Colic Baby Bootcamp - Parent Survival Tips
Surviving a baby with colic truly deserves an award of some sort. The relentless screaming can really drive you to the edge.
Unfortunately for the parents of a colic baby, most of the focus of surviving is usually geared towards how to relieve the suffering for your baby. But, what about your suffering?
Here are 10 tips on HOW to keep your sanity while enduring a fit of colic.
1. Buy a baby monitor with lights that indicate the level of noise coming from your baby. Take this monitor with you everywhere, put it on mute and get as far away from the screaming as possible. Physically check on your baby every now and then to make sure everything is alright. When the levels on the lights stop dancing, chances are your baby has calmed down.
2. Put on headphones. Listen to music. Keep the above monitor with you to determine when baby has calmed down.
3. Take a shower. The warm water will relax you, and the noise will drown out the ear-piercing crying.
4. Go for a walk. Exercise is great for alleviating tension and the motion might settle the baby down.
5. If possible, find a sitter and leave. Go shopping, run errands, go work out, go for a walk. Get some distance between you and the baby. Don't leave the baby unattended. Make sure you have a sitter first!
6. Call friends or family on the telephone. Don't bottle up your frustration. Let it out. Complain to your hearts content. Your friends and family will understand and you will feel better.
7. Do something therapeutic with your hands. Paint your fingernails, color in a coloring book, do some housework. Anything that diverts your attention away from the crying and towards something constructive.
8. Vacuum. The vacuum cleaner will drown out the screams coming from the baby. Also, the frequency of white noise output by a vacuum is particularly effective in calming a colicky baby.
9. Surf the internet. Look up ways to calm a colic baby!
10. Keep telling yourself the colic will eventually go away. Take it day by day and know there IS a light at the end of the tunnel. Colic does not last forever!
Remember, you are not an incompetent parent if you've done everything possible to relieve your baby's colic and you need to step away from the situation for a while. This simply makes you human.