Unhappy 5Month Old

I think it's a hard phase just before they learn to sit up on their own. It's hard for them to entertain themselves. My 4 month old..almost five is a smiley happy, giggly baby when he is being held. Put him down and he is ornery! He always wants to be held and walked around..played with, talked to. My first was the same. He grew out of it when he could sit up on his own, see the world around him and play. Then it got better with each step..crawling, walking, etc.

At this point these babies can still get overstimulated too. Sometimes they just want to cuddle and walk around and not have toys and noise flying in their face too much. At least that is how my kids were/are.

My four month old is exactly the same way. I see your question was posted a couple of years ago so I was wondering what happened? Was it just a phase? When did your baby become happy? It is so hard to watch my baby being so unhappy. Everyone is impressed at how much he sleeps at night but I would rather lose sleep then have him unhappy most of the time.

A few ideas: Try wearing you baby in a sling or other front carrier, learn some infant massage and do it BEFORE he is fussy, Try nursing him more frequently and holding him upfright after each feeding (it may be a tummy ache that is making him cry), and lastly, try taking him to a chiropractor, I wish that I had when my kids were babies. The Chiropractor I work for has done amazing things for fussy babies who had suffered from birth trauma and just needed to be adjusted to feel better and be happier babies. Good luck, and don't feel like you are causing the fussiness, some babies are just fussier than others, my first was really easy going and my second was really fussy all the time, but she is now 3 and is such a happy child so don't give up hope!

Perhaps he has colic?? But if that is not the case, then he is just a more needy baby. My little one is like that! It makes me sad to see her so upset, but I have learned to deal.
The best solution I found was to hold her all the time. It is called "baby wearing"... I encourage you to look into it.
I just wear her all the time and she is happy and I can get things done around the house now!
She still has grumpy days, but she at least now can find happiness with certain things.
Not all babies are going to be sweet and happy, but that doesn't mean they will grow up to be that way. It just means that for now he needs more than your first child did.
Hang in there and good luck...
Continue to give love and support and this too shall pass :)

Hi T.!

Have you tried wearing your baby? Since he is a little older, I think a Mei Tai baby carrier would be great for you two! The idea is that you wear your baby and your activites keep him engaged and happy- and you get both hands to do what you need to do.
If you would like more infomation, please feel free to contact me. I hope you find what works best for both of you!
H. Gaitten
www.naturalchoices4baby.com
____@____.com

Hi. Try putting him on a schedule. I have my baby on a three hour schedule where I feed her, we play awhile and then she naps. I just watch the clock and I've been doing it since she was a few months old. She has done so well since I started. She's happy, she sleeps through the night, and she plays very well, with or without me. I really think it would work wonders.

I wish I knew my son was low tolerance. this is not allergic as all those tests are negative. but he can not tolerate dairy, soy, corn and most other chemicals. If formula, look for corn syrup in to and soy. If nursing, try to take dairy and so completely out of your diet. If I had only know what I was eating was probably making mine uncomfortable! Just try a simple diet of rice, steamed meat, and a couple cooked veggies and pears. see if he semes better after two weeks. then introduce stuff.

I wouldn't worry too much. Some babies are naturally happy and easy, and others are more difficult. My youngest was never happy unless he was held until he figured out the moving around thing, especially walking. He was still extra demanding and whiney as a toddler. We mostly indulged him, especially with 2 older siblings and we were out of energy to fight. Now he's 5 years old, happy and well adjusted, loves school and gets along well with others.

If you're concerned, it wouldn't hurt to talk to you doc and the 6 month checkup and rule out tummy troubles or other latent issues that could be causing discomfort. But it's probably just his temperament.

I agree with maybe he is colicky. Try mylicon after every feeding. Make sure he is sitting upright maybe in a swing. He could also have reflux which can feel burning when they lay down. Make sure he is well fed but try mylicon, rub his belly when he is fussy too, or see if a rocking motion helps him like a swing or just you rocking him.
At 5 mos he won't entertain himself, he will expect someone to talk to him, hold him or entertain him! :) I got my daughter this really cute soft mirror that was fairly big and hung it up in her playpen. It was around 5 mos of age, she LOVED laying there cooing to herself, making funny faces and seeing her own reflection. It literally entertained her for along time. Try to find toys that make noise, move or something to keep him stimulated when you are not able to hold him or play with him. Make sure he is well burped too as gas can build up and cause discomfort.

I don't agree to assume it is food allergies right away, some babies have different temperments. Like the other poster said, my first was a breeze, laid back, entertained herself and just was a very happy baby. My son until he was 6 or 7 mos and able to sit up and play well, was very fussy, needed a lot of TLC and was a different baby all together! Don't assume it is food or anything like that as we all rush to make that assumption. I think some babies are just different then others. You can rule the food thing out as you go more down the road if it doesn't change. Hang in there

Good luck.

Five months is still really tiny, and he maybe he just needs his mommy. Try putting him in a good sling and carry him around with you as you go about your regular business.

I did that with my high-maintenance baby, and she loved it. Even now, at 18 months, she always gets so happy when she sees me pull out the sling.

My DS1 was very high-needs (not colicky) and wanted to be held & entertained all the time. He was pretty happy, though, as long as he was being attended to.

Some things I tried, that worked to at least some degree:
baby wearing
baby massage
Itsy Bitsy Yoga (your library might have videos...this is awesome stuff!)
bouncing on the yoga ball
Bumbo seat
frequent outings (playgroup, Children's Museum, etc...your little one might be bored)

Of course, it could also be his natural temperament, autism or a sensory integration disorder (both of those would probably be much easier to deal with if you have an early diagnosis) or food allergies/sensitivities. Both of my boys have food allergies...I didn't learn about DS1's 'til he was almost 3. With DS2, he showed signs of tummy upset right away and was fussy & cried a lot if I ate any dairy.

Best of luck. I hope you find your solution soon!

My second child was that way and since I was nursing I changed my diet. No dairy and no tomatoes (as tomatoes are very acidic). It was really hard for me to do this but the bright side was that I lost alot of weight. lol. This made a huge difference for my baby. At 5 months old, you can start introducing rice cereal which may help or if not nursing maybe change your formula.

Good luck.

Wow! T.,
I just asked my husband what word he would use to describe our second child. He just frowned and said wow! I don't know stubborn or bull headed. We both agreed she was hard and she wanted her way. She was not happy and I remember when she was as young as your son she would be in her swing and I would want to pick her up to feed her or play or anything and she would cry until I put her back in her swing and left her alone. I would feel her arms and legs to see if maybe soemthing was broken and causing her pain. We were very young and inexperienced so we just excepted her as she was. Our first child was so sweet, she seemed to love me, she loved to be touched and cooed over. Her eyes lit up just because I walked into the room. I would tell her no-no and she would never touch it again. But, the second child was the spawn of hell! If we told her no-no she would scream like we had taken a two by four and hit her with it. Strangers would try to tickle her little shoulder, you know how you will do with a baby. Just to get a little shy giggle or a shy tuck of the head. Well, not her! She would look them straight in the eye and glare at them for assuming they could touch her. And T. she was young and it was not in a time like today where strangers were not supposed to talk to or touch kids. Any way this went on until she was 5 years old. All of a sudden she just decided life and the people in it were okay. She hugged and kissed me she liked being near me. Looking back if I knew then what I know now I guess we would have her tested for autism or milk allergies. I would look to see if there is somthing in your babies life that could cause him to be so serious. But in truth with my daughter, she was just a hard headed kid who was very serious and determined. I would say she is the same way as an adult. And of course I am her mother so I might be predjudice but, she is a treasured friend to me and a wonderful woman and daughter. She is successful as a wife and mother. She is a success at the job and a valued employee. She is just different, I tease her that if someone got in her face today she would probably still bite them. I don't know but maybe your son is just like that.... just different? They don't march to the same drummer as everyone else. If I had, had her first I would never have had another baby. Of course I am so happy now, that we have all three. There was nothing our third child could do to upset me after three years of living with the second. I would just shake my head and say, Oh honey I am sorry your sister has already tried that and there is nothing you can do to upset me.
Good luck with your baby. Try enjoying the fact that he is so different??? K. K.