Colicky Baby? Try Not to Take It Personally

We asked you about colicky babies, and your anecdotes and tips kept coming in. So here are a few more observations from your fellow readers:

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Here are some grandmotherly suggestions:

1) Make sure the baby is well fed.

2) Make sure the baby is burped.

3) Make sure the baby is dry.

4) Make sure the baby isn’t overtired.

If items 1-4 do not calm the baby:

a) Give the baby a light massage with soothing baby oil.

b) Hold the baby while she cries, because it’s nicer to be held when crying.

c) If b is too exhausting, call a friend to hold the baby and you take a shower or you get a massage.

The baby will not cry forever!

--BARBARA JOAN GRUBMAN, Woodland Hills

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I am the mother of two beautiful daughters. One is 3 years old and the other is 5 months old. Both were extremely colicky babies.

Here are my tips for coping:

* Know this is not your fault! They are not fussy because you are nervous or anxious, they just came into the world that way.

* Enlist a trusted family member or baby-sitter to help you. You need to get out of the house for a break.

* Remember they are not trying to manipulate you, they are just physically uncomfortable.

* Hold them as much as you can. Rock them in your arms or carry them in a pouch or sling.

* My best weapon: a massaging bouncer seat (try for battery operated).

* Finally, know that this will pass; it doesn’t last forever!

--LISA PLATT, Los Angeles

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My firstborn was colicky. It was rare when she was not crying. . . . When we were moving, I discovered she did not cry while the vacuum was running! If I’d only tried that sooner!

Finally I took her to a pediatrician, who wrote a prescription for a tiny bottle of medicine. I don’t recall the brand; however, it “cured” the screaming. We became sane again.

--REBECCA MAXWELL, Santa Maria

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The next question: Bed wetting, in the elementary school years. What should--or shouldn’t--you do?

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And coming up: Recently, the Department of Agriculture issued its first guidelines on how to feed young children a nutritious diet, emphasizing grains, fruits and vegetables. But the recommendation that children should eat less sugar has provoked a strong reaction in some parents--and soda companies.

So, what’s your child’s diet like? How do you encourage healthy eating?

Please share your strategies with us in 75 words or less. Send this week to Parental Guidance, Southern California Living, Los Angeles Times, Times Mirror Square, Los Angeles, CA 90053; e-mail socalliving@latimes.com; or fax (213) 237-7888. Please include your name, hometown and phone number. Submissions cannot be returned.