Living with a Colicky Baby



Living with a colicky baby. This is a photo of baby Amanda.

I wouldn’t consider myself an expert on the topic of colic. I would, however, consider myself a veteran on living with a colicky baby. Out of my four kids, all of them came with colic. I tried different things like changing my diet and over the counter remedies, but nothing really helped. All four of my babies were often unhappy when they were awake, and sometimes even when they slept. I’ve looked at other people’s babies that lie with their eyes open, smiling up at the ceiling and I envy them.

The first step we took with Amanda’s colic was to introduce probiotics (good bacteria) into her stomach. She didn’t get better, so I switched from breast milk to soya milk for two days. When that didn’t make a difference, we took her to see the doctor, hoping that prescription drugs would do the trick. The doctor gave her something for her cramps, but the medicine caused her to stop having bowl movements. That was worse, so we had to stop giving it.

Infants are meant to sleep several times in the day, but Amanda went through several months during her infancy where she battled to sleep at all during the day. If she fell asleep for 10 minutes, that was something.

If you have a colicky baby, find someone who can take him/her for an hour or two so that you can have a much needed break. Make sure that someone will love your baby even if he/she cries a lot. And, by all means, try the safe remedies and see the doctor if you feel it’s necessary. Just remember, when you think it will never end, “this too shall pass.”

I couldn’t beat the colic in my babies’ lives; only their growth over time could do that. I don’t miss their colicky days, but I enjoy all of my kids so much that it was worth it.

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