am i the worst mommy?

finally_mommy2b · January 2010

i haven't felt a single moment of despair or frustration for the past 3 weeks! until last night. LO wanted to "pacify" herself on my nipple (for 2 hours), which felt like her gums were lined with sandpaper and she was grinding down as hard as she could. i bathed her (thinking that would help her sleep), changed her diaper, put a clean sleeper on her, and then began nursing. an hour later she was still latched. i pulled her off to switch and she started screaming! i put her on the other side and she "nursed" for another 45 minutes. she finally came off and then slept for like....2 minutes and started screaming again. by this point my nipples hurt and i realize that there is nothing left in there.

i rocked her, burped her, changed her again, put her in her moby (usually does the trick), put her in her swing, walked around the house, changed her again. NOTHING, she just kept screaming. finally i got sooooo frustrated i felt like i was going to SCREAM and the pain from her sucking made me want to punch something (i am in no way violent, nor have i ever actually punched anything) so i made a decision and i put her in her swing and let her wail. i laid on the couch crying while she cried for the next 45 minutes. then.....silence. i looked over at her and she was snoozing. after 4 hours of screaming she had finally stopped! so i went to sleep. at 8 i woke up and she was still asleep (4 hours later) so i went and picked her up and cuddled with her until she woke up again (an hour later).

i felt so bad this morning, like i was such a bad mommy. she is only 3 weeks, and she is so precious, but i couldn't take it last night. i don't believe you can spoil a newborn, and i don't believe in letting them "cry it out", but that's all that worked last night. usually i can comfort her pretty quickly, and up until this point i was so proud that i was so attuned to her. i guess pride cometh before fall.... Huh?

AMYfromKY · January 2010

No, if you did something to her you'd be the worst mommy. You made a great decision to put her down when you were that upset. Crying will not hurt a baby, but a parent who is too stressed out can.

Have you tried a paci? Babies want to suck and if they don't have a paci they will want to use you as one.

SeaStar430 · January 2010

No you're definitely not! My baby has colic, she screams for hours, and sometimes after awhile I stop actively trying to soothe her out of exhaustion, I'll just hold her while I lay in bed and let her scream. Technically I guess she's crying it out, but I know nothing is going to make it better.

bakermommy10 · January 2010

I would recommend trying a paci as well. They have saved us! Don't feel bad, sometimes there is nothing you can do to soothe them. The first few nights we had Aiden home he screamed bloody murder and I finally just held him while he screamed, frustated and exhausted.

dragonsmercy · January 2010

Don't feel so bad, we've had quite a few nights like that. Usually our problem is gas, though... or she needs a paci. It's gotten to the point where if she's still crying after she's had her bottle, DH helps her fart.. and if she's screaming bloody murder when he does that, then it's not gas, and she wants something else, so in goes the paci... one of the 3 things usually works.

heather_09_15_07 · January 2010

AMYfromKY:

No, if you did something to her you'd be the worst mommy. You made a great decision to put her down when you were that upset. Crying will not hurt a baby, but a parent who is too stressed out can.

Have you tried a paci? Babies want to suck and if they don't have a paci they will want to use you as one.

this

finally_mommy2b · January 2010

oh yeah, i forgot to say that, she refused the paci which usually helps (somewhat violently), refused my finger, and i gave her mylicon about midway through to no avail. it just made me so sad because she was so sad. i even checked her all over to make sure she wasn't being pinched by her onesie or had something wrapped around her fingers or toes.

thanks for the support. she is FINALLY happily sleeping, so i am going to sleep. Smile i'm exhausted Sleep

mommy~to~mj · January 2010

Could it be the three week growth spurt? It may be sending her system a bit out of whack...

alatchaw · January 2010

mommy~to~mj:
Could it be the three week growth spurt? It may be sending her system a bit out of whack...

I was going to say the same thing. Sounds just like my DD yesterday w her 6 week growth spurt at it's prime. Today I can tell she's feeling much better and we are BOTH much happier! Good luck Smile

finally_mommy2b · January 2010

i think so. today she just downed a 5 oz bottle and was asking for more. i'm thinking it's a growth spurt.

Want a personalized experience?

am i the worst mommy?

Re: am i the worst mommy?

Choose Another Board

Search Boards