bowel habits around to once or twice a day. Stuart was fighting it, I guess, and refusing to go at all. The 6 days passed, he was cranky for a day or two, and then he actually settled down a bit. He's still got some colic, but it seems to be getting better now. Maybe better times are ahead!

Good luck to you!

[IncaMama]

yup i agree about why he might want the paci...i say whatever works. no guilt until much later, ok?

and re: the bizarre screaminess...my ped warned me of the same thing, and we did have a bout of her being extremely pissed for most of the day (thankfully she's never really had a bad *night* but her days have really SUCKED many times). it was right around the time that her bowels were sort of changing over and she had much larger/thicker/less frequent stools. it lasted for about 4 or 5 days and then she regulated herself.

now her poops are back to more frequent and runnier, so i hope she's not gonna go through the change-over AGAIN!!!

anyway...right now it's about survival. truly. if he sleeps best with a pacifier, in his swing, with a noise maker on, or whatever...seriously...run with it. he's still so new, he's gonna be messed up for a while. LOL once he's more used to being in the world, managing his own body, etc...you can start to get into the kind of routine you really want to stick.

*hugs* hang in there...

[Taedareth]

Ugh I know what you mean with that "screaming for no reason for hours" thing. Some things that have worked with DS are: putting him on his tummy and rythmically patting his back (he still cries for a few minutes but then falls peacefully asleep), playing classical music CDs, changing his diaper (he likes the changing table), and putting him in his swing (cries for a few minutes and then calms right down). Good luck!