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High-Needs Baby: PLEASE HELP (long)



 
 
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  #1  
Old August 12th 03, 05:47 AM
Vijay
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Default High-Needs Baby: PLEASE HELP (long)

I am having a really rough time with my almost 3-month-old daughter
Charlotte. I have read The Fussy Baby Book, and I believe she is what
Dr. Sears calls a high-needs baby. Knowing that makes her a little
easier to deal with, because at least I know it's her personality, not
anything that I am doing wrong. We always respond to her cries right
away. We don't co-sleep but she sleeps in a cradle about 5 feet from
our bed. She was slow to gain weight the first two months, but then I
started supplementing with formula (first milk-based, now soy formula
on my mother's recommendation) and she is gaining about 8-10 ounces a
week now. I have been around babies a lot, (including my siblings who
are 17, 19 and 21 years younger) and I have never known a baby like
her. I have tried to describe her in detail below, in the hopes that
someone can help me.

Charlotte is:

Fussy
Even when she is not hungry, tired, or uncomfortable in any way that I
can tell, she still tends to whimper and cry. I try to make sure she
is well rested and well fed and then I try to play with her and she
usually doesn't enjoy it. It doesn't seem to be gas from what I can
tell and she's not even 3 months yet, so I don't think she could be
teething.

Drowsy but resists sleep
Tends to fall asleep while nursing, but wakes up screaming the minute
the breast is removed from her mouth. If she seems sleepy I try to get
her to settle her down for a nap and she just fusses and tugs at her
ears and hair to stay awake unless I swaddle her. To get her to fall
asleep she needs to be stuffed full of milk, swaddled tightly in a
blanket (or lying down in the sling) and bounced or rocked for 15-30
minutes. Then if I put her down in the cradle she usually wakes up and
I have to start all over again. She'll stay asleep in the sling, but
only if I keep walking or bouncing. The minute I sit down to catch my
breath, she's awake and crying.

Loud
Her cry is not the normal "Hey, I need something," cry. When she cries
you would swear someone was sticking pins in her or that she was
starving to death (even when she's just had 5 ounces of formula and
has only been asleep for 30 minutes). She doesn't whimper and then cry
and then scream if she's not tended to. She starts screaming
immediately.

High-maintenance
She always wants to be held. It is impossible, even when she is
well-fed and well-rested to put her down in a swing or bouncy seat for
more than 5 minutes at a time – if that. If I want to use the
bathroom, sometimes I can just run there and back before she starts
crying. Sometimes I just have to let her cry.

Dramatic
If the breast or bottle comes out of her mouth (through my doing or
her own) she doesn't just whimper or cry that she wants it back, she
screams bloody murder.

Demanding
If she is not being fed, she needs to not only be held, but insists on
being bounced or rocked. She hates being still. It is exhausting
constantly having to pass her back and forth with DH – and even more
exhausting when I am alone with her all day. The only option I have is
to put her in the sling and wear her all day. But I can't pump, or do
dishes or wash baby bottles or my breast pump with her in the sling,
and she only stays content in the sling if I am constantly moving. If
I sit down she wakes up and starts to cry. Plus it is summer time and
we both are dripping with sweat after a few minutes.

Insatiable
She will nurse and then take a supplemental bottle of EBM or formula
(I am having supply issues). She will act totally full. I will burp
her and then offer the bottle again. Sometimes she takes a little
more, sometimes not. She starts acting full, sleepy, and a bit fussy,
so naturally I think, "nap time" but 9 times out of 10 she's up again
in 15-20 minutes acting like it's been hours since she ate.

Unpredictable
Our days are spent in an endless circuit of breast then bottle, burp,
bounce, play (try to), change diaper, attempt a nap, nurse again,
offer bottle, try pacifier, toys, singing, shushing, swaddling, etc.
Some things will work for 5 minutes, some for 10 minutes, some not at
all. I just keep trying things until I figure out what works and then
when it stops working I try something else.

Frustrating
I get so upset sometimes because I can't make her happy and I can't
figure out what she wants. Sometimes it seems like all she wants to do
is cry. Sometimes nothing works. I try everything and then I try again
and nothing works. At those times I just put her down in her cradle
and go in the other room and scream into a pillow.

Sensitive
She loves things that are stimulating: toys, TV, the view out the
window, busy patterned fabric, etc. But after a few minutes of any of
these she becomes so overstimulated that she starts to cry. This is
partly why we spend so much time at home, because we live in NYC and
when we go out she gets so overstimulated and upset by the sounds and
sights of the neighborhood.

Intelligent
She seems very alert when she is having a rare non-fussy moment. She
has excellent hearing and eyesight, and is responsive to different
faces and voices.

Happy (when the stars are in proper alignment)
When she is happy, she has the most amazing smile. She crinkles up her
nose and sticks out her tongue and it is to die for cute.

Strong
She has excellent muscle tone now that she is gaining weight faster.
She is driven to always exercise, whether it's kicking her legs or
trying to stand.

Not Affectionate
When I was pregnant I had visions of snuggling and nursing with my
baby but she is not like that. She isn't a very good nurser, she has a
weak suck, and since we introduced bottles she has gotten even lazier
at breastfeeding. I can't just lay in the bed and snuggle with her
because she needs to always be bouncing or rocking. When she wakes up
crying from a nap it does no good to speak to her in a soothing voice
or hug her or anything. It doesn't comfort her at all. The only thing
that works is the breast, and she doesn't even nurse properly and
usually dozes off after a minute or two. When she first wakes up her
body goes stiff as a board, she screams at the top of her lungs, and
won't make eye contact. I'll put my face up to hers and say, "It's
okay, mama's here, you're okay, I've got you," etc. and she looks to
the left of my face and if I turn her she moves her eyes the other way
to look past my face to the right, but she won't look right at me.

Please help us if you can
I have been managing on 3-5 hours of sleep in each 24-hour period for
3 months now, and I am starting to go crazy. I rarely leave the house
and when I do it is usually a terrible experience. I love her to
pieces and I want to make her happy and I feel like I am failing
miserably at my job of being a mother, a role I have longed for my
whole life (I'm 31). I don't have time to do anything, I even have to
leave her crying just to wash out a bottle for her next feeding
because she won't sleep and she won't be left alone for even 5
minutes. I am worn out. I welcome any suggestions anybody has. I feel
like I've tried everything, but if anyone has had a baby like this and
has some ideas, please let me know. I just hope she doesn't have any
serious psychological or cognitive disorders that would make her act
like this. I had a perfect pregnancy and my whole family (and DH's) is
healthy and mentally stable. I have been telling DH for two months
that things will get better when she gets a little older, but she
doesn't seem to be improving. Please help us.
  #2  
Old August 12th 03, 07:06 AM
Plissken
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Default High-Needs Baby: PLEASE HELP (long)

I don't personally have a high needs baby but know someone who did. This
woman had a very fussy baby and she ended up taking the baby to a
chiropractor and she said it's like having a new baby. I've also read
article about how chiropractors can help colicky babies. It might be worth a
try or at least look into it.

Also, you may want to check out misc.kids.breastfeeding regarding your
supply issues. Just out of curiosity what do you consider a slow weight
gain? How much did she weigh when she was born and how much did she weigh
when you began supplementing and how old was she? Was she having lots of wet
and poopy diapers? Some babies do tend to gain weight slowly and it has
nothing to do with your milk supply. Supplementing your DD with formula is
definitely going to affect your supply.

I hope things get better for you. It must be hard having a fussy baby.

Nadene


  #3  
Old August 12th 03, 08:25 AM
HollyLewis
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Default High-Needs Baby: PLEASE HELP (long)

I am worn out. I welcome any suggestions anybody has. I feel
like I've tried everything, but if anyone has had a baby like this and
has some ideas, please let me know. I just hope she doesn't have any
serious psychological or cognitive disorders that would make her act
like this. I had a perfect pregnancy and my whole family (and DH's) is
healthy and mentally stable. I have been telling DH for two months
that things will get better when she gets a little older, but she
doesn't seem to be improving. Please help us.


I don't have much personal experience -- my baby did refuse to be put down for
3 months, but he was snuggly and not fussy when being held -- but I'm going to
suggest a few things based on friends' experiences.

One, get some help! Hire a local preteen to come bounce your baby for an hour
or two in the afternoon so you can take a nap. Ask your husband to share more
of the load. If you can't afford to hire a cleaner, a nanny, or any other
help, lean on your friends and family as much as you can. And do try
co-sleeping -- it may not work well, but if it does you will get more sleep.
You will feel 100 times better and more able to cope after you've gotten a
little sleep.

Two, see a good lactation consultant. Using formula may be causing or
worsening your baby's fussiness and getting her back to the breast would
probably help both of you a lot. If you post more details about her "slow
weight gain" and feeding pattern at misc.kids.breastfeeding, you will get lots
of help. Many moms there have BTDT. FYI, 8-10 ounces a week is quite high, so
if you're comparing her former weight gain rate to that, it may not have been
as slow as you think.

Three, keep trying different things to alternately soothe and entertain your
baby. I know a few people who swear by the Baby Mozart videos, even if they
had previously banished all TV from their home. :-) Find places you can go
where a fussy baby won't bother anyone (except you), because you have got to be
going stir crazy staring at the four walls of your apartment all day every day,
and try draping a stroller with blankets (to block out 'visual noise') and
walking at a brisk pace when she gets overstimulated.

And finally, give it some more time. You are probably quite right when you
tell your husband that things will just naturally get easier as your baby gets
older. Certainly most babies fuss less and become more able/willing to be put
down at around 12-16 weeks, and sometimes it happens so suddenly parents say it
was like a switch was flipped. So you may see a marked change very soon.

Best wishes
Holly
Mom to Camden, 2.5 yrs
  #5  
Old August 12th 03, 04:56 PM
Vijay
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Posts: n/a
Default High-Needs Baby: PLEASE HELP (long)

Hope wrote in message . ..
On 11 Aug 2003 21:47:13 -0700, (Vijay) wrote:

I am having a really rough time with my almost 3-month-old daughter
Charlotte.


Hi, just wanted to say that it will get better. My little frog was
pretty much as you describe for her first 4 months. I survived by
wearing her in her sling pretty much all the time, letting her sleep
with my nipple in her mouth (in my lap, or in the sling and we do
co-sleep), nursing more or less all the time...at 7.5 months she is a
happy, active almost-crawler who will play on the floor for long
stretches. She just grew into it gradually. Hang in there!!

Hope


Thanks everyone for your responses. I tried to make my original post
as detailed as possible, to save people the trouble of suggesting
things that I've already tried. But of course I didn't want people to
have to read a really REALLY long message. I have seen a lactation
consultant, and for two weeks before that I tried co-sleeping with her
(only works if she sleeps ON my chest, which resulted in a blocked
duct and a really stiff neck).

Her weight gain was slow because she was a drowsy nurser with poor
muscle tone in her mouth. Because she wasn't nursing properly, my
supply went down and her weight gain slowed and we went into a spiral.
She lost weight the first two weeks after birth, going from 7lbs 4oz
to 6lbs 14oz the first week and down to 6lbs 11oz the second week. We
weren't getting a good latch and she kept falling asleep. Finally the
third week we got better at it and she started gaining. By her 4th
week she was back up to 7lbs 6oz. By her 6th week she had only gained
5oz and by her 8th week she had only gained another 2oz.

It was then that I decided to see the lactation consultant because I
was getting tired of my pediatrician's "wait and see" attitude. She
kept saying that Charlotte was "just small" which makes no sense
because I am 5'7" and 185lbs and my husband is 5'10" and 250lbs. She
started out in the 50th percentile and by 6 weeks was down to the 5th
percentile.

During the two weeks that I was doing nothing but sleeping with her on
the couch and letting her nurse as long as she wanted whenever she
wanted, my supply was going down to almost nothing because her suck
was getting weaker and weaker. I didn't realize this was happening. I
thought dedicating myself to nursing her around the clock was the best
thing to do but it didn't work out.

I've been using a rented electric pump to get my supply back up. The
lactation consultant gave me an SNS and had me come to a special
support group for supplementing moms. So we've been on a special
program where I nurse Charlotte first, then use the SNS, and then DH
gives her a bottle sometimes so I can pump. I've been told to aim for
an 8oz gain per week until she gets caught up. She is somewhere around
10.5-11lbs now (haven't had her weighed since a week ago today) at 12
weeks. She would have to go up to 14lbs by 16 weeks to get back into
the 50th percentile.

I will think about the chiropractor idea. Does anyone know how to go
about finding one that knows about infants? I've worked in
chiropractic offices before and I don't think some of the doctors I've
worked for would know what to do with a baby.

She sleeps just fine in the cradle at night (one 3-4 hour nap and then
another 2-3 hours) so I'll try co-sleeping during the day for naps.
Because I only get to spend time with DH at night, I can't always
sleep when she sleeps. Plus she gets REALLY fussy if she doesn't nap
during the day but it's so hard to get her to stay asleep. I'll crank
up the AC and try the sling and co-sleeping. And I'll cling to the
idea that she'll get better over the next month or two.

Thanks again for your helpful responses.

-V.
  #6  
Old August 12th 03, 05:17 PM
~*~ Jess ~*~
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Default High-Needs Baby: PLEASE HELP (long)

I had similar problems with Belle (now 20 months), I had a sudden drop in
milk supply at about 8 weeks old due to health problems on my part and
that's when it started. We had to put Belle on nutramgen (sp?) everything
else gave her horrible gas and intestinal problems. You may want to talk to
your ped about the formula as it could have something to do with all this.
Even a little bit of something that upsets her tummy can cause a world of
problems.

"Vijay" wrote in message
om...
Charlotte is:

Fussy
Even when she is not hungry, tired, or uncomfortable in any way that I
can tell, she still tends to whimper and cry. snip I try to play with

her and she
usually doesn't enjoy it.


** Could be colic, I think I've tried to block out the entire time Belle had
colic but she survived and so did I. You say later on that she's easily
overstimulated, your attempts to play with her may cause more of that. I
would watch it to see if there's a pattern and then adjust how you're
handling it.

Drowsy but resists sleep
Tends to fall asleep while nursing, but wakes up screaming the minute
the breast is removed from her mouth. If she seems sleepy I try to get
her to settle her down for a nap and she just fusses and tugs at her
ears and hair to stay awake unless I swaddle her.


** My first was like this. Co-sleeping did make it easier. Belle needed to
be swaddled until she was nearly 6 months old, but it worked and we all got
some (much needed) sleep.


Loud
Her cry is not the normal "Hey, I need something," cry. When she cries
you would swear someone was sticking pins in her or that she was
starving to death (even when she's just had 5 ounces of formula and
has only been asleep for 30 minutes). She doesn't whimper and then cry
and then scream if she's not tended to. She starts screaming
immediately.


** This could just be her personality, or it could be a sign that there is
something bugging her (tummy) My darling little princess has a scream that
I'm sure has done some sort of perment damage to my ears - she's just that
way.


High-maintenance
She always wants to be held. It is impossible, even when she is
well-fed and well-rested to put her down in a swing or bouncy seat for
more than 5 minutes at a time - if that. If I want to use the
bathroom, sometimes I can just run there and back before she starts
crying. Sometimes I just have to let her cry.


** I think for the first 5 months if my first wasn't in the sling he was
sleeping with me, I had the bouncy seat in the bathroom - if I had to leave
the room he was with me. He grew out of it and I eventually was able to
shower before 11pm.As she gets bigger it will get easier, I know it doesn't
seem that way now but as she figures out what's going on around her she'll
more than likely be more content.


Dramatic
If the breast or bottle comes out of her mouth (through my doing or
her own) she doesn't just whimper or cry that she wants it back, she
screams bloody murder.


** I personally don't see this as dramatic, it's pretty normal baby
behaviour. Then again I live with a full blown drama queen - she'll walk
into something because she's not paying attention and then stand there, hand
on hip and tell it off. :-)

Demanding
If she is not being fed, she needs to not only be held, but insists on
being bounced or rocked. She hates being still. It is exhausting
constantly having to pass her back and forth with DH - and even more
exhausting when I am alone with her all day. The only option I have is
to put her in the sling and wear her all day. But I can't pump, or do
dishes or wash baby bottles or my breast pump with her in the sling,
and she only stays content in the sling if I am constantly moving. If
I sit down she wakes up and starts to cry. Plus it is summer time and
we both are dripping with sweat after a few minutes.


** This is so familiar! We actually got Belle used to the swing a little
after 3 months and once she figured out it was moving she loved it! We had
the Fisher Price cradle swing that could swing side to side, she hated front
to back, but on side to side she'd fall asleep and stay asleep for hours.
She would scream in the car if we had to stop at a light but as soon as we
were moving again, life was good. She's still in a state of constant motion.


Insatiable
She will nurse and then take a supplemental bottle of EBM or formula
(I am having supply issues). She will act totally full. I will burp
her and then offer the bottle again. Sometimes she takes a little
more, sometimes not. She starts acting full, sleepy, and a bit fussy,
so naturally I think, "nap time" but 9 times out of 10 she's up again
in 15-20 minutes acting like it's been hours since she ate.


** Possible growth spurt, growing and changing is a lot of hard work and
requires lots of fuel.

Unpredictable
Our days are spent in an endless circuit of breast then bottle, burp,
bounce, play (try to), change diaper, attempt a nap, nurse again,
offer bottle, try pacifier, toys, singing, shushing, swaddling, etc.
Some things will work for 5 minutes, some for 10 minutes, some not at
all. I just keep trying things until I figure out what works and then
when it stops working I try something else.


** That's life with a baby, it's not predictable.

Not Affectionate
When I was pregnant I had visions of snuggling and nursing with my
baby but she is not like that. She isn't a very good nurser, she has a
weak suck, and since we introduced bottles she has gotten even lazier
at breastfeeding. I can't just lay in the bed and snuggle with her
because she needs to always be bouncing or rocking. When she wakes up
crying from a nap it does no good to speak to her in a soothing voice
or hug her or anything. It doesn't comfort her at all. The only thing
that works is the breast, and she doesn't even nurse properly and
usually dozes off after a minute or two. When she first wakes up her
body goes stiff as a board, she screams at the top of her lungs, and
won't make eye contact. I'll put my face up to hers and say, "It's
okay, mama's here, you're okay, I've got you," etc. and she looks to
the left of my face and if I turn her she moves her eyes the other way
to look past my face to the right, but she won't look right at me.


** She is affectionate though, she wants to be close to you in the sling,
she gets mad when she's not nursing, it's not the vision *you* had of what
it would be like, but that's what it's like with your daughter. At this age
it's not about kind words and soothing touch, that doesn't mean anything to
a three month old, being cuddled up close in a sling can make a world of
difference.

Go back and read what you wrote about her, you gave yourself a lot of the
answers.

It will get easier.

Jess
mommy to:
Boo 11/96 and Belle 12/01


  #7  
Old August 12th 03, 06:43 PM
Plissken
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Posts: n/a
Default High-Needs Baby: PLEASE HELP (long)


"Vijay" wrote in message
om...
Hope wrote in message

. ..
On 11 Aug 2003 21:47:13 -0700, (Vijay) wrote:

I am having a really rough time with my almost 3-month-old daughter
Charlotte.


Hi, just wanted to say that it will get better. My little frog was
pretty much as you describe for her first 4 months. I survived by
wearing her in her sling pretty much all the time, letting her sleep
with my nipple in her mouth (in my lap, or in the sling and we do
co-sleep), nursing more or less all the time...at 7.5 months she is a
happy, active almost-crawler who will play on the floor for long
stretches. She just grew into it gradually. Hang in there!!

Hope


Thanks everyone for your responses. I tried to make my original post
as detailed as possible, to save people the trouble of suggesting
things that I've already tried. But of course I didn't want people to
have to read a really REALLY long message. I have seen a lactation
consultant, and for two weeks before that I tried co-sleeping with her
(only works if she sleeps ON my chest, which resulted in a blocked
duct and a really stiff neck).

Her weight gain was slow because she was a drowsy nurser with poor
muscle tone in her mouth. Because she wasn't nursing properly, my
supply went down and her weight gain slowed and we went into a spiral.
She lost weight the first two weeks after birth, going from 7lbs 4oz
to 6lbs 14oz the first week and down to 6lbs 11oz the second week. We
weren't getting a good latch and she kept falling asleep. Finally the
third week we got better at it and she started gaining. By her 4th
week she was back up to 7lbs 6oz. By her 6th week she had only gained
5oz and by her 8th week she had only gained another 2oz.

It was then that I decided to see the lactation consultant because I
was getting tired of my pediatrician's "wait and see" attitude. She
kept saying that Charlotte was "just small" which makes no sense
because I am 5'7" and 185lbs and my husband is 5'10" and 250lbs. She
started out in the 50th percentile and by 6 weeks was down to the 5th
percentile.

During the two weeks that I was doing nothing but sleeping with her on
the couch and letting her nurse as long as she wanted whenever she
wanted, my supply was going down to almost nothing because her suck
was getting weaker and weaker. I didn't realize this was happening. I
thought dedicating myself to nursing her around the clock was the best
thing to do but it didn't work out.

I've been using a rented electric pump to get my supply back up. The
lactation consultant gave me an SNS and had me come to a special
support group for supplementing moms. So we've been on a special
program where I nurse Charlotte first, then use the SNS, and then DH
gives her a bottle sometimes so I can pump. I've been told to aim for
an 8oz gain per week until she gets caught up. She is somewhere around
10.5-11lbs now (haven't had her weighed since a week ago today) at 12
weeks. She would have to go up to 14lbs by 16 weeks to get back into
the 50th percentile.

I will think about the chiropractor idea. Does anyone know how to go
about finding one that knows about infants? I've worked in
chiropractic offices before and I don't think some of the doctors I've
worked for would know what to do with a baby.

She sleeps just fine in the cradle at night (one 3-4 hour nap and then
another 2-3 hours) so I'll try co-sleeping during the day for naps.
Because I only get to spend time with DH at night, I can't always
sleep when she sleeps. Plus she gets REALLY fussy if she doesn't nap
during the day but it's so hard to get her to stay asleep. I'll crank
up the AC and try the sling and co-sleeping. And I'll cling to the
idea that she'll get better over the next month or two.

Thanks again for your helpful responses.

-V.


Wow! Good for you for sticking with breastfeeding. A lot of women would have
given up totally. Hang in there your baby will more than likely learn to
suck more efficiently. There are other things you can take for supply
(oatmeal, fenugreek, domperidone by prescription) you may want to consider
these as well.

As for the chiropractor idea (I was the one who suggested it) I would just
go to your local yellow pages and call each chiropractor one by one and ask
them if they know how to treat colicky infants.

http://www.chiroweb.com/find/tellmeabout/colic.html

I'm not sure where you live but with the above link you can find
chiropractors in the US, Canada and Australia.

Hope this helps!
Nadene




  #8  
Old August 12th 03, 06:49 PM
H Schinske
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Posts: n/a
Default High-Needs Baby: PLEASE HELP (long)



"Vijay" wrote in message
. com...
I am having a really rough time with my almost 3-month-old daughter
Charlotte. I have read The Fussy Baby Book, and I believe she is what
Dr. Sears calls a high-needs baby. Knowing that makes her a little
easier to deal with, because at least I know it's her personality, not
anything that I am doing wrong.


Yes. If it cheers you up any, it DOESN'T mean that she will be a difficult
person forever. My niece was like this, and we used to joke that she just
didn't like being a baby. She got much better when she was old enough to play
with toys, and better and better as she could crawl and walk. She has remained
very high-energy but became an extremely cheerful kid and a great joy to have
around (still is, now a teenager).

I second the idea of getting someone to help with all the holding, letting you
get a nap. For one thing hearing a baby fuss is MUCH less of a problem for an
outside person who has had a good night's sleep and knows they can give the
baby back after an hour or two. They can handle it very easily for that long
because they don't get all worn down. I did this with my niece many times
(probably not as much as I should have!).

--Helen
  #9  
Old August 12th 03, 07:03 PM
AGreen1209
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Default High-Needs Baby: PLEASE HELP (long)

Both of mine were quite similar until somewhere between 6-12 months of age. It
does get better - hard to imagine now, I know.

Just keep responding to her cries, accept her for who she is (maybe she's just
not a cuddler, one of mine isn't), and repeat over and over "It will get
better".

BTW, you do know you shouldn't switch formulas on your mother's rec, right?
Unless your mom is a pediatrician, that is :-)


Amanda


  #10  
Old August 12th 03, 08:39 PM
Babs
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Default High-Needs Baby: PLEASE HELP (long)

"Vijay" wrote in message
om...
I am having a really rough time with my almost 3-month-old daughter
Charlotte.


snip

First of all: I'm impressed you're still on your feet! The first three
months after DS was born, I was a wreck, and DS was a model baby!

From the things you wrote, I get the feeling that what Charlotte needs to
be calm and relaxed, is a steady rhytm, be it sound (tv, the sound of your
heart when she's sleeping on your chest, the sound of yours and your DH's
breathing at night) or motion (bouncing, rocking).
One of the reasons DS slept so well, was a ticking alarmclock in his room.
When we forgot to wind it in time and it stopped, he would not calm down,
would not go to sleep, wouldn't do anything but cry and fuss.

I was a volunteer with an animal rescue center for a long time, and with
orphaned very young animals the alarmclock was the one thing that always
worked to keep them calm and relaxed. It reminds young, newborn mammals
(dogs, cats, but human babies also) of the sound of their mother's
heartbeat. That's the sound they hear all the time when they are still in
the womb, and while in the womb everything was safe and secure.

Ofcourse there's no guarantee this will help Charlotte to get more relaxed,
but there is no harm in putting a loudly ticking alarmclock near her when
she's supposed to calm down and get to sleep. Just don't make the mistake
DH made once (only once...): he accidentally set the alarm to go off
somewhere around 4 am...... Well... at least we were all awake....

HTH

Babs

--
Got the swing, got the sway, got my straw in lemonade
http://www.babsje.nl


 




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