Why Babies Need So Much Help In The Evening
Many pregnant women notice that their unborn baby seems most active when they lie down at bedtime. This could be because they have stopped walking around and lulling their baby back to sleep!
It is common for newborn babies to continue this pattern of evening wakefulness during the first few weeks after birth. By about 6 weeks, most babies are learning that the night is for sleeping, and will begin to settle to sleep more quickly after a feed. You can gently help your baby learn the difference between night and day by taking him out in the daylight, especially in the morning, and keeping the lights low at night.
Another reason for babies to be unsettled by the end of the day is that their brains feel like they are on fire! Babies brains are growing amazingly fast they double in size in the first year. Every day, they take on lots of new information and experiences, and by the evening they are so excited by the days learning that it takes them a long time to wind down towards sleep.
In busy households, with other adults and children coming back at the end of the day, some babies may find all the extra activity overwhelming, too. And if its been just you and the baby all day, by the evening you may be feeling frazzled yourself, and in need of nurture and care, just like your baby! Unlike adults, babies cant just switch off and relax they need lots of help from calm, loving adults.
Tips For Keeping Your Cool And Calming Your Baby Down
Remember that your baby has feelings. Babies are emotional beings and experience feelings of happiness, sadness, joy, and anger from the very first moment of life. If, for whatever reason, you are having trouble being responsive to your baby, your child will pick up on those signals. How would you feel if your spouse or parent was unresponsive to your signals or attempts to communicate? Thinking of your baby as an individual with a unique personality may make it easier to interpret and respond to his or her cries.
Choose some techniques for taking a time out. Strategies like counting to ten, going outside, taking deep breaths, putting your baby down and walking around the house for a minute, can all help you maintain a calm frame of mind.
Find a mantra. A mantra is a sound, word, or phrase, often said over and over again, to provide comfort and inspiration. With a crying baby, you may find yourself talking out loud anyway, and a mantra can help provide perspective, comfort, and energy to keep going. Some examples might be: Just breathe,This is hard, but doable, and All will be well.
Baby blues or postpartum depression?
Exhaustion, rapidly shifting hormones, and a challenging child might make you feel frustrated, sad, or even depressed. If you find yourself feeling depressed, worthless, or resentful or indifferent towards your baby, dont try to wait it out. See: Postpartum Depression and the Baby Blues
How Long Does Second Night Syndrome Last
As deep sleep takes over the babys first 24 hours, its thought that the so-called second night syndrome will begin on the second night of the babys life and continue, as our child sleep specialist Lauren Peacock says, the term is pathologising completely normal newborn behaviour.
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She says, Many babies sleep a lot in their first 24 hours, as they recover from the birth experience and slowly adjust to life on the outside. For some, this adjustment period is characterised by crying, wakefulness and extremely frequent feeding, often starting on the second night.
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How Should Babies Sleep
During the first weeks of a baby’s life, some parents choose to room-share. Room-sharing is when you place your baby’s crib, portable crib, play yard, or bassinet in your own bedroom instead of in a separate nursery. This keeps baby nearby and helps with feeding, comforting, and monitoring at night. The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends room-sharing without bed-sharing.
While room-sharing is safe, putting your infant to sleep in bed with you is not.Bed-sharing increases the risk of SIDS and other sleep-related deaths.
Follow these recommendations for a safe sleep environment for your little one:
Soothing Sounds And Serene Atmosphere
Sing your favorite soft song or classic lullaby to soothe your baby and let them know youre there. If youre not much of a singer, try a white noise app for soothing sounds like ocean waves and forest sounds.
This works best in a darker room thats not too hot or cold for baby. If the singing or sounds arent working, try eliminating distractions and comfort baby in a quiet space.
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Know When To Seek Help
If you constantly feel overwhelmed and the feeling doesnt go away, you probably need some outside help. Additionally, if you are feeling like you cant pick up on your babys cues or your baby isnt alert enough to engage in the early milestone behaviors, it is important to seek help as soon as possible. Problems that are identified early can almost always be solved.
What Are The Effects Of Having A High Needs Baby
If your baby is demanding, intense, and has a hard time adapting, you might fear that theyll have problems with behavior later in life.
Theres no way to know with certainty how a babys temperament will affect them later on. Some studies do suggest that excessive fussiness in infancy can be a risk factor for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder .
In one analysis, researchers looked at 22 studies on infant regulatory problems in 1,935 children. The studies investigated specifically the possible long-term effects of sleeping problems, excessive crying, and feeding issues. Based on the results, children with these particular regulatory problems were at greater risk for developing behavioral problems.
Its important to note, though, that this risk was higher in children who had other factors going on within their families or environment.
And, of course, this doesnt mean that your child will develop ADHD. Many parents report that even when a baby is high needs, their little ones temperament improves with age and the difficulties become a distant memory.
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Food Sensitivities And Allergies
Some babies, especially breastfed babies, may be allergic to certain food particles that their mothers are eating.
The Academy of Breastfeeding Medicine notes that the most common offender is cows milk protein in the mothers milk, but even a true allergy is very rare. Only about 0.5 to 1 percent of exclusively breastfed babies are thought to be allergic to cows milk protein.
The other most common culprits, according to the ABM, are egg, corn, and soy, in that order.
If your baby is displaying symptoms of extreme irritability after feedings and has other symptoms, such as bloody stools , you should speak with your healthcare provider about getting them tested for allergies.
Aside from a true allergy, theres also been some evidence that following a low allergen diet while breastfeeding may be beneficial for infants with colic.
Strict elimination diets can have their own risks, so speak with your doctor before significantly changing your diet.
In our situation, I found that dairy, caffeine, and certain seeded fruit exacerbated my daughters crying and spitting up. By eliminating those foods and substances from my diet, I was able to help lessen her discomfort.
If you have a baby with colic, you might want to try anything at all to help ease your babys crying. If youre curious to see if your diet has any effect, you can start by logging your food in a food journal and writing down your babys reactions after each meal.
How To Soothe A Fussy Baby
There are many tricks other than feeding you can try to soothe a fussy baby. Some babies may be soothed by the same method every time. For other babies, what worked yesterday, or even earlier in the same day, may no longer work. Feel free to experiment with these or other ideas:
- Wrap baby in a swaddle to help recreate the experiences from the womb.
- Offer a pacifier.
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How Do You Deal With Colic
Babies who have colic can sometimes respond well to different ways of being held or rocked.
How Can I Calm My Baby
Every baby is different. Over time, you will learn what works best to soothe your baby. Here are some techniques you can try to calm your baby:
Swaddle your baby. Wrapping your baby in a thin blanket may help them feel secure. Your baby’s nurse or doctor can teach you to swaddle if you need help.
Turn on white noise. You can try a white noise machine, a fan, or a recording of a heartbeat. These sounds remind your baby of being in the womb and may calm them down.
Hold your baby in your arms on their left side or stomach. This might help with your baby’s digestion or help their stomach feel better. Remember to put your baby on their back in their crib if they fall asleep.
Put your baby in a sling and walk or rock them. This reminds your baby of being in the womb. It may comfort them.
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Give your baby a pacifier or your finger to suck on. If it’s not time to eat, let your baby suck on your clean finger or a pacifier. Most babies are calmed by sucking.
Don’t overfeed your baby. Try to wait at least 2 to 2.5 hours from the beginning of one feeding to the beginning of the next. Being too full can make your baby uncomfortable.
Check for food sensitivity. If you’re breastfeeding, check with your pediatrician to see whether eliminating milk or caffeine from your diet will make a difference. Some babies show signs of milk protein intolerance that a doctor can identify. If you’re formula feeding, you can also ask your pediatrician about changing your baby’s formula.
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Characteristics Of A High Needs Baby
To be clear, babies are supposed to cry. They cant walk, talk, or feed themselves, so crying is the only way for them to let you know their needs.
But if you have other children or youve been around other babies, you may feel that your baby cries more than normal, and you might even joke that your baby entered the world being difficult.
But fussiness in itself doesnt mean that you have a high needs baby. Compare notes with enough parents and youll find some fascinating stories: Babies who only smile during diaper changes and frown at all other times, babies who cry the moment they see a new face, babies who are grumpy for 7 hours straight thats hours, plural during the so-called witching hour.
But all jokes aside, if your babys temperament is more consistently intense than other babies, you could have a higher maintenance child on your hands.
Your Baby Doesnt Have An Everyday Routine
A regular, consistent routine can make parenting easier. This will help maintain a measure of control and reduce your stress. And many babies benefit from routines as well. But unfortunately, routines dont always work when caring for a high needs baby.
If your baby is unpredictable, getting them to stick with a routine is difficult, if not impossible. They might wake up, nap, and eat at a different time every single day.
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How Can I Relieve My Babys Gas
What are the best remedies for baby gas relief? Burp your baby twice. A lot of newborn discomfort is caused by swallowing air during feedings. Control the air. Feed your baby before meltdowns. Try the colic carry. Offer infant gas drops. Do baby bicycles. Encourage tummy time. Give your baby a rub-down.
Baby Fussy Or Cranky At Night
There are many problems that children face when they are just born or even later than that. It is fun to plan a child but extremely difficult to look after it once it is finally out for good. Children have a whole bunch of problems that very few parents are able to comprehend. When it is time for a newborn to come in your home you could think of a whole lot of new events happening around the place. Sometimes babies are fussy at night. Their crying and yelling could be a result of so many things which few parents comprehend, and many dont.
Common causes of fussy cranky infant
The major reason why babies often fussy or cranky and yell at night is hunger. Yes, it is true that when babies are hungry they just cannot stop yelling and screaming so as to be able to tell their parents that they are hungry. Hence the best thing to boil down to when your baby begins to cry in the middle of the night is that he is hungry.
There could be yet another reason behind the shouting and yelling of your little one in the middle of the night is stomach ache or gas. This is one of the common reasons behind the crying and yelling of little babies. They often feel hungry at odd hours ending up being fed in the bargain falling prey to bad stomach aches. Stomach aches could be extremely tormenting for little ones and parents should keep medicine at home with doctors consultation, those best suits to your child.
Dealing with fussy baby
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Im Worried About Spoiling My Baby
Your baby will not be spoiled if you hold him and nurse him often quite the opposite, in fact. Studies have shown that when babies are held often and responded to quickly, the babies cry less, and the parents learn to read babys cues more quickly. A young childs need for his mother is very intense as intense as his need for food. Know that your child really needs you. It is not about manipulation or something you can fix with the right discipline. Often a baby who is perceived as fussy is simply a baby who needs more contact with mom and is content once his needs are met. See the links below to read more about spoiling.