3 weeks old and a case of the nighttime fussies

[Eman'smom]

DD is almost 3 weeks old and has been a total dream, until about 3 nights ago, from around 8 to about 11 she has become a nightmare. She nurses crys, screams, nurses, crys, wiggles, screams. She seems totally uncomfortable, but doesn't have many burps and the massaging of her tummy doesn't seem to be doing much.

Ds screamed 24 /7 so I have no idea what to do with her, since it's a nighttime thing and not her personality.

We've tried swaddling, rocking, swinging, she's held all the time, so that isn't it, last night we even broke out an evil pacifer in hopes that it might help, it didn't. What can we do.

[DaryLLL]

Try these links!!

http://www.kellymom.com/babyconcerns/fussybaby.html

http://www.kellymom.com/babyconcerns...nsitivity.html

http://www.kellymom.com/newman/colic...aby_01-03.html

In the 2nd link, Dr Newman suggests cutting out all dairy products for 7-10 days. Actually it can take much longer, up to 4 weeks, to see full improvement, if it is a dairy sensitivity.

If it is something you are eating yourself, look at your multi-viatmin. Some babies are sensitive to additives, preservatives, or artificial iron.

Good luck.

[boobykinmamma]

Our dd, now 7 months, was very much like yours between about a month and 3 months, only a bit earlier in the evening. I would definitely try cutting out the dairy. I actually didn't eat any dairy at that time, so I don't think that was the problem with dd. We finally discovered white noise, and it worked miraculously! Have you tried that? We found that pure static on the radio could calm her down immediately. We still use it in the car. If you can't find static on the radio, you can purchase a tape or cd with white noise--ocean waves, etc. We also have a lullaby tape with a heartbeat, which also helped a lot. I think it's called the Baby Go To Sleep tape, and you can probably find it online.


Good luck!

[Anmarie]

The first 2 weeks of life, babies are able to tune out external stimulus and sleep really well - especially in really noisy environments. By 3 weeks, they are becoming more aware of their surroundings and sensitive to noise/light, and yet they have yet to develop the ability to soothe themselves. Your baby is fussy because he's overwhelmed and unable to calm down on his own. Do whatever works - white noise, keep the room dimly lit, gentle rocking, no sudden movements or lifting him too jarringly. I have found that the more calm baby's environment is, the less fussy they are. Try to emulate the womb - gentle, dark, warm, muted noise, soothing movement, etc.

And 99% of babies are well adjusted to their environment by 12 weeks and the fussiness stops. Hang in there!

[Mavis]

My son was like that and I cut out the dairy and he's been much much better ever since.
When he was fussing like that I used a CD that had lullabies on it and background noise was a heartbeat , we rocked in the rocking chair and it worked as well.

I hope you find something that works for you.
Take care~

[Shannon Poe]

You might try checking out a book called "The Happiest Baby on the Block"

It's about recreating the womb enviroment to calm babies.

It's worth a read!

Shannon, Mom to Seth (6 years), and Millicent 3 weeks