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Coping with Colic

How to Help Your Baby – and Yourself

By Lisa Hurt Kozarovich

case, the cause was an allergy to proteins in milk – both the initial formula she was on as well as the soy-based formula she was switched to. Finally, after three months, Sydney was put on Alimentum, a hypoallergenic formula. "Two days after that she was a new baby," Goodson says. "I just wished the pediatrician had taken this more seriously from the start and maybe we could have solved the problem a lot earlier."

An immature digestive system was blamed for causing Susan Nielsen's son to have colic from 10 days old until he was 16 weeks old. "He had terrible gas and would burp many times before he calmed down," says Nielsen, a Spokane, Wash. mother of two. "Nothing really worked, but the most soothing thing for him was a ride in the car."

While colic doesn't cause any long-term health problems, there's evidence that it can affect parent-child attachment bonds that can drive a lasting wedge into the relationship, Dr. Lester says. "Colic itself is a short-lived problem, but some aspects of colic make it much more complicated," he says. "It's a problem that pervades the whole family."

Goodson knows just what he's talking about. Built up frustration and anger led to tension in her marriage and problems with her older son, who was upset both with the constant crying and the fact that the family couldn't go on outings because of it.

"I can tell you, as a pediatrician who had a baby with colic, that the sleeplessness and frustration can really get to you," says Dr. McCoy. "I remember one particularly bad night that I was up at midnight crying and fighting with my husband over this. Just remember it's normal to be frustrated and angry. The best thing you can do for you and for the baby is to ask someone to watch the baby and give yourself a break."

But if you feel something more serious might be wrong, trust your instincts, she adds. Red flags that a problem other than colic is to blame are if the baby is not gaining weight, has a fever or is crying for more than three to six hours, Dr. McCoy says.

And remember, the colic will eventually go away and you'll have your bundle of joy back, Nielsen says. "When the colic ended, with textbook abruptiveness, we fell in love with our son all over again."

Want to see more?

• Helping Your Colicky Baby
• Songs to Soothe your Baby
• When to Call the Doctor
• How to Cope with the Stress of New Parenthood
• Talk about it!