A Father was in court today in our city for killing his crying 3 month old son. Hearing this makes my heart ache. Babies cry. Helping parents, grandparents, boyfriends, everyone understand this and to know what to do can help keep babies safe.
Imagine this… You wake up in the morning alone in a different country. You don’t know where you are, you don’t know how you got there, and you can’t communicate with anyone because they speak a different language. What would you do? How would you feel? Scared, terrified, lonely?
This is what it is like for a newborn. The baby has been in a wonderful warm safe cocoon and then in an instant (or after 27 hours of labor) everything has changed. No wonder babies cry until they turn purple.
So, what can you do?
- Ask yourself; is it time for a feeding? Does the baby need to be burped?
- Check for wet or dirty diaper; tight or twisted clothing
If there seems to be no apparent reason, use these steps to simulate the womb:
3. Wrap the baby very tightly in a small receiving blanket
4. Dim or turn off the lights
5. Rock or sway with the baby in a rhythmic motion
6. Lightly give love pats
7. Sing, hum, softly talk to the baby
8. Make loud swishing noises or use a recording of womb sounds
9. Put the baby in the stroller and go for a walk.
10. Remain calm, understand that it might just be time for the baby to cry for a while. If you get tense, the baby will sense this.
If you have tried all of this and the baby is still crying, and you are okay with that and holding and rocking him will at least make you feel like you are doing something, then hold away! If you feel tense, angry or guilty (I should know what to do! Why won’t he stop crying?) Then put the baby in his or her crib, turn out the light, shut the door and let him cry. Peek at him every 5 to 10 minutes.
Make sure that anyone that you leave the baby with understands what to do when he cries.
Excellent suggestions. My oldest granddaughter sometimes stopped crying when you took some of her clothes off. When she got older, she had that sensitivity to clothing–you know, when kids can’t stand clothing with tags and socks with seams. I think some of the time the clothing was irritating her and some of the time she was too warm.