Re: Big News
D'aww, she's doing good! :D NOW PICS.
- Lord Nick
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Re: Big News
Ugh. Parenting is not always fun. Especially solo parenting.
She was screaming--not crying--screaming, for the better part of 10 hours yesterday. I tried every trick I knew, and even tried making up new ones, and asked for help from others. Nothing was working. She just kept getting more and more upset. I took her for a car ride to see Steff at work, and that sort of calmed her down. When we got home, the screaming commenced once more. I won't lie; I'm no saint or anything. I have a finite amount of patience. And, unfortunately, that patience was worn about 6 hours into this ordeal. Then I became frustrated, which she picked up on, and became frustrated. And thus the vicious cycle began. She is already doing better today, though. She actually slept some last night, which is better than we can say about the night before.
Whoever says that babies sleep for 16 hours per day is a liar. A fucking liar.
And pics will come soon. Got a few on my phone, and mostly hard copies of photos at the moment.
I am!
A man!
Of the Sea!
A man!
Of the Sea!
- Saturnine13
- Master of Unlocking
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Re: Big News
Dealing with a screaming kid is very, very, very hard. I feel your pain dude -- I've spent the last 4 years babysitting my nephew Cameron nearly every day, from the time he was a newborn, and 6 months ago I started looking after the newest addition to the family, my other nephew Nathan. They had colic too.
You're doing okay. The difference between good parents and bad is not how you feel, but how you act -- there is no shame in feeling angry. Colic has nothing to do with your parenting skills, and has everything to do with babies being kind of insane for the first few months of their life.
There are 5 things that usually calm babies down. I bet you tried all of these and more beside, but look at 'em, tick off each one on the list and you will know that you have done absolutely everything you could, and you are therefore not a bad parent.
1) White noise. I have a white noise machine, but you might also use a radio (set to static, volume low), an electric fan, or a washer/dryer. Any noise in general is good, so try singing. It made me feel better to try to drown out the kid with my own voice.
2) Motion. Walking around, swing chairs, vibrating bouncers, rocking chairs. If one type doesn't work, try another.
3) Physical contact. Babies that young crave it almost constantly. If you don't have one of those harnesses/slings that carries the baby on your chest and keeps your hands free, get one.
4) Something in the mouth. Pacifiers are the best fucking thing ever. Seriously. Seriously.
5) Swaddling. Not too tight of course, but it ties in with the physical contact thing. They feel secure when they're swathed cozily in a blanket.
Don't try all of these things one by one -- combine them for the best effect. You know what works well? Aimless car rides. It has the white noise, the physical motion, and the sense of being snug and secure.
If nothing works, take a shower. By yourself. It blocks the noise, relaxes you, and gives you 10 minutes of peace. You are not a bad parent for ignoring your kid for 10 minutes. Please do what you can to take care of yourself.
- Lisette
- Swordaga
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Re: Big News
For white noise - try whitenoisemp3s.com. There's even a tag for "best for colicky babies." My dad suggests putting her in a car seat on top of a running clothes dryer. I wish I could do more to help, but you know, being on the other coast with no parenting experience... Best I can offer is empathy, man. Take care of yourself as well as little Clara.
Got questions, concerns, zombies at your door? Send me a message! I don't bite... unless you're marinated.
- Lord Nick
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Re: Big News
Yeah today has made me feel like an ungrateful ass for even feeling angry with her.
First of all, she smiled at me and I instantly felt bad about being frustrated yesterday. And about 10 minutes ago, we had a pretty sizable earthquake and I was immediately upstairs grabbing Clara up and taking her to a safe place.
Oh, and thanks for the advice, too. Sorry, just kinda shaken up right now. Figuratively and literally.
I am!
A man!
Of the Sea!
A man!
Of the Sea!
- Razorwired
- Dulcimer Hero
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Re: Big News
I'd be careful with the pacifier. Read up on both sides of the argument, know that they're tools for the baby's comfort if she's taking agony to 11, not as a quick fix for annoyed parents, and there are a bunch of extra rules for them if she's breast feeding.
