The Incurable Colic
If you have more than one child you probably have that one that is just more honery then the rest. Got that spirited little one? Yea, we do too. Out of our four, the youngest was born and shook our whole family up. During pregnancy he was always wigglier than the other one's and super sensitive to touch or noise. One thing was always consistent though; I had to eat at certain times! If more than two hours had gone by and I had not eaten anything, he would start wiggling furiously. We always said he went from 0 to 100 so fast. One minute he would be fine and calm, the next he was mad and unsettled. This made my pregnancy with him extra difficult. Already carrying very low, his furious wiggles were creating the start of premature labor. I was put on bedrest the last month for fear he would wiggle himself right out to early. He ended up coming only a week before he was due.
Unfortunately for us, this sensitive personality did not change when he was born, it got worse. The first two weeks were good. Of course he slept a lot and didn't bother with much else. Then right as that second week was creeping to an end, it started. Colic. It started as him being a little fussier than usual which would result in small crying inconsolable outbursts. He would pull his legs up really tight to his belly, turn bright red and scream. Sometimes there was gas, but not always. Very quickly however, it would grow into what could become very large crying inconsolable outbursts... and it would last for hours! I would nurse since it seemed he either always wanted to eat or would have a horrible stomach ache. He wouldn't take bottles well, he would reject them almost immediately. Nursing was one thing that would calm him. He would never stay asleep if he did nod off for a bit, but he wouldn't scream as much unless I set him down.
I was familiar with it since a good friend of mine had a little boy that had it. I knew it wasn't good, it was hard on them, and a very trying time in their lives. They experienced it with their first baby, here I was with my fourth baby about to break down three weeks after having him. By the time it was full blown it was textbook, it would start between four and six in the evening, and would last the rest of the evening until around ten or eleven at night when he would finally fall asleep exhausted. Sometimes it would start earlier, but mostly stayed to the same schedule. Add the fact that he was extra sensitive and it just made for a cranky baby all day. My poor husband. He was the one caring for the kids during the evening hours. I worked evening shifts serving tables so he was working mornings and afternoons. He got to experience colic first hand. This is a man who had gone from single life and no kids when we met, to four years later with four kids. Two teenagers and two babies. I know life was the most stressful for him during this time. He had no idea what this was, or what was wrong with his newborn son. One of the most painful times as a parent is to watch your child suffer and not be able to do anything about it.
His colic lasted five months before gradually starting to taper off. Very gradually. It was like he would give us an extra day every two weeks. For two weeks we would get two days away from the episodes, then we would get three days for a few weeks until eventually by around eight months it seemed to be done. He does however remain a very tempermental little guy. Screams a little louder than necessary and remains very vocal when he's happy or mad. When he gets upset over something or easily frustrated he will cry (very loudly). We are not sure what or why he is this way, and I continue to believe it is just the way he was made. It has gotten better over time, and as he learns to speak and control his emotions it continues to get better. At two years old now he can speak small sentences, and seems a little less frustrated when trying to communicate things. Hoping he will still continue to even out in temperament over time, this has given us a an opportunity to see that he is truly going to be a sensitive guy probably all of his life.
Unfortunately for us, this sensitive personality did not change when he was born, it got worse. The first two weeks were good. Of course he slept a lot and didn't bother with much else. Then right as that second week was creeping to an end, it started. Colic. It started as him being a little fussier than usual which would result in small crying inconsolable outbursts. He would pull his legs up really tight to his belly, turn bright red and scream. Sometimes there was gas, but not always. Very quickly however, it would grow into what could become very large crying inconsolable outbursts... and it would last for hours! I would nurse since it seemed he either always wanted to eat or would have a horrible stomach ache. He wouldn't take bottles well, he would reject them almost immediately. Nursing was one thing that would calm him. He would never stay asleep if he did nod off for a bit, but he wouldn't scream as much unless I set him down.
I was familiar with it since a good friend of mine had a little boy that had it. I knew it wasn't good, it was hard on them, and a very trying time in their lives. They experienced it with their first baby, here I was with my fourth baby about to break down three weeks after having him. By the time it was full blown it was textbook, it would start between four and six in the evening, and would last the rest of the evening until around ten or eleven at night when he would finally fall asleep exhausted. Sometimes it would start earlier, but mostly stayed to the same schedule. Add the fact that he was extra sensitive and it just made for a cranky baby all day. My poor husband. He was the one caring for the kids during the evening hours. I worked evening shifts serving tables so he was working mornings and afternoons. He got to experience colic first hand. This is a man who had gone from single life and no kids when we met, to four years later with four kids. Two teenagers and two babies. I know life was the most stressful for him during this time. He had no idea what this was, or what was wrong with his newborn son. One of the most painful times as a parent is to watch your child suffer and not be able to do anything about it.
His colic lasted five months before gradually starting to taper off. Very gradually. It was like he would give us an extra day every two weeks. For two weeks we would get two days away from the episodes, then we would get three days for a few weeks until eventually by around eight months it seemed to be done. He does however remain a very tempermental little guy. Screams a little louder than necessary and remains very vocal when he's happy or mad. When he gets upset over something or easily frustrated he will cry (very loudly). We are not sure what or why he is this way, and I continue to believe it is just the way he was made. It has gotten better over time, and as he learns to speak and control his emotions it continues to get better. At two years old now he can speak small sentences, and seems a little less frustrated when trying to communicate things. Hoping he will still continue to even out in temperament over time, this has given us a an opportunity to see that he is truly going to be a sensitive guy probably all of his life.
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