How to Alleviate Colic, abdominal pain, and/or Gastroesophageal Reflux for your baby

I had heard about Colic and didn't think twice about it until it happened to my baby.  The doctors told me it was Colic, but I highly suspect, even though the symptons were similar, I don't think it was 'classic colic'.  If the symptoms of your baby's pain are similar, these are some of the things that helped alleviate my baby's pain.  It angered and frustrated me when the doctor and other people said, "oh, it's just colic.  It will pass after 3 months, and they'll forget all about it".  Don't believe them!  Your baby's pain is just as real as your pain, and as a parent I believe it's your obligation to relieve the suffering of your child as best you can.  Anyway, the symptons which started at around 6 weeks of age...abdominal pain and cramping, drawing legs up sharply.  My baby would groan with pain and sometimes cry out or scream in pain.  It didn't happen at a specific time of the day.  It happened day and night.  The first time it happened it went on for 6 long hours in the eary morning, with bouts of pain every 10-15 minutes.  Needless to say by the morning I was crying continuously as I felt helpless. The pain was worse in the early hours of the morning, and she got her best sleep during the day, only because she was so exhausted by all the pain.   This sought of severe pain went on for about 4 weeks and then gradually lessened up until about 3 months of age.  Whenever I fed her (I was breastfeeding as well as formula after 6 weeks), she would start to cry and kick her legs out violently in pain.  She kept trying to feed, but the more she fed, the more intense the pain would become.  Eventually the pain would stop and she would complete her feed, but would fall asleep from sheer exhaustion from the pain.  So what  did I do?  I got on the internet and looked up every possible solution for colic there was.  Here's what I did to alleviate her pain...

I found that my baby slept better upright in a sling, attached to me. I would put her in the sling in the mornings and carried her around with me so she could get some decent sleep.  I put a pillow under her cot mattress to ensure she would sleep at a 30degree angle with her head at the higher end.  When the pain got unbearable during the night, I would take her into bed with me and cuddle her and I slept upright against the wall in the corner propped up with pillows, so she could sleep upright as it helped lessen the pain.  When I fed her, I no longer lay her horizontal, I fed her as upright as possible.  When I breastfed I ensured I emptied my breast so she got the hindmilk as well as the foremilk (some experts advise to express the foremilk and discard it).  When I breastfed, I burped her every 3 minutes, and when I bottle-fed, I burped her every 30 mls to ensure that any air swallowed could be released.  This ensured her tummy was filling with milk, not air  which if gas accumulated over a 24hour period could help contribute to the pain.  I also made sure she was burped for a minimum of 20 minutes after feeding ( it's something I still do).  I would lay my baby flat and pump her legs like riding a bike, to help expel any pockets of gas. Other ways to help move trapped gas was to massage her tummy about 1 inch below the navel; massage her tummy with two hands, by pressing firmly but gently, down and then in a clockwise direction, with one hand below the ribcage and the other opposite.  so if your left hand was at 10o'clock position then your right hand would be at about the 4 o'clock position, then push down and then in a clockwise position; I would also lay by baby on her back over my legs,gently pulling her legs down so her back would be arched (supporting the head and neck); I would also take hold of one leg below the knee and lift it until her knee would bend, then take the knee diagonally across toward the opposite shoulder.  All these things helped alleviate the pain, by releasing any trapped gas.  It can be released in the form of a burp or a 'botty burp'.  Also, I found a bottle of 'infants friend' from the pharmacy a godsend.  It has all natural ingredients and I would feed my baby this prior to every feed.  This helped immensely, and I still am using it at 4 months of age.

The last piece of puzzle was to do with the 'gastroesophageal refux'.  I did not know that was part of the problem.  I tried a homeopathic solution from the health food store, but sadly for my child it did not work as well.  I ended getting medication called 'Zantac'.  I had helped eliminate alot of the pain, but she was still very upset and restless and crying alot.  After only a few hours of taking this medication, the crying stopped, and she slept.  I did  not originally pick this up, nor my paediatrician, as my baby was not bringing anything up at that time.  It was the fact that she felt best when held upright, that alluded my paediatrician to diagnose 'gastroesophageal reflux' as part of the problem.  Incidentally, I also used homeopathic remedies  from a homeopath who better matched the remedies with my babies temperament.  This mainly helped eliminate leftover drug cocktails from the birth, as I had had a difficult pregnancy and ended having my baby delivered by c section, so alot of the drugs I had to have were still present in her system.  The homeopathic remedies helped cleanse her system of these so her liver and internal organs could function better, and hence a more happier and settled baby. 

A combination of all these things was the only way I could help alleviate her pain.  And your child is worth all the trouble you go to in order to help her/him.