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Encouraging Heroes. You can be one too.

Your idyllic visions of motherhood bliss may come crashing down around you when you bring home a baby who is beset with congestion, colic or chronic crying. While every baby has “witching hours” and periods of fussiness or crying, nothing can compare to the parental distress that comes when colicky babies cannot be soothed and refuse to go to sleep. Rather than resign yourself to months of sleep deprivation, depression, and feelings of hopelessness, you can take charge of your motherhood and get some much needed rest by trying these methods of calming your infant.

There are so many great products on the market that will keep your baby happy, safe and comfortable and stop the chronic crying. While your baby is awake you should not hold them all the time. You should try to keep them stimulated so that they can tire themselves out and eventually fall asleep. Products like baby gyms have been around for many years and they provide a safe place for your baby to explore their world outside of the arms of Mom. Some of the newer versions have attachable toys that your infant can reach for as well as soothing music that will calm your baby. Many of the related mats are even machine washable which is great for cleaning up messes at the end of the day and have a clean fresh play area every morning.

Here are some additional ideas for keeping your baby calm throughout the day.

Invest in a Baby Swing
Crying babies are often easily soothed when they are rocked or swayed repetitively. If you cannot hold your baby and rock him or her to sleep, you can calm your infant by using a baby swing to provide this motion. Placing your infant in a baby swing lets you remain physically free to carry out household chores while providing a safe place for your little one to rest as he or she is rhythmically rocked to sleep. Many pediatricians urge parents to buy baby swings when it is discovered that their babies suffer from colic.

Let the Dryer Soothe Your Infant
Some crying babies like the low rumbling sound and gentle vibrations that a household dryer makes. If you have this appliance in your home, you could calm our little one by placing him or her in a baby seat atop the dryer. The heat from this appliance, along with the sound and movement, can induce your infant into periods of blissful calm that gives you a reprieve from the endless crying and wailing. It should be noted that you must remain with your baby at all times when you utilize this method. You should never leave your baby unattended while he or she is in a baby seat on top of the dryer.

Take Baby for a Drive
Car rides provide an inexplicable, yet magical relief from colic and congestion for most babies. Pediatricians continue to debate why chronically fussy infants like to go for rides in a car; nonetheless, you can calm your little one by taking him or her for a ride around the block or for a short jaunt across town. As you drive, your baby will rest and perhaps remain asleep after you return home. Again, never leave a baby unsupervised in the car.

Self-Soothing
Many child rearing experts argue that you cannot spoil a newborn or even an infant under the age of 9 months. However, other experts suggest that babies can indeed become spoiled and used to being held that they cry when they are placed in their cribs. If your child is not in danger and you simply cannot take any more crying or trying to calm him or her down, it is perfectly acceptable for you to put your crying infant in the crib and take a break. Babies of all ages are capable of learning how to soothe themselves. When your baby is left alone for a few minutes, he or she may suck on a pacifier or simply fall asleep, giving you a chance to rest yourself.

Chronically crying babies challenge mothers in unprecedented ways. You can regain control of your mental and emotional health by using these methods to calm your congested, colicky, or crying infant.

Teresa Stewart is a freelance writer who frequently researches parenting issues. She has found that there are many great products on the market that help mothers to keep their babies happy and comfortable. By performing an online search for baby products she found a page, http://www.kidsii.com/brightstarts/c-11-play-gyms-and-play-mats.aspx, which contains colorful baby mats, gyms and many other products that will help to keep babies calm and provide some relief for mothers.

Image courtesy of 35.smyrna via Creative Commons license, some rights reserved.