Taylor is such a fun girl. She laughs, she sings, she entertains herself, and she cries--but only occasionally. I get asked a lot, "Wow, what a happy baby! Is she always this good?" Which I get to answer, "Yes!" But, this was not always the case.
Our first days as a family spent in the serene hospital room were so encouraging. Taylor Rose was a beautiful bundle of joy who loved to snuggle. Her sleeping patterns allowed me to catch up on some much-needed rest and her vigorous appetite brought tears to the eyes of the lactation consultant. Roo and I headed home with high hopes and settled in with our newest addition. It seemed we had this parenting thing figured out. In fact, the first few weeks almost seemed a little TOO easy. Should have known better.
At right about the two week mark, Taylor realized she was in the real world and was not at all happy about it. We would have about half an hour of happy baby in the morning, and then like someone flipped the switch, she would cry for almost the entire remainder of the day. We attempted our first restaurant outing for a friend's birthday and we officially became "those parents"--you know the ones with the crying kid who everyone secretly (or not so secretly) wishes would have just stayed at home.
To be fair, it wasn't non-stop crying all day. She was sometimes content as long as you were up and moving, bouncing, and running the vacuum. Our carpet has never been so clean. Consoling Taylor was such a challenge that I often felt guilty leaving her in someone else's care because I felt I understood her best, even though I had no idea what I was doing.
After about 12 weeks, Taylor's crying sessions seemed to diminish from all day to only two or three hours. The good news was she mostly only fussy in the evenings. The bad news, I was now back at work full time and mostly only got to see her in the evenings.
Then one night, when Taylor was about six months old, we took her to her first high school basketball game. It was magical. She contentedly sat still on Roo's lap for the entire game. It was a major turning point in her babyhood. She still had fussy days, but from then on they were outnumbered by happy days.
At the time, I didn't want to label Taylor as a colicky baby, because that meant there was nothing I could do to fix it. Through that entire time, I felt like I was just on the verge of figuring out how to, in the words of my neice, "make her happy, make her happy," and calling it colic felt like giving up.
There is no clear definition of colic and there are countless theories on what causes it. From my research, most people agree that if your baby cries for no apparent reason three or more hours a day, for three or more days a week, for three weeks or more then you are probably dealing with colic, whatever that means. It usually begins around two weeks, peaks at six weeks, and diminishes around 12 weeks but can last until six months or later. Lucky us. All I know is that it can be frustrating, heartbreaking, and exhausting, especially when you see parents with content babies.
There is, however, one huge benefit of colic...it makes those smiles and bouts of baby laughter all the more rewarding. After struggling to console Taylor for hours on end, one little toothless grin would melt my heart and make it all worthwhile. Not to mention, all that carrying and bouncing kept my arms looking super toned.
So yes, I will finally admit that my baby had colic. That doesn't make me a bad mother, but has in fact made Roo and I stronger parents. Colic has taught us lessons in patience, keeping calm and unconditional love. Having survived colic has made us appreciate even more the happy Taylor we have today. Yes, she still fusses occasionally and never hesitates to let us know when she's unhappy, but she is consolable and there are very few issues a Cheerio can't solve.
If you're dealing with colic, I'm sorry to say there is no cure. What soothes Baby one day might make it worse the next. However, speaking from experience, it does get better. One day, hopefully soon, you'll be able to look back with a sigh of relief and think that wasn't so bad. In the meantime, focus on the happy moments, seek advice and tips from parents who have dealt with colic and know that this too shall pass. Keep calm and carry on.
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