Witching Hour

My son did the same thing...The only thing that would work for him was to go out side. I would prop him up a little on his "boppy" and he would just love the watch the trees and hear the cars. Good luck. It gets better.

Lani:

I quess I will step up and be the one to say that I don't this this is "normal" or just is. I believe that there is a cause - even H Carp feels that there is a cause. The difficult part is sorting things out to find the cause.

P., RLC, IBCLC
Pres. Lactation Support Group, Inc
www.lactationsupportgroup.com

I had the exact same issue with my daughter at the same age! She did that until she was almost 3 months old. It made my husband sad because she'd start up at like 6p.m. and he'd just be getting home from work so he would only get fussy baby. He began to take it personally! I, like you, tried EVERYTHING to soothe her and I only found one thing that did it. I would sit on one of those big excercise balls, hold her close to me and bounce in front of the tv. It did the job! I don't know if it means anything about being colicky or not. I considered my daugther a "high needs" baby for the first 4 months of her life but now she's two and generally very easy going. After 4 months everything just kind of started regulating itself. Some of my friends make fun of me because I kept a strict routine with her eating and naptimes but I have to say, it worked for us! By 4 months she was sleeping through the night and taking 2 significicant naps a day without any fussing at all. Good luck!

Ah, I remember those times. For us it coincided with the time my husband got home from work - and our daughter was always cranky! He was convinced that it she didn't love him! What I can say worked for me was "correcting" (if you can call it that) her sleep cycle. She was so overtired that she didn't know what to do with herself except cry! I invested the $15 in this book called, Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child by Marc Weissbluth and read only the first couple of chapters. I was hooked! I finally had the answers to my question. Overtired led to "cranky time". I started paying more attention to her sleeping schedules/routines and kept a log of it for at least 2 weeks. I'm so grateful that I did this b/c not only did I not have to deal with the "witching hour" anymore, but I had my loving, fun, beautiful daughter back! She's 3 now and still loves to sleep! Just a suggestion for you - let us know what happens! Take care and good luck!

Hey Lani!
I'm sorry to hear about the craziness-it can be pretty trying. It sounds like colic. I don't know what everyone else thinks colic is, but the definition of colic is a baby just crying for no discernible reason whatsoever for an extended period of time. My son was colicky and the one thing that did work for me (besides co-sleeping) was the white noise theory. For my first son the washer and vacuum worked. My second son took well to the vacuum (he would fall asleep in my arms during) but also liked the disposal. One other tidbit to remember-one of the only ways babies can communicate at this age is to cry. It's their way of talking. Although it's frustrating for us, that was my mantra. I hope the best for you and your baby doll (and your man!). Blessings!

Hi Lani,

We also went through this, and yes, it is colic. I wish I had this technique with my first child, because it really did keep us sane with the second (her witching hours were 10:00PM-12:00AM. I hope this keeps you sane as well:

Check out Harvey Karp's "The Happiest Baby on the Block" (book or DVD). His technique is "the 5 S's"-- Swaddling, holding the infant on his side or stomach, saying "Shhh" LOUDLY in the baby's ear for white noise, swinging (or jiggling) the infant and giving him something to suck on. The SHHHHH in the ear sounds insane, but was the best method to soothe my daughter. You look crazy when you're doing it, but it really does help. I can't stress how loud this SHHHHH is, but you do it really close to the child's ear and really loud. The baby WILL stop crying-- at least for a little while.

I didn't have the DVD, but I think it would probably be really useful to demonstrate the technique for you. When I was introduced to the method, I saw him on a TV interview/video. Like I said, I thought he was crazy, but when I tried it, I ran out and bought the book!

Good luck. You will get through this, and no matter what it may seem like now, your baby will not remember!

Hi Lani,

I just wanted to let you know that what your baby is going through is completely normal. My twin boys did the same thing until they were about two months old. I wish someone had told me sooner that it was normal, because I felt so guilty and helpless until my sons' pediatrician informed me that babies sometimes need to "vent" in the afternoon or early evening. My sons' soon got over it and didn't develop colic. My main advice to you would be to keep in mind that this phase will pass and don't feel guilty if you need to take a time-out; have your husband or another trusted person watch your baby while you take a quick walk, drive, or do anything to recharge. Even a five minute break can work wonders to calm your nerves. Hope this helps!

A.

Oh, does that sound familiar. It's funny because my husband and I also called it the "witching hour". It will be over before you know it and you won't even remember how awful it was. Hang it there.

My son went through what we referred to as a bewitching hour too! He cried inconsolably starting around 11pm and lasted until he wore himself out crying. I forget when it stopped, but we never found a real cause for it. My mother-in-law was convinced it was either gas or colic and insisted we give an infant herbal tea and bathe him in cabbage leaves. Our doctor was no real help either. Hang in there-it is maddening but you can make it!

Hi Lani , my baby had it. Then we found out while I was pregnant during that hours I was eating after my walk so he woke up:) yeap it is strange but it is true. His sugar blood number went up at that time and he wanted to walk. Just take her to walking or take a bath. she will come around.

Not sure if it's a sign of a colicky baby, my two babies were like this and weren't colicky. A sling worked one of my babies, and the other baby loved to be held while I bounced up and down on a resist-a-ball/fit ball and listened to baby lulaby music. hope these tips help and good luck!

Without reading all the postings on your question just wanted to let you know THIS IS SOOOOOOOOOOOOO NORMAL. Many babies go through this and more than not they have a hard time in the evenings when they are so little and have not learned self regulation with sleep cycles. It wears down after several months - just hang in there. We all get through it and still are sane. LOL!

Wow do I remember that. My oldest ( now 5 ) had periods where she was just completely unconsolable. NOTHING made her stop crying. Nothing made me stop crying. But on the bright side, it doesnt last. Hope your baby's colic ends sooner rather than later.

Hi!
My son did the same thing from like 8-10. Luckily I slept through it(so I could do the night feedings) and my husband wasn't as bothered by it. He often let him cry it out in the swing since NOTHING helped. Don't worry it only lasted til he was like 7 weeks old and he started sleeping through the night at that time too! He never had colic!
Good luck and try not to let it get to you--I'm sure I'll need the same advice soon(I'm due in October!)
L.

Yes, I've heard lots of people say this is normal. Just try to keep you sanity until it goes away a few months!

Yep. Sounds about right. My kids went through the same thing. Also, that is part of the time that I knew they were tired. Plus your child is so young, make sure that she sleeps enough. This may just be the way she releases energy. Good luck and congrats on the baby.

My daughter did the same thing ~ and it lasted about 5 months. My doctor also called it the "witching hour." What we found that helped was putting her in her travel swing and turn the music on. This swing saved my sanity! It's by Fisher Price and has little plastic fish that hang down, it plays music and also flashes different colors. Also, sometimes we would put her in the bathroom and run the water. That also seemed to help. Hang in there and know that it doesn't last forever! ;-)

Yes, that sounds right. In fact, I used to get anxious in anticipation of those couple of hours each evening. I agree -- try soothing your daughter in a swing if all else fails (holding, boucing her, etc.). It will pass sooner than you know. It won't always be that way.

My baby is now nearly 4 months old and we went through the SAME thing. Some people will try to tell you that your pediatrician is nuts and that if babies cry they have a reason and are in pain. I can tell you that we investigated EVERYTHING and there was NOTHING wrong with our child - he just liked to cry. Trust me...no one wants to hear their baby cry and cry for hours on end, so of course like a responsible parent we checked everything out. He was colicky for about 3 months and then just like everyone said, one day the crying stopped and turned off like a switch. The key to managing the crying, because we knew it would happen, was to try to anticipate when it would happen and try to avoid it from ever starting.

Two people posted about books - one by Marc Weissbluth and the other by Harvey Karp. Go get them - they were exceptionally helpful in trying to understand my baby's sleep/waking patterns and how to soothe him.

That's pretty much what colic is, just it usually lasts longer than the 3 hours. It usually clears up around 3 months. Not going to lie, it's really really hard to keep your sanity.

One thing that did help my son was white noise. Shower, running water, dryer....we got a white noise machine and he still uses it to this day. Good luck!

Ohhhhh, do I know what you are talking about. It's these times that make you feel like you are going to shoot yourself in the head. I did find the Weissbluth book helpful, as he was also my son's pediatrician, but I still was completely overwhelmed. I did do the shhhh sound in his ear also and it really did work. I know it's hard and the best advice is to take turns and get yourself away from the situation sometimes to keep your sanity. Have someone come and rescue you once in a while during those 3 hours, the baby will be fine and you'll be able to keep some sense of sanity. Good Luck and know that all of us have been there and feel your frustration! K.

Hi,

There are a lot of great responses here already. Yes, our pediatrician also used the same name. We were told it was due to his body managing digestion. He was taking in larger quanitities of breast milk and was experiencing gas. I was also advised to eliminate foods that cause gas from my diet. We used to pump his legs like a bicycle to help relieve some of the pressure. It started when he was 4 weeks old and stopped at eight weeks old.

Hi Lani

Oh How I remember that (my daughter is now 6 1/2 months old). Seems like yesterday (thank god its not!)I thought I was going to go insane! It does get better I promise!
My daughter started at about 4 weeks and last until about 3 months! Every night she would start at 5 or 6 and last until 9 or 10pm!I would go into the laundry room and turn on the dryer and that seemed to work sometimes! I know you got alot of responses I just thought I would let you know it is normal and it does get better! Good luck and hang in there! And congratulations !

our baby did the same. the night she came home from the hospital she was awake until 430 am!! so eveyone said, keep her up as late as possible!!! what a mess, from 5 until 930 I couldnt put her down. so then I realized, she was tired a lot earlier. so we started putting her to bed 30 minutes before she started getting cranky. then we would wake her up 2 hours later, feed her and then wake her up again before we went to bed and feed her again. no more cranky baby and she started sleeping from 6pm to 330am, she would eat then sleep til 800. then around 2 1/2 months she would sleep from 600 pm til 800ish am. she is now 9 months and sleeps from 730 pm til 815ish am!!!!

Like all of the other posters, my daughter did the same thing and like one other mom, my husband only saw her at those times and started to take it personally.

I had a friend that said, at witching hour go and take a walk. The fresh air is nice for everyone and crying sounds less loud outside. That worked for me.

This period didn't last long...althought it felt like it would never end.

You have a lot of great responses so I am just going to say that my son did the same thing and now he's 6 1/2 months and he is a very happy baby. We thought it was gassiness so we'd give him Mylicon drops a couple of times a day. I am not sure if it was that that worked or if he was just growing out of it, but soon after we started it got better. Good luck = and Congratulations!!

My daughter did that until she was about 2 months, then one day she just stopped crying!

Hi Lani,

I have a 10 month old little boy and he was the same way at about the same age as your daugther. Almost every night for about 2 or 3 hours he would cry it was horrible. But it was just a stage and he grew out of it fairly quickly and he's been perfect ever since. He's been sleeping through the night since he was 2 months old so hang in there it does get better and I don't think you have anything to worry about as far as colic goes, I really believe it's just a stage that they go through!!!

Good luck and take care,

N.

My baby did the same thing. She outgrew it and was never really a cranky baby, definitely not colicky. She has always been a really happy kid. I think maybe it is a stage when they are really little-- but this too shall pass (if it doesn't, though, go back to your dr!).
E.

We had the same thing at the same time. From what I experienced and what I hear it will last until about 12 weeks of age and then go away. I would schedule walks and car rides at that time of day. A sling was a life saver too. Slings will calm almost any baby. I got a hotsling http://www.hotslings.com/. I don't think it will get worse so she seems to have a colicky tendency but not full blown colic. I also had my hubby change his hours during this time period to help me out. Do what you need to do to get through it and know it will end!!! Good luck and you are not alone.