1. YOU! Lots of holding, cuddling, nursing, bouncing, and wearing usually helps soothe any fussy baby.
2. Moby Wrap Original 100% Cotton Solid Baby Carrier, Chocolate
Babywearing for at least 3 hours a day reduces the amount of crying in a baby and is a lifesaver for any mom with a fussy baby. It keeps baby calm while allowing you to get a few things done. The Moby Wrap is my favorite for newborns because it has lower back support, is so snugly, and also very fashionable.
3. Miracle Blanket -Baby Swaddling Blanket -Beige
I wish I had this from day one. No other swaddle blanket really did the trick like the Miracle Blanket. When DD was fussy we would swaddle her and bounce her, swaddle her and do the football hold, etc. I also believe the Miracle Blanket added about 2 hours to her sleep at night (plus the other S's from happiest baby)
4. The Happiest Baby on the Block: The New Way to Calm Crying and Help Your Newborn Baby Sleep Longer
This book was a lifesaver. I was hesitant to read it because I thought it was a "baby trainer" book but it is not at all. The 5 S's suggested in this book and the particular way Harvey Karp teaches you to do them helped us immensely in soothing our baby girl.
5. The Happiest Baby on the Block - The New Way to Calm Crying and Help Your Baby Sleep Longer (DVD)
Loved the book so much that we got the DVD. The DVD also had three tracks at the end that mimic the womb sound to help soothe a fussy baby. There were many days where I would turn them on and turn the volume all the way up while bouncing and wearing baby girl. It is also helpful because Harvey Karp shows you how to do everything on the DVD.
6. The Fussy Baby Book: Parenting Your High-Need Child From Birth to Age Five
LOVE this book. It really helped me to keep proper perspective on my fussy baby. It helped me to continue to strive to be sensitive to her needs instead of resenting her. There are tons of pointers about soothing your fussy baby and a lot of encouraging stories from other moms with fussy babies.
7. DEX Products Sound Sleeper SS-01
We used this noise maker for our baby girl at nighttime all night long for months. We set it to "wind" and also turned on the fan all night. It helped a lot!
8. Cloud b Sleep Sheep - Four Soothing Sounds From Nature
We also used the sleep sheep for soothing her during the day, on car rides, and at night. It has a timer for about 20 minutes so I would set it to "womb" when nursing her for nap-times and bedtimes and also when I laid her down.
9. Graco Pack 'n Play with Newborn Playard Baby Napper-Hamilton
Love this pack n play because of the newborn napper. It keeps them cozy and comfy and also has a vibrator on it. We even took off the vibrator and transferred it to the crib when she started sleeping in there. (we actually just weaned her off of the vibrator a couple of months ago) The vibrator really helped soothe her to sleep and kept her from crying.
I know it seems like we had lots of gadgets but they were so helpful. Most of the time we were wearing her or carrying her, but at nap time and bed time all of these gadgets were so helpful and definite lifesavers!
More tips on soothing your fussy baby:
http://www.askdrsears.com/html/5/T051200.asp
http://www.happiestbaby.com/book-dvd-excerpts/the-happiest-baby-book/
http://www.gentlechristianmothers.com/topics/highneed.php
Please share your own tips on soothing your fussy baby in the blog comment section at Memphis Misfit Mama
When Aaron was a fussy newborn we tried everything and what worked best for us was very similar:
ReplyDelete-He was always tightly swaddled using two large receiving blankets (one in a rectangle holding down his arms and one like a bandana around his body)
-We used the Baby Bjorn non-stop, he prefered it to the sling I had and now we use an Ergo (for convenience since he LOVES being in a baby carrier, he isn't fussy now except for recently since his molars are coing in)
-HAPPIEST BABY ON THE BLOCK!!!!! Luckily our local library had the movie and the book when we needed it. I think the DVD is a perfect quick reference for exhausted parents who are desperate for a solution. Worked like magic and my husband perfected the 5 S's too since we watched the movie together. I read to book when I wasn't so exhausted :)
-WHITE NOISE! Another lifesaver. He still sleeps with a fan on just because there are loud neighbor kids, cars, barking dogs, etc. But when he was a newborn we used a white noise machine, he liked the ocean setting best.
-SWING! Swaddle + Swing + White Noise was also what would calm him quickly. He liked the sound of the vacuum and when nothing else worked we would swaddle him, put him in the swing on high speed and turn the vacuum on. Worked like a charm.
-Bedtime bath w/ lavender scented soap. This became a favorite part of his day and really helped him settle down for the night.
-AngelCare Baby Monitor with Sensor Pad- This didn't necessarily help him be less fussy, but since it monitors the baby's breathing and you can simply look at the monitor to make sure the baby is ok it stopped me from checking on him non-stop at night and during naps which would surely have interrupted his sleep :).
thanks aubrey!
ReplyDeleteI'm a foster parent and my youngest was a very fussy boy, I had no clue what to do for him besides rock him and feed him but I felt so wrong for feeding and rocking all of the time. People always asked if he slept through the night yet, and he didn't. I was so clueless as to how crazy it is to expect that of a brand new baby. I wish I had owned a good wrap or sling, and I wish I had known all of these "ideals" were not rules but mere methods which could be chosen or not.
ReplyDeleteWe're expecting another newborn soon and what a relief it is to know about AP, Dr. Sears, Baby Wearing as a way of life, and demand feeding. I felt so dumb for months when I thought about the nice lady at the post office expressing her shock that my little guy ate every two hours, now I feel informed and I am so excited to learn more!
I found you through the Hippie Housewife, who I found through Pinterest!
Thank you for giving me the confidence to mother in the way I feel is right and loving, without feeling ashamed.