Coping with Colic

November 14, 2019
by Aaron Morland

Crying is one of the only ways for babies to communicate they want or need something, or to tell you something is wrong. But what’s a normal amount of crying? When does crying from your baby cross the line of “normal” into “worrisome” or possible colic?

Many parents have some sense of what’s normal based on their baby’s cries … but what if you’ve tried every trick in the book to get your baby to stop crying, but they won’t stop? What’s wrong? What can you do? What’s going to happen?

Is It Colic?

One way you can help to get an idea of what may be happening is to track how long your baby cries for. If your son or daughter is crying for more than 3 hours a day, for 3 days a week, for 3 weeks, it is diagnosed as colic.

Symptoms

It can be tricky for a parent with a baby that has colic because everything seems pretty normal: they may be eating well, latching well, burping well, and gaining weight well. But there are a few more signs that are a red flag for colic.

Sudden fussiness or crying for long hours at a few weeks old to 3 months old
High pitched cry
Crying in the afternoon and evening
Clenched fists and pulling their legs up to their abdomen
While falling asleep, the baby may doze and suddenly wakes to cry
While eating, they may frantically search for the nipple and only to reject once they have latched

Causes

It is difficult to pinpoint the exact cause of colic, as there are several root causes. Here are just a few:

Misalignment. Being born is considered one of the most — if not THE most — physically traumatic event most people go through in their entire life. In many cases, the baby gets misaligned in their spine, which can cause stress on them neurologically.
Over-stimulation. Being new to this world with all the sounds, sights, tastes, and skin sensations can be overwhelming. They sometimes cannot filter out all the stimuli and it becomes too much for them to handle. Try soothing in a dark room with calming music or white noise.
Overeating or eating too quickly. There are times when babies overeat. The typical response is to spit-up and relieve the pressure that’s in their stomach, but for some, they do not spit-up. The pressure causes the baby’s stomach to be tender and even painful for some.
Not burping. When a baby eats, they don’t have the ability to only swallow the milk. Air gets in, and they accidentally swallow air. Again, that can cause pressure in baby’s stomach that can cause discomfort.
Mother’s diet. The food that the mother eats is to some extent passed on to the baby through the breast milk. There may be some foods that the mother is eating that is upsetting the baby.

These are just a few of the root causes practitioners have found to contribute to colic. You can see how difficult working with colic may be. Please do not rule out other serious conditions like GERD, reflux, low weight, allergies, or injuries.

When to seek immediate attention: If your baby is vomiting, has a fever, has a decrease in appetite, is limp or pale, it is not colic. See your doctor as soon as you can.

Possible Treatments

Treatment for colic naturally depends on the cause of colic, so finding the best treatment may take time. Remember, you are not a bad parent because your baby is crying. There is something that is upsetting your baby. Let’s figure out what is upsetting them.

Schedule an appointment with your chiropractor to have your baby adjusted.
Be conscious of and track how much your baby is eating and how well they are burping after feedings.
Go for a car ride with calm music. The vibrations of the car may soothe your baby.
Burp baby more often during feeds. After feeding, try to keep baby upright.
Put light pressure on the baby’s stomach or gently rub your baby’s stomach, in a clockwise direction. (This is the direction the intestines work.)
If breastfeeding, have mom evaluate her diet. A couple of culprits may be spicy foods, gluten, eggs, peanuts, or dairy.