Hi All,
My DD is 4 weeks old with colic. I am after any tips/ideas. But a question that I would really want to put out there is: Would changing to formula make a difference? This was my mother-in-law's advice. I sucessfully BF my first daughter with which we had no problems.

Please help.

personally i wouldnt do formula

check your diet and try and eliminate whats causing colic

also try massaging tummy clockwise everytime she has a feed

or you can get over the counter drops for colic. they do work great until you can figure out whats causing it

gemini

Hi yumimummy
Do you mind if I ask how you came to the idea that your DD has colic? I am still trying to understand this "diagnosis" and would be interested in hearing what it means to you.

I don't think that colic is exclusive to breastfed bubs, so not sure why formula would make a difference, but I'm not sure so will be interested to hear other's opinions.

Just read Gemini's post - so colic is when baby has difficulty with wind? In that case, I would look at my diet first too (DD got terrible cramps when I ate corn!), work hard at getting the wind up after a feed (just keep baby upright and rubbing her back until you hear a good one!), and try the drops if nothing else works. We've used Infants' Friend (available at chemists)a couple of times and it seems to help DD pass the wind more quickly and easily!

I don't think that colic is exclusive to breastfed bubs, so not sure why formula would make a difference, but I'm not sure so will be interested to hear other's opinions.

agree totally! colic can be had by all no matter how they are fed!!!!! try infants friend. At your next MCH and/or GP appt ask about reflux sometimes colic is actually reflux and vice versa!

Colic is a part of life, try to burp more frequently during feeding.

If you are OK with BF, then continue....formula can be expensive (one tin may only last a week!).

Hi,
My DD will begin to cry uncontrollably anytime from midday onwards to late in the evening. You can hear that her cries are ones of pain and that she draws her legs up at the same time. She is very difficult to burp and is very inconsistant with her poos, which she seems to struggle with. She instantly relaxes to a degree after passing wind (top or bottom) and FINALLY pooing. Yes, in general it is difficulty with wind but there is no destinct diagnosis. That is why I asked about formula, to see if others found that it was a cause for their child's colic. My Clinc Nurse was th one who said that it was colic. And after some research my DD fits the description to a T. I understand that at the end of the day is is management that will get us through this stage. At least it is not 24 hours a day and we all get some relief at times.

I hope this helps.

Hi yumimummy
Do you mind if I ask how you came to the idea that your DD has colic? I am still trying to understand this "diagnosis" and would be interested in hearing what it means to you.

I don't think that colic is exclusive to breastfed bubs, so not sure why formula would make a difference, but I'm not sure so will be interested to hear other's opinions.

Just read Gemini's post - so colic is when baby has difficulty with wind? In that case, I would look at my diet first too (DD got terrible cramps when I ate corn!), work hard at getting the wind up after a feed (just keep baby upright and rubbing her back until you hear a good one!), and try the drops if nothing else works. We've used Infants' Friend (available at chemists)a couple of times and it seems to help DD pass the wind more quickly and easily!

Hi again,
Thanks for that. I totally feel for you - it's SO hard listening to your baby cry and SO frustrating not knowing what to do to help!

I'd like to suggest a few things (which may have already been posted by the time I finish!):

1) Have you any concerns about the way your DD feeds? I had lots of problems with BF and went to a community health clinic and met another mum who had no problems BFing her first, but lots of problems with attachment with her second. SO if DD has trouble with attachment, she may be swallowing some air, which leads to the wind and cramps.

2) Definitely burp as much as you can - we didn't realise we had to do this when we BF, only thought you did it when baby was FF (don't ask me why we thought this!) - once we realised though, my goodness - those burps were so loud and long it was like she'd had coca-cola, not milk! We find keeping baby upright as long as possible after a feed helps with the wind coming up, or sometimes even letting them lie down for 30 seconds then sitting them back up, helps the wind come up! It can sometimes take a couple of minutes before all the wind comes up....we've heard burps 10 minutes after a feed!

3) Some people suggest "pumping" or "bicycling" their legs to help with the cramps - didn't help much with our DD as she she hated being on her back - but we sat her up against our chest with her legs bent (as though she was "sitting" on our arms)and rocked - in fact, some nights we fell asleep like this because it was the only way she'd stay settled!

4)Is she more settled when you feed her? Our child health nurse said the sucking starts the peristalsis (which "moves" any wind along to the bottom end)so babies with colic might settle better when they can suck - whether it be a dummy or even your little finger. We tried a dummy with DD as a very last resort but she spat it out anyway (we're anti-dummy so it was a good thing, but when you are at the end of your tether, you'll try anything!).

5)If the colic times seem variable, do have a look at your diet. My mother had me on quite a restricted diet (a cultural thing!) after I gave birth, so it wasn't too hard to work out what foods upset DD. Generally though, it is suggested you minimise chocolate and caffeine intake, and anything that might upset YOUR stomach.

6)As mentioned before, consider Infant's Friend or Infacol - my husband was against introducing any "meds" but after researching Infant's Friend, was happy to give it a try.

7) If you can, go for a walk in the afternoon with DD in a pram or sling - it's a funny thing, but their cries don't sound as loud when you are outdoors! And for some babies, the fresh air and different environment help settle them (or distract them!).

I hope this info helps. Supposedly they grow out of it by 3 months because their digestive systems get better, but that probably seems like a LONG time away.

If you've tried everything you can think of, do consider a second opinion from a professional as it may be something more "clinical" like a lactose intolerance.

Hope THIS has helped!
Good luck with it all and BIG hugs to you and bub! (And don't let your mother-in-law pressure you into doing anything you don't want to do!)

Yummimummy - I feel for you. I went through this with my recent bub who is now 10mths. She cried for 8wks straight midday to evening. I took her to 3 GP's and the last one said it was colic and NOT to switch to formula.
I tried not eating things that make you gassy and caffeine foods. I don't think it worked a great deal as she chucked up all the time but I held her alot and bear with it until she grew out of it. Around the 8wk mark I took her to a chiro who helped in one session and miraculously she was much better with less crying but still chucked up a lot. It's only since she reached 8months that I found she doesn't chuck up anymore.
Good luck hun and trust your instincts. It will be better as bub gets older.

Thank you for you fabulous advice. I will try all of your suggestions, of which there are a lot of sensible options. I was skeptical about switching to formula which now has grown stronger. Also, thank you for your support and kind words, these I really need. Let you know how it goes.