Colic Sanity Savers

Tips to Help Keep Your Cool While Coping with a High-needs Baby

By Harmony Cornwell

As a new parent, you've read all the handbooks you aren't fooled, you know your baby is going to cry. But what you didn't count on was how much. And if your baby is considered to be high-needs or has been diagnosed with colic, that little bundle can log a few hours of crying a day.

The Mayo Clinic defines colic as "crying more than three hours a day, three days a week for more than three weeks in an otherwise well-fed, healthy baby." Having a baby cry this much is very stressful and all you want to do is provide the best care possible.

The first step should be to consult with your doctor to rule out any other factors of discomfort, says Renee Tesch, a certified childbirth educator and postpartum doula from Surrey, British Columbia. And then remember that the best care for your baby includes taking care of yourself and taking breaks to refresh and maintain your sanity.

When your baby won't stop crying you may begin to feel like you are not doing the right thing no matter what you do. But sometimes it isn't a matter of what you are doing, just that you are there to comfort your little one.

Jenny Zavala, a mom of two from Roseburg, Ore., says her first son had colic that resulted in him crying most of each day until he was 5 months old. No matter how patient or calm you are, you will need a break from your crying baby (and it is OK to feel that way).

Zavala, her husband and her mother all took turns. "We would hold him and rock him until we reached a point of exhaustion and then hand him off to the next person," she says. During her breaks, Zavala would, "refresh, eat and relax [her] spirit for a little while."

If you are home alone with your baby and you need a break, it is still important to take one. "Swaddle the baby, put the baby in a safe place and take a five-minute break," says Jennifer McArthur, a certified birth and postpartum doula and co-director of the Northwest Association for Postpartum Support. She adds that with some good breathing and relaxing, you will be better able to deal with your baby when you return.

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