We call her Squeaks because she squeaks more than she cries.  So far only two things really make her cry, hunger and gas.  Otherwise she gets fussy, like when fighting sleep.  She crinkles up her face and lets out one or two loud squeaks until she’s comforted in some way.

Most of the time these fussy spells are calmed with various tricks. My husband discovered that she loves bouncing on the exercise ball. We hold her, sit on the ball and bounce.  Within seconds she’s happy again. (I knew that ball that I purchased years ago would be put to good use! haha! I do try to work my core by squeezing my tush, abs and thighs while bouncing.)

Other soothers:
  • Noise
  • Visual stimulation
  • Being held
  • Being talked to
  • Taking a bath (yeah, she’s totally my kid)
  • Sucking her pacifier a.k.a. soothie

This stimulation video by Kaliptus (also found by my husband) has been great.

Newborn Visual/Audio Brain-Centers Stimulator for Baby Phaedra from Kaliptus on Vimeo.

Searching the Internet and talking with other mothers and our pediatrician have been great resources.  One of my favorite websites to search is AskDrSears.com.  Trial and error with all the suggestions we received and with our own ideas are how we are learning how to comfort Squeaks.

Days like today require all the tricks and more to be used.  Squeaks has been having a rough day all due to gas.  Gas and bowel movements are the only causes (so far) where nothing can truly comfort her.  She’s in discomfort until the gas passes and/or she poops. 

She’s finally peacefully sleeping at 4:30 p.m. after waking at 5 a.m. with gas.  I don’t always know the difference between her hunger cry and her gas cry.  This morning I thought it was hunger.  She latched on fiercely and gulped, but then she got angry. 

She shook her head and thrashed her arms around.  She squished and unsquished her body, like an inch worm.  Her eyes went all cross eyed, which totally freaks me out every time she does it!  Then she spit up everything she’d just swallowed.   

The way she behaved this morning isn’t the first time.  She wants to suck so I feed her and it just makes things worse.  After the first couple of times I figured out it wasn’t about eating.  It was about the sucking.  The sucking motion calms her.  I never wanted to use a pacifier but when I realized sucking calmed her to where she could pass the gas or poop, I gave it to her.  (I am glad she doesn’t want her soothie at all times.)

Usually it takes an hour or so to pass the gas and/or poop.  I rub her tummy.  I move her legs in a bicycle motion.  I give her her soothie. 

Today she had an outright upset tummy.  She was  uncomfortable for hours.  Nothing really calmed her.  I walked around with her, laid with her, bounced with her, sang to her, massaged her tummy, moved her legs and gave her a dose of Colic Calm. 

She had to be in my arms at all times.  She wasn’t comfortable in one position for long.  She slept only for short bits of 15 or 20 minutes.  She was hungry but could only take in a little bit at a time and even then she spit most of it up.  

Finally after four nasty diapers she went down for a peaceful nap.  She slept for over an hour.  Then she ate and kept it down.

I’m going over everything I’ve eaten in the last couple of days.  Did I eat something new?  Did I eat something that’s been known to cause gas in babies, like broccoli?  Something I ate and is or was in my breast milk is most likely the cause of her upset tummy.   Nothing is jumping out at me.

Now that she’s better I can eat my first real meal of the day - a bland meal...