20.6.09

conclusion: colic

I thought I would post an update on Violet and what has developed over the last few weeks. I have been reading "Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child" while rocking her every night. As she was squirming around and screaming on my shoulder the other day I read a section about colic. I came to a startling discovery, my baby has colic! Ha! This may sound weird but it was such a relief to finally realize that this was and is the problem. It's not necessarily the foods I eat or her medication not working (even though I am not sure she has acid reflux now I am soooooo not ready to take her off the Prevacid. Does that make me a bad mom?) it's just colic. Starting somewhere between 7 and 8 every night she starts to get overly fussy and gassy. She has a really hard time burping bubbles up and we even have to squeeze toots out of her by bringing her knees to her chest. These episodes last, on good nights, until 10 and bad nights all the way to 1:00 am. It's hit or miss and although I have ruled out the possibility of food allergies I do still believe she has food sensitivities. So to answer your question Melissa, yes, Violet hates peanut M&M's and that is why I was up last night until 1:00 am. Yeesh. However, I did have 3 (yep I said 3) slices of pizza on Monday afternoon and she was asleep by 11:00 pm with no unusual spitting up or anything. Yay! I am still too scared to try actual milk or soda or pineapple. I have been able to add flavorful and seasoned foods back in, thank goodness and I am chowing down on spinach salads and fruit all the time.

I know that some moms would have given up nursing by now and believe me I was thiiiiiis close but I am glad I stuck with it. Apparently colicky symptoms happen in breast fed babies and formula fed babies so switching wouldn't have made a difference. Even if this isn't true, I am going to believe it and stick with breast feeding because she is fat and cute and I love nursing her. It's just such a sweet bond for me. I am hoping that she continues to improve over the next few weeks. I guess the majority of babies start to outgrow colic between two to three months. I may end up being the minority and have a 6 month old colicky girl but by that time her serotonin levels should be high enough for her to be able to self sooth and cry herself to sleep. (Read the book if you want to know what I am really talking about.) I am just happy that most of the time I am patient enough with her episodes that I can still overwhelmingly love her while she is screaming in my ear for hours. Let's face it. Having kids is hard. Really freaking hard but when it comes right down to it, it's very worth it.

11 comments:

Heather B said...

I am SO glad to hear that. (Mostly because now you can eat yummy foods again! Whew!) Although colic is freaking hard and the crying is freaking FREAKING hard, once it's over you'll look back and realize it was a realatively short period of time (I know it feels a million years long.) I'm jealous that you get to keep breastfeeding though. I still miss that.

Salime said...

I am so glad you are reading "healthy sleep habits, happy child" it has made this past 2 years easier for me and people truly comment on how happy little jimmy is... all the time. I really believe is because he is always well rested.

Jana said...

Oh man! I can't even imagine how rough that must be!
I think if either of my kids would have had colic, they would be my last!
My friend swears by gripe water for colic babies. I think you get it at health food stores. So you could try that.
Good luck!

{lindy baker cakes} said...

its comforting to know that others are up at 1 am too,

Summer said...

Oh Kat, I'm glad you figured it out....sorry that it's not easily fixed! i'm super glad you found "Healthy Sleep Habits" -- it's my Bible. A GREAT book for Colic is "Happiest Baby on the Block" by Harvey Karp. He has a DVD as well if you don't want to read a whole other book ;P but just a warning, in person he's quite cheesy. Anyway, it's helped out a few moms I know with colicy babes. Hang in there!

Jene and Megan said...

I hear you Kat! Eric had colic and he grew out of it after about 3 1/2 months. You might want to ask your doctor about a probiotic drop called Biogaia. That's what we had Eric on and I saw a major improvement (not cured by any means but improvement). You seem to have such a great attitude about all of this..I was a total wreck!! I'm glad you seem to be fine and sane about it all. =)

KaSs MiLeS said...

story was the same way! at 7pm on the dot she would start to cry until 9 or midnight sometimes. i'm so sorry. at those moments when you just cant take it anymore, just remember its just a phase and it will pass! i had to keep telling myself that so i didn't put her on the front lawn. i never really would put her out there but sometimes i just couldn't take it.

Jeanette said...

About the gripe water stuff that Jana said to try, its all natural- fennel and some other junk. Lucy loved the taste of it and would suck it down; it did help during her super gassy phase. Its not only at health food stores though you can find it at Walgreens, Babies R Us, etc. Lucy was like a little bird trying to gobble it up, tried it with Nola though in her gassy phase and she hated it! That baby gas-x type stuff worked better for rough days since she would actually take that! Hopefully Violet will grow out of it soon like you were saying, it sounds like you could use the rest. Geeze these girls!

Carmen said...

Don't you just wish they could talk and let you know what the problem is?! I mean seriously, we try all these crazy things trying to figure out what's bothering them and who knows if we ever figure it out! Not to freak you out or anything but Jackson screamed like mad for the first 11 months of his life and didn't start sleeping through the night until almost a year. I still love him but I wanted to die on a regular basis :) haha...I still have no idea what his deal was, but he sleeps great now. Hope everything improves, just stick with your instincts and you'll be fine.

Kory said...

Violet, I feel for you on the food allergies. Good luck with that.

Unknown said...

Wow Kat it seems as though we are living the same going in sane life. Brea is on prevacid too for the projectile vomiting and was screaming everynight from about 8.30 to midnight straight. Me and Justin take fifteen minute intervals with her to not completely lose it. I am now not eating anything since saturday (whole grains, milk products, eggs, nuts, strawberries, citrus fruits, chocolate, and tomatoes). It is night and day difference in her so far, but now i am just starving, but it is better than a screaming baby everynight. I am so close to giving up nursing, especially since she was in so much pain all the time with so much gas!!!