Crying Baby Wants Mommy

How do you get a 5mo. old to stop crying when Xhe wants his mommy and nothing else..? No food, bottle, diaper change, playing, rocking, standing sitting,not teething or gassy? 2 and a half hours of non stop crying... help!

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What To Do When Baby Only Wants Mom

You didn't say if YOU are the Mommy or a frustrated Daddy! But either way it is totally normal for a 5 month old to constantly want to be held by Mommy and very very frustrating when you don't know why they are crying. (For a list of clues on why babies cry, click here.)

Many babies have a crying time - often around 6pm when you want to get on and do other things! A baby sling is often a good solution for a baby that wants to be carried, and even if you can't stop them crying, at least you can pop around doing a few chores like throwing clothes in the wash!

Unfortunately babies also pick up on our distress, which makes them more upset! And it is extremely hard to be calm and soothing when you have had a baby crying non-stop for ages. All you can do is eliminate the obvious - which you clearly have done and then try to keep yourself as calm and relaxed as possible. If it is not too cold, try going outside, sometimes a change of scene will distract baby. Sometimes a walk will calm them down - and you too!

Hopping in the bath with him may help, floating in warm water with you may shift his focus and relax you both.

A 5 month old could quite likely be starting teething, the teeth move under the gums for quite a long time before anything breaks through. In fact by the time they break through they don't hurt so much. (Find baby teething symptoms here.)

Your baby could also have a headache - you could try taking him to an osteopath that works with babies. They work very gently and often cranial osteopathy works wonders with babies who are fussy or cry a lot. They can have a pretty rough time getting into the world and particularly if they have had a forceps delivery may well be getting headaches.

They do grow out of this crying stage, but it is sooooo hard at the time to figure out what to do! Just keep yourself as relaxed as possible and hope he grows out of it quickly!

Also remember to take care of yourself, if you are the new mom or dad. New mom will find tips on how to make life a bit easier here. And new dad will find tips for him here.

Annie Desantis

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