My Baby Has Colic, Help Me GoodFather!

Dear Dr.MOZ and GoodFather,

I have one word for you, and that word is “colic”. Our doctor tells us that our baby girl is healthy, and we’ll just have to try and make her as comfortable as possible until she (we) get through it.

Anything you might have in the GoodFather’s bag of tricks would be great.

Mike

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Hello Mike,

That has to be the shortest question that Dr.MOZ and I have ever seen, and understandably so. A colicky baby will cut new parents’ sleep time down from slim to none, and there’s nothing like sleep deprivation to turn you into a big pile of mush. I’ll throw a few ideas your way, but don’t worry if they don’t automatically show signs of working.

Walk: Get the sling or stroller out and walk your way to a happy baby. The new sights and sounds just might distract her long enough for you to regain your will to live. No? Try the next step.

Water: Many babies are soothed by the sound of water, and parents have found that rocking their babies by the running shower or clothes washer can do the trick. You could also take a shower with her. If you do, make sure your water temperature is safe.

Massage: Some dads are shocked to find that all a baby needs to relax is a belly massage. Use a little warm baby lotion and rub in a clockwise motion around her belly button to fight off that renegade air bubble.

You might also consider experimenting with different forms of feeding and/or swaddling her as seen in the past post “GoodFather’s 5 Step Swaddle Recipe“. As your doctor probably told you, no one really understands what causes colic so it can be difficult to treat it. In the off chance the following ideas don’t always work, stay strong. One day soon, the colic days will be behind her…and then she’ll decide to start throwing things.

Your favorite family man,
The GoodFather