Colic and A Goodnight's Sleep

Sleep is essential for all of us, but when there are babies in the house sometimes it’s hard to get the necessary sleep needed. Life as a parent (whether it’s your first of fifth child) can be tough and when you have a colicky baby things are even tougher.

Colic is defined by the rule of 3: crying fits that last for 3 hours, 3 or more days, and persist for 3 weeks. However, having a baby that cries and isn’t consoled easily takes it’s tole on parents even if the child doesn’t have the definition of colic. These babies who are colicky are more easily stimulated and tend to have gastrointestinal problems as well. Parent’s may notice a fussy infant has more reflux and constipation issues due to the spasms in the intestinal system, which can be an underlying problem in the colicky baby. Throw in sleep deprived and stressed parents and we’ve got a very unhappy family.

The good news is there is help out there! Several studies support the idea that colicky symptoms maybe linked to mild biomechanical disturbances of the spinal joints. The doctors at Active Family Chiropractic & Rehab can asses your child for spinal misalignments and stimulate the nervous system. More importantly stimulating the parasympathetic nervous system which helps the body calm down. Once the biomechanical disturbances are removed the parasympathetic system can take over and balance out the over stimulated sympathetic nervous system that so many colicky babies have.

The light forced adjustments done by a chiropractor can also help with any digestive issues such as constipation and reflux that may be happening a long with the colic.

Once the nervous system is balanced and your child’s now able to calm down, sleep is not far behind. So sleep tight and the next time your child is experiencing colic symptoms rest assured that your family chiropractor is here to help. If your child is colicky and not sleeping give us a call today!