How To Cope With A Colicky Baby - Dr. Sarah Allen Counseling

It’s really hard to have a baby that is crying from colic. It can make a mom feel quite helpless, frustrated and overwhelmed, especially when you are tired. The colicky phase does end but while you are in it it can seem to go on forever. In the meantime, here are some great tips to try from the Colic Survival Guide:

Play Ride A Bicycle – yes, you heard me right. Lie your baby on her back and cycle her legs as if she is riding a tiny pretend bicycle. The movement can help gas pass through her system more quickly. Gently massaging your baby’s tummy, around the navel area, can also help relieve gas pains. Lying her across your legs, face down so one thigh gently presses on her tummy and at the same time rub her back soothingly can also be a big help in moving those air bubbles through.

Sit Her Up In A Semi-Upright Position – by holding a baby in a semi-upright position while you feed her reduces the amount of air she swallows and this allows the milk to move through the digestive system more smoothly, with less air bubbles.

Feed More Frequently – don’t wait until she is really hungry as when babies are hungry they eat really quickly and swallow lots of air.

Lastly, look after yourself emotionally. It’s distressing when you can’t seem to soothe your baby. Sometimes when you have tried everything and nothing works try holding her and jiggling around while you’re listening to and singing along to your favorite music. Really, it helps! So does asking for help and passing her to someone else to try for a bit while you give yourself permission to take a little break.

It's hard on you when your baby is colicky. — It’s hard on you when your baby is colicky.

If you want to read more about maternal mental health download the FREE Guide To Pregnancy & Postpartum Stress, Anxiety & Depression. It is full of information about symptoms, different types of maternal mood disorders and advice about what to do to start feeling like yourself again.

Dr. Sarah Allen has 20+ years experience helping women transition to being the mom they want to be. She is also the Director of the Postpartum Depression Alliance of IL, a non-profit offering info and support to pregnant and postpartum moms and their families.

In her Northbrook office, in the North Suburbs of Chicago, or via telephone or online counseling in IL & FL she offers the most convenient way for you to access support and help.

If you have questions after reading this article or the Guide To Pregnancy & Postpartum Stress, Anxiety & Depression or have any questions about how counseling can be useful to your particular circumstances please contact me at 847 791-7722 or on the form below.

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Testimonials

When I had my first baby I had what I now know was postpartum depression but I didn’t get any help. It did go away after about 18mths but it was a miserable way to begin motherhood. When I was pregnant with my second child I started to become depressed again and this time told my OB/GYN how I was feeling and she referred me to Sarah. By starting to deal with how I felt and change the way I was handling the stresses in my life, I was in a much better place when my baby was born. The second time round my PPD was much less severe and didn’t last as long. Sarah was also really helpful in teaching me ways to make the transition of becoming a big sister easier for my oldest one too. My husband came with me for some sessions and that really helped our relationship and we started working on parenting issues together. Sarah’s counsel and support really helped our family transition to the good place we are all in today.

Sara D.

I began seeing Dr. Allen when my first child was around a year old. I had experienced a very traumatic birth, after a difficult pregnancy where I was on bed rest for a good portion of the time. The first year of my son’s life was spent worrying constantly. I also experienced flashbacks to the birth, which was an emergency C-section under general anesthesia. My son was in the NICU for several days following his birth, and I was not given very much information as to why. I remember thinking that he would die, or that something awful was going to happen. I experienced a great deal of anxiety that first year, and I thought that it was due to being a new mom. I wasn’t sleeping, I wasn’t eating as normal, and I remember being worried about leaving the house or taking my baby with me anywhere. I worried constantly about illness, germs, etc. The first day that I saw Dr. Allen, she gave me some questionnaires to fill out before we started talking. Then we sat down and talked about my experiences with my son’s birth and the early days of his life, and the year or so since then. I remember to this day the relief that I felt when she looked at me and said that I had PPD and PTSD, which was a result of the trauma I experienced during and immediately after the birth of my son. She explained how my brain had reacted to the stress of these events, and related it to why I was feeling the way that I felt. It made so much sense. Then, she described ways that I could get over the trauma, work through the feelings, and recover from PTSD and PPD. I felt so empowered, and so happy that the way I felt had a name, and that it was treatable. It also made me feel so validated in the ways that I had felt and reacted following my son’s birth. I wasn’t going crazy. My reaction was normal and natural. And with the help of Dr. Allen, and the type of therapy that she uses, I knew I could recover. It is over five years since that first visit with Dr. Allen, and I still use the tools that she taught me today to deal with stress. I credit her with helping me to become a more empowered, happier person.

Elizabeth

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