Here we are, 5 weeks :) This week has been the most challenging yet. Tuesday I started to come to grips with the fact that I wasn't feeling well...and needed to do something about it. My incision from my c-section had been really sore, swollen and red for days...and though I know what that means, but being the bad patient I am (I think most nurses are the worst patients) I ignored it for several days. By Tuesday there was no ignoring it. I went to my OB who gave me a "tsk, tsk" for ignoring it and to my dismay he had to reopen a portion of my incision to allow it do drain. He also gave me antibiotics and instructed me to clean it and irrigate it 4 times a day to which I responded: "you know I have a newborn right!?" Just brushing my teeth once a day has been a challenge. He reminded me that I can't take care of Miya if I am not healthy, which finally made sense to me. Thankfully the incision is looking better and I am pretty sure the infection is pretty much gone. I will go back this week to follow up.
This week Miya has also entered a very very fussy phase. It started off with a few days where she just wouldn't nap and would want to eat pretty much every hour, which would then follow with hours of crying on and off. She also was waking up every hour or two at night. She had her one month appointment on Wednesday and he thought her reflux might be worsening and because she has gained so much weight the zantac might not be helping. So he increased her dose. I hoped to see immediate results...but didn't. By Saturday the fussiness seemed to be consolidated a little...meaning she would be ok most of the day, but by the evening it was like a timer went off and the screaming began. She started crying around 7 and went until about 11, pretty much non-stop. It was gut wrenching for me. I kept thinking something must be wrong! So both Lew and I would try everything we knew to calm her, all to no avail. Thankfully Sunday she was a happy girl once the morning passed we hoped maybe Saturday night was just a bump in the road and Sunday night we would have our happy-go-lucky baby girl back. But again just like a timer went off she began to cry this time lasting from 9 until 2 am. This time we both realized there was nothing wrong (at least that we could pin point). We tried everything we could and all we could do was cuddle her and love her while she cried. She would stop for a few minutes and fall asleep...only to resume her crying moments later. She woke up this morning as mellow and calm as can be! She is sleeping peacefully right now, which makes me thankful to know she is at least doing ok part of the day. I talked to her pediatrician today who confirmed what we were thinking: colic. Thankfully colic (if that is what it is) is very normal in this age, and will pass in time. The frustrating thing is that there isn't a lot that we can do. We are still trying different things to sooth her and comfort her, but really time is the key. I would love any tips from Moms out there who have dealt with colic. We are going to try giving her baths every night now to give her a little bit of bedtime routine. We also have had to have her sleep in our bed because that is the only place she really will sleep at night. The pediatrician actually recommended us doing that for now just to help comfort her and allow all of us to get a little more sleep. But among all those things nothing has driven me more to my knees. We have found ourselves praying like never before! Crying out for strength to patiently endure the crying and sleeplessness, as well as peace in the midst of her fussing. I am SO thankfully for the peaceful parts of the day when she is happy and content. One thing that has saved us this week is music. Many times I will just put on some music and dance around with her, sometimes that will calm her down for a while. It's also just good for my soul. There is a song by Bethany Dillon called Hallelujah that I find I will play over and over again making it the prayer of my heart...that I would be able to say "hallelujah" even in the midst of a crying baby, infected incision, and sleep deprivation like I have never seen before!
This week Miya has also entered a very very fussy phase. It started off with a few days where she just wouldn't nap and would want to eat pretty much every hour, which would then follow with hours of crying on and off. She also was waking up every hour or two at night. She had her one month appointment on Wednesday and he thought her reflux might be worsening and because she has gained so much weight the zantac might not be helping. So he increased her dose. I hoped to see immediate results...but didn't. By Saturday the fussiness seemed to be consolidated a little...meaning she would be ok most of the day, but by the evening it was like a timer went off and the screaming began. She started crying around 7 and went until about 11, pretty much non-stop. It was gut wrenching for me. I kept thinking something must be wrong! So both Lew and I would try everything we knew to calm her, all to no avail. Thankfully Sunday she was a happy girl once the morning passed we hoped maybe Saturday night was just a bump in the road and Sunday night we would have our happy-go-lucky baby girl back. But again just like a timer went off she began to cry this time lasting from 9 until 2 am. This time we both realized there was nothing wrong (at least that we could pin point). We tried everything we could and all we could do was cuddle her and love her while she cried. She would stop for a few minutes and fall asleep...only to resume her crying moments later. She woke up this morning as mellow and calm as can be! She is sleeping peacefully right now, which makes me thankful to know she is at least doing ok part of the day. I talked to her pediatrician today who confirmed what we were thinking: colic. Thankfully colic (if that is what it is) is very normal in this age, and will pass in time. The frustrating thing is that there isn't a lot that we can do. We are still trying different things to sooth her and comfort her, but really time is the key. I would love any tips from Moms out there who have dealt with colic. We are going to try giving her baths every night now to give her a little bit of bedtime routine. We also have had to have her sleep in our bed because that is the only place she really will sleep at night. The pediatrician actually recommended us doing that for now just to help comfort her and allow all of us to get a little more sleep. But among all those things nothing has driven me more to my knees. We have found ourselves praying like never before! Crying out for strength to patiently endure the crying and sleeplessness, as well as peace in the midst of her fussing. I am SO thankfully for the peaceful parts of the day when she is happy and content. One thing that has saved us this week is music. Many times I will just put on some music and dance around with her, sometimes that will calm her down for a while. It's also just good for my soul. There is a song by Bethany Dillon called Hallelujah that I find I will play over and over again making it the prayer of my heart...that I would be able to say "hallelujah" even in the midst of a crying baby, infected incision, and sleep deprivation like I have never seen before!
Here are some pictures. I didn't take too many, but tried to capture the "peaceful moments" which means she is sleeping in most of the pictures!
I love how she crosses her little feet
cuddling with daddy
I just love her so much...
So cute, Lew had her propped up like this when I came home from my doctors appointment, it was the cutest thing. She was quite comfy!
As you can see she HAS to keep her pacifier nearby at ALL times. She is pretty much obsessed with it.
Her new favorite sleeping position...we usually put it in the middle of the living room and she likes to nap there :)
Did I mention she is obsessed with her paci?
Squishy lips :)
She's getting big! 8lbs 13 oz. and 20 1/4 inches! She's a good eater :)
Our little ducky after a bath.
Again with the paci :)
Time really is flying. I must say this week felt longer with all the crying...but still I can hardly believe another week has passed. I am aware that I have so much to be thankful for.
3 comments:
Hey girl. Sorry to hear about the colic and the crying. I'll ask some of my friends that are moms what they know for it and will share any tips I find.
Stay strong!
Love, Auntie Cherai
Luca has been fussier at night too...I think it's the age. When Xan (my 3yr old) was a baby, we used "gripe water" and it really did seem to help calm him (I think I got it at buy buy baby). I'd love to hear if the routine helps, I've been thinking that it's time for me to be a little more intentional at nighttime too.
Love her chubby little cheeks. She is precious!
Love,
Amy
Hi Laura:
Oh can I tell you about colic. Patrick had 9 month colic and ate no solid food until he was nine months old. I had to put him on a soy milk formula at 3 weeks as milk seems to be a big culprit in creating the gas bubbles that cause the pain. Keeping him from eating other foods helped minimize any food allergies or reactions to food. If you are nursing her, you also have to watch what you eat. It was very severe at times. He had about 15 music boxes and you have found one of the things that was always soothing - MUSIC. The other was motion - car rides, stoller rides or just carrying him in a little papoose carrier while I did other things through the house. A rocking swing was also very helpful. Massaging her belly and pushing her knees up towards her belly could also be helpful. I made several visits to the emergency room as I did not know what was happening and it is very frightening when it first starts. My doctor wasn't able to prescribe any meds at that time (37 years ago!) but have heard there are several options now. I know you will receive many suggestions about this and some of them will work great for you both. Let us all know which works best for you.
Aunt Bonita
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