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Angry Baby...

Still free to be meStill free to be me member
in Attachment Parenting

I'm looking for some suggestions in helping to soothe my month old baby...A couple times a day, she will just scream...and scream and scream and scream for two or three hours.  It has been going on for almost two weeks. 

 Related info:  I just finished a round of antibiotics, so it is possible that they have messed with her gut and are causing tummy pain.  Also, she has a terrible sore (long story) on her butt that causes pain every time she pees or poos or has pressure put on it, when someone picks her up or pats her butt.  It also seems that I may have some oversupply or a really strong letdown while BFing. 

So far, I've been trying to nurse her, hold her to my shoulder in the burp position(swaddled and not), make sure her diaper is always very dry, and pace with her.  The most successful tool that I have found has been to wear her in the moby or woven wrap.  I have been wearing her for 4-5 hours a day for the past four days.  Then, she will let out a sharp cry every now and then, but isn't crying non-stop.  When she falls asleep, she does manage to sleep well for a good amount of time, unless I try to put her down. 

Does anyone have any ideas or suggestions for what else I can try?  It is just heartbreaking to hear these angry, angry screams...

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Re: Angry Baby...

  • princessjenneyprincessjenney member
    imageStill free to be me:

    It also seems that I may have some oversupply or a really strong letdown while BFing. 

    I can only really help with this part, I had a really strong let down too. What I did was let her latch and as soon as I felt the let down I'd unlatch her and let my milk come down into a thick nursing pad until it slowed down. Then it was easier for her to handle. HTH

    DD1 - 2010 TTC v2.0
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  • mesmom2011mesmom2011
    If nothing else works, you may consider trying to remove dairy and /or soy from your diet.  My DD has a dairy intollerance and was like a new baby when I discovered that.  She would cry for a couple of hours each evening, spit up after many feedings, was congested, had a diaper rash that wouldn't go away and had green stool.
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  • pinksweetpea2pinksweetpea2 member

    What time of day does this happen?  It could be the evening fussies:

    https://kellymom.com/parenting/parenting-faq/fussy-evening/

     

    I had a wicked forceful letdown  and it was the pits for the first 6 weeks or so (C seemed to anticipate the let down and would scream every time I went to feed her.  It was VERY difficult so I feel for you.  

    It will get better.  C learned to deal with it in her own way (if she took too much of a mouthful, she would just spit it out all over me LOL) and then my supply just seemed to chill a bit.  One thing I found was to offer the breast when she was not overly hungry and in a good and alert mood...sometimes even a 1/2 hour after we had already tried to feed.  

    You will get through this.  My angry newborn is now a VERY happy and smily infant.  Just give it some more time.  

    Also, try giving her a bath during the fussy time...that always worked for both of my girls. :) 


    Lilypie - (ZESJ)Lilypie - (QAi1)

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  • celiabwatsonceliabwatson
    Also, read about the "period of purple crying".
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  • TiffanyBerryTiffanyBerry member

    It sounds like you have a number of things that could be going on here...

    imageStill free to be me:

    Related info:  I just finished a round of antibiotics, so it is possible that they have messed with her gut and are causing tummy pain.

    Are you taking probiotics?  Are you giving her probiotics?  You can, and should, do both, after finishing the antibiotics.  You are right that altered intestinal flora could be contributing to this pain, but you don't have to just wait it out without doing any thing.  You can use capsules or a powder for yourself, and you can either open up a capsule for the powder or use a powder directly for her by putting some on your finger and putting your finger in your mouth.  (I had to do this when DD was around the same age; it's the advice my midwives gave me.)

    Also, she has a terrible sore (long story) on her butt that causes pain every time she pees or poos or has pressure put on it, when someone picks her up or pats her butt. 

    What else is your ped suggesting doing for the sore?  I'd attack it on as many levels as you can, but definitely include some diaper free time (outside if you can, even, sunlight would be great on it, but of course you have to be extremely careful about sunlight and newborns).  You can put receiving blankets or cloth diapers or towels down on the ground or your lap/belly and let her be on those. Also, have you looked into food intolerances (coming through your milk) that could be contributing?  Might be a long shot, but thought I'd mention it. But it seems that you're going to have to get this figured out to help relieve the pain.

    It also seems that I may have some oversupply or a really strong letdown while BFing. 

    I'd definitely work on this, and it may be connected to the sore on her butt.  Oversupply/overactive letdown is often associated with lactose overload, and that makes them uncomfortable!!  Kellymom.com has a lot of good suggestions for dealing with this - block nursing is a big part of it, iirc.  You might also change positions you nurse her - lying down on your back with her on top of you will help, or having her as upright (not sideways) as possible and you leaning BACK in some fashion.

    I would definitely encourage you to work with an LC or at least find a LLL meeting in your area and ask for their advice.  If I had known about this earlier in my daughter's life, I think our first few months would have been far less awful.

    Don't forget to consider reflux as well.  I'm not sure, but I feel like sometimes oversupply and reflux can go together.  Maybe it was just my experience, maybe it was just the lactose overload.  But DD had silent reflux (no spitting, not even a lot of burping, but a lot of painful looking swallows and general crankiness) and treating it (for six months) with zantac really did make a difference.

    The most successful tool that I have found has been to wear her in the moby or woven wrap.  I have been wearing her for 4-5 hours a day for the past four days.  Then, she will let out a sharp cry every now and then, but isn't crying non-stop.  When she falls asleep, she does manage to sleep well for a good amount of time, unless I try to put her down. 

    Does anyone have any ideas or suggestions for what else I can try?  It is just heartbreaking to hear these angry, angry screams...

    Then keep wearing her and keep helping her get that sleep.  Her digestive tract developing is the biggest thing to help you here in this one, and that takes time.

    It's HARD to deal with this.  But know that you are doing what you can, and actively looking for more help.  That's the best anyone could do right now, and that's awesome.  You guys will figure it out, and in the meantime, ask for help whenever you need it and when you can get it.  Sometimes, especially with the cranky babies, mommy needs a break, even if baby cries, so she can maintain some sanity. :)

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  • 00jennifer0000jennifer00 member
    I think Tiffany was spot on above.  I was going to suggest everything she said.  Do you cloth diaper?  If you don't, you might consider cutting up some receiving blankets or getting some flannel and cutting it up and putting it in her diaper to keep soft against her poor sore bum.  Also, I'd get some extra virgin coconut oil (you can find it in the grocery store by the other oils usually, and in the vitamin section, otherwise at a health food store) and put that on her bum.  If her sore is anything yeasty, which it very well could be from the antibiotics you took, the coconut oil will combat that.  Definitely keep wearing her.  I have a Baby Ktan and it is so perfect for extended wear in the early days.  I always hold my babies a lot, but with number four I just took such delight in having her on me all day that I literally wore her all day long until dh got home and wanted to hold her or one of my older kids wanted to hold her for a few minutes.  I held her through naps until about 4mo.  I still managed to get stuff done, and she got the wonderful sleep she needed.
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  • 00jennifer0000jennifer00 member
    You might try some ECing too since having poop on the sore probably hurts.  If she has a usual time of day that she poops, try holding her over the potty or sink at that time for a few minutes.  For mine when they're teeny, I rest their back on my front, and then put a hand under each thigh so I'm holding them in a sitting position.
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  • nosoup4unosoup4u member

    Have she seen a doctor about her sore butt? My younger son had to have an anit-fungal/steroid cream for his diaper rash when he was teeny. I would get that checked out first.

    Some babies are just sad, and have daily sad times. Wearing her seems to work, I'd do that, and/or offer her the boob and see if that helps, too. Hang in there, newborns are exhausting!

    DS1 - Feb 2008

    DS2 - Oct 2010 (my VBAC baby!)

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  • Still free to be meStill free to be me member

    Thanks for all of the great suggestions...I knew this was the right place to ask.

    I have been taking probiotics since I started taking the antibiotics.  However, I have not been giving them to DD. 

    I'm pretty connected with LLL and I have heard all of the words about oversupply, etc. but it is much harder to actually put into practice than I thought it would be.

    She has seen the dr. about the sore on her butt (several times.)  It started as a diaper rash on top of a hemangioma.  The dr. that I saw about the hemangioma said that the rash, which turned into the giant sore, is actually a good thing because it damaged the hemangioma to the point that it shouldn't cause any complications.  He added that even though the sore is painful and really hard to keep clean and dry, it will heal and be fine.  His advice is to simply keep it clean and dry, give it lots of diaper free time and make sure all soap residue gets washed off...

    I'm going to try reading more on Kellymom and look into the period of purple crying.

    I really don't want to do any elimination diet stuff, although I will if it seems like it will help...I am just not very anxious to leap in that direction...

     Thanks again for all of the suggestions...I really appreciate all of the different ideas...

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