Feed and Burp the Baby

Feed and Burp the Baby

Check her diet - Is she hungry or allergic to certain foods

Most of the time that the baby is crying, it is because of hunger.  Some parents begin to recognize the cry of hunger at a very early age.  It has been observed that the feeling of a full stomach gives a baby the most comfort. - not the act of feeding, swallowing or being held.  Another possible explanation for your baby's discomfort may lie in her diet.  Occasionally, allergy or sensitivity to something in the formula or breast milk may lead to crying, but this is usually accompanied by other symptoms.
 

Burp the baby

Babies often feel uncomfortable because they have swallowed air. Parents can take a few precautionary measures to prevent this happening. Babies will swallow less air if you keep them upright as much as possible during feeding and burping. The right-size teat hole on a bottle will also reduce air intake. Burp the baby regularly during feeds in order to expel swallowed air. Applying light pressure to the baby's abdomen (by laying her across your lap, tummy down, or upright against your shoulder) while patting or rubbing her back has also been known to be effective.
 Show that you Care

Provide physical contact

Sometimes babies cry simply because they miss the close contact with their mothers that they enjoyed for nine months. A recent U.S. study has shown that babies who were carried in the arms or in a baby carrier for at least three hours every day cried much less than those who were carried less. Carrying gives the baby a sense of physical closeness with the mother (a carry over from the days in the womb) and it may help the mother to tune in better to her baby's needs.

Respond promptly

 

Crying is the only way a baby can communicate with the world around her. When you respond immediately to your baby's cry, you give her a sense of control over her surroundings and a feeling that she is important to you. There will be occasions when you feel that your prompt response has not made any difference. Your baby will continue crying no matter what you do. 

Remember that not responding to your baby is not an option as you run the risk of her feeling powerless and worthless over time. Prompt response will eventually reduce crying. Some studies have shown that babies, whose mothers responded to them promptly in infancy, cried less as toddlers. The longer a baby cries, the longer it takes to stop her crying. This is because if the baby's cries are ignored, she will work herself up into a rage and probably forget what she was crying about in the first place.