A few weeks ago, Matt and I took our first baby class together: Happiest Baby on the Block. Sure, breastfeeding, childbirth, infant safety classes are all important, and we’re signed up for those and more, but in about a month’s time, I’m going to be really glad I took this class. The Happiest Baby class taught us how to calm a fussy infant.
So what did we learn? The 5 S’s.
S #1- Swaddle
Swaddling imitates the snug packaging inside the womb, decreasing startling and increasing sleep. As a bonus, a swaddled baby responds faster to the other 4 S’s because their arms aren’t flailing around startling them.
Babies shouldn’t be swaddled all day, just when fussing and sleeping. Wrap arms snug – straight at the side – but let the hips be loose and flexed. Use a large square blanket, but don’t overheat, cover your baby’s head or allow loose blankets.
Matt was very good at swaddling and did it perfectly the first try. So annoying. I tried it many times and let’s just say, I’m glad someone gave us a Miracle Swaddle at the baby shower – I need all the help I can get.
And if Baby Six isn’t calm yet, move on to the next S.
S #2 – Side or Stomach position
The back is the only safe position for sleeping but it’s the worst position for calming fussiness. This “S” is simple – just put Baby Six on his side, on his stomach, or over your shoulder. Personally I liked placing the training baby doll* stomach down on my lap. Holding the doll on his side made me feel like I was cradling a football, which made me think about dropping a football. Not good.
S #3 – Shush
This was the most surprising thing we learned, at least for me. Contrary to myth, babies don’t need total silence. In the womb the sounds are louder than a vacuum cleaner. Thank goodness, I’m not exactly a quiet person.
So if Baby Six still isn’t calm, make a loud shushing noise in his ear. You’ll feel stupid and kind of rude, but apparently he’ll like it. Or, if you want to cheat, use a white noise machine.
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S #4 – Swing
Womb life is jiggly. Slow rocking is fine for keeping babies calm, but to soothe crying mid-squawk, the motion needs to be fast and tiny.
Always support the head/neck; keep your motions small (no more than 1 inch back and forth); and never, never, never shake the baby in anger or frustration.
This one makes me a little nervous, so I might make Matt do it. Or use the awesome swing we got as a gift.
S #5- Suck
Sucking is the icing on the cake of calming. Many fussy babies relax into a deep tranquility when they suck.
Pro tip we learned – don’t try to push the pacifier into his mouth to get him to hold on tighter. Instead, jiggle it so it seems like it’s going to fall out and he’ll suck harder to compensate.
Unfortunately, this magic equation only works for a few months, and then Baby Boy Six will be too old for this calming reflex to work.
But we’ll use it as long as it works, because Happy Baby = Happy Mommy = Happy Everyone Else.
* As I was swaddling the training baby doll, I mentioned to Matt that I hoped our baby would be born smaller. As it turned out, I was practicing with the preemie baby – it was only 5 pounds! Matt’s huge practice baby doll that I assumed was a month or two old was the average birth size. Oh boy. I’m in trouble.
