Baby Colic: Understanding Excessive Crying in Infants

If your baby cries for hours every day and nothing seems to help, you're probably exhausted, stressed, and wondering if something is wrong. You might be dealing with colic.

Colic is one of the most challenging experiences for new parents. The good news is that it's temporary, and it doesn't mean anything is wrong with your baby or your parenting.

Important: Excessive crying can have many causes. Always discuss prolonged crying with your pediatrician to rule out medical conditions. The information below is general guidance only.

What Is Colic?

Colic is defined using the "rule of threes": crying for more than 3 hours a day, more than 3 days a week, for more than 3 weeks, in an otherwise healthy baby.

The crying often happens at predictable times, commonly in the late afternoon or evening. It seems to come out of nowhere, and the baby is difficult or impossible to soothe.

The AAP estimates that colic affects about 1 in 5 babies, usually starting around 2 to 3 weeks of age and improving by 3 to 4 months.

Signs of Colic

Beyond the crying itself, colicky babies often:

Cry at the same time each day. Have a high-pitched, intense cry. Seem to be in pain (though no cause is found). Clench fists and pull legs up. Have a tense, hard belly during crying episodes. Pass gas during or after crying.

Between episodes, colicky babies are typically happy, feeding well, and gaining weight normally.

What Causes Colic?

The honest answer is that nobody knows for certain. Theories include:

Immature digestive system: The gut is still developing, and this may cause discomfort.

Gas or digestive upset: Though cause and effect are unclear, some colicky babies seem gassy.

Overstimulation: Babies take in a lot of sensory information. Some may get overwhelmed.

Developing nervous system: The ability to self-soothe develops over time.

Food sensitivities: In some cases, especially with breastfed babies, maternal diet may play a role.

The lack of a clear cause is frustrating, but it also means colic isn't something you caused or can necessarily fix. It's a phase many babies go through.

Coping Strategies

Different things work for different babies. Here are approaches that help some families:

Motion: Gentle rocking, swinging, or car rides can be soothing.

White noise: A constant sound like a fan, vacuum, or white noise machine sometimes helps.

Swaddling: Being wrapped snugly feels comforting to many babies.

Position changes: Holding baby upright, over your shoulder, or face-down along your forearm.

Pacifier: Sucking is soothing for many babies.

Reduced stimulation: Dim lights, quiet environment, calm voices.

Skin-to-skin: Holding baby against your bare chest.

Movement: Walking, bouncing gently, dancing slowly with baby.

Feeding adjustments: If breastfeeding, some mothers find eliminating certain foods helps (discuss with your doctor). If formula feeding, your pediatrician might suggest trying a different formula.

None of these is guaranteed to work, and what works one day might not work the next. The key is to try different approaches and see what gives even small amounts of relief.

Taking Care of Yourself

This is critical. Caring for a colicky baby is exhausting and emotionally draining. You need breaks.

Take turns: If you have a partner, spell each other. One person takes the crying shift while the other rests in another room.

Accept help: When someone offers help, say yes. Even 30 minutes of relief matters.

Put baby down safely: If you feel overwhelmed, it's okay to place baby safely in their crib and step away for a few minutes to collect yourself. The baby will be fine.

Know it's not your fault: Colic is not caused by anything you did or didn't do. You're not failing.

Watch for signs of depression: The stress of colic can contribute to postpartum depression. Talk to your doctor if you're feeling hopeless, angry, or unable to cope.

When to Call the Doctor

Contact your pediatrician if:

Crying is accompanied by fever, vomiting, diarrhea, or blood in stool. Baby isn't feeding well or isn't gaining weight. Crying suddenly changes in character or intensity. You're concerned for any reason.

Your pediatrician can examine your baby to make sure nothing else is going on and discuss strategies specific to your situation.

Tracking Crying Patterns

When you're in the thick of colic, it can feel like the crying never stops. Tracking actually helps you see patterns and measure duration more objectively.

You might notice that crying starts around 5pm daily, peaks around 7pm, and ends by 9pm. Having concrete data helps you prepare (maybe you and your partner switch off at 6pm every day) and also shows you that there are good hours too.

Tracking also helps you share accurate information with your pediatrician and see improvement over time as colic resolves.

This Will End

The most important thing to know: colic ends. For most babies, it starts improving around 3 months and resolves by 4 months. Some babies take a little longer, but it does get better.

When you're in the middle of it, 4 months feels like forever. But one day, you'll realize the evening crying has faded. Your baby is past this phase.

Hang in there. You're doing hard work, and you're not alone.

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BabyZone helps you track crying episodes and patterns, giving you data to share with your pediatrician and helping you see improvement over time.

This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute medical advice. Always discuss excessive crying with your pediatrician.