We had a long arsenic hour that started from around 3-4pm & lasted until around 7-8pm. In the end, the only thing that worked for that time of day was a sling and patting her bottom. It probably took DD about 10 mins to settle in it, but once she was settled, I could actually do things...like go to the toilet!
DD also had reflux, so both the cot and the pram (we had a bassinet style pram) had the mattress elevated at one end to keep her head above her feet. After feeds, I would read her a story before putting her down.
In the mornings, when she was due for a nap I would pop her in the pram and head for a long walk - to the supermarket, shopping centre, by the creek, wherever - that would last about 2 hours (home with about 1/2 hour until the next feed). The movement kept her sleeping, and sometimes she would stay asleep for an hour once we stopped. This only worked in the mornings, not in the afternoons!
Good Luck! Hope you quickly find a solution that works for your family!
I had one of those too - and it was my second so it was totally unexpected. I feel your pain hun, it is the hardest thing to go through In my case it lasted about 3 months and eventually settled down. The thing that saved my life was a sling. With most babies just wearing them in a sling works, but I found with DS2 that I had to be walking with him in the sling for an hour or more until he eventually fell into a deep sleep. If I stopped walking too early he'd start crying again. It was still tiring but I dread to think what I would have done if I didn't have the sling.
The bath worked for us too - even if was only quiet while he was in it, the peace was so welcome. DS2 got a lot of baths!!
I think the thing is that this is a type of normal - not all babies are like this but some are. They do grow out of it thank goodness. I always suspected there was a food link but as it can take 8 weeks to get all the proteins out of your system it can take too long to find a link. Now DS2 has no allergies or intolerances so I guess it was just a temporary thing - or not related to diet at all I guess is another option.
I would also try some osteo/Chiro or Bowen on bubs as well. He could well have something out of whack from the birth, possibly even a broken/dislocated collar bone. It is certainly worth a shot if things are that bad for you
My little one got multiple baths a day too, cos it worked to settle her. Lots of bouncing, going for walks with her in the baby carrier, hammock, Infants friend... there are lots of suggestions above, you will find what works for you and bub. Sometimes things worked one day, not the next but would work again the day after. It was good to have things to try.
Not all babies do it, but many do. It helped me to think of all the other parents patting their babies and pacing while bub was unsettled. Made me feel less isolated. Secondly it does get better. It was around 10 - 12 weeks for my little one when i really noticed she was so much more settled.
If you are unsure about sleeping with bub at night, maybe try get some sleep during the day. Initially i felt safer if there was only bub and i in the bed cos i didn't have to worry about DH as well.
Hi everyone, thanks everyone for all your advice. Im pretty certain its reflux now (both some visible and some silent), so knowing this I am slowly finding some answers that work for us (sort of).
Im making sure he has a good full feed every 3hrs (both breasts with lots of breaks and burping in between and keeping him upright a lot, even letting him sleep upright on me for half and hour after feeds), and then filling in any other unsettled times where he wants the boob with a dummy in between. Its not ideal as they say to wait 6 weeks to give a dummy until breastfeeding is fully established. He's only 5 weeks, plus we lost the first week in hospital where I barely got any breastfeeding in, but I think all the overfeeding he's trying to do at the boob has just been making it all much worse. Ive also discovered the reflux is a lot worse when I eat some particular foods such as onions.. so its a bland boring diet for me!!
And its back to the osteo next week, am looking forward to that as I definitely saw an improvement after the last treatment.
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In my case it lasted about 3 months and eventually settled down. The thing that saved my life was a sling. With most babies just wearing them in a sling works, but I found with DS2 that I had to be walking with him in the sling for an hour or more until he eventually fell into a deep sleep. If I stopped walking too early he'd start crying again. It was still tiring but I dread to think what I would have done if I didn't have the sling.
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