Have you ever had your baby so fussy in the evenings that the only thing that would calm her down was to put her in the car and drive around? If you are chuckling right now thinking, “Been there, done that,” there is an easier way. Playing a white noise cd to calm your cranky, colicky baby is a way more practical, and with the cost of gas, less expensive solution than driving around for hours.
The benefits of white noise are numerous. Adults enjoy the sound masking qualities of white noise to concentrate better at work, sleep longer and better, and also relax after stressful day.
You can obtain white noise cd’s that play everything from ocean waves to dishwashers running. It really is a matter of preference and what relaxes you.
However, when it comes to your baby, vacuum cleaner white noise or hair dryer white noise works very well. And here’s why.
When your baby was safe, warm and snug in mom’s tummy for nine months, she could hear the constant “whoosh” of blood roaring around her. If you place your hands over your ears for a few seconds, you get a similar sound as baby did for nine months.
When baby is born, she is thrust into a strange environment full of lights and sounds that are startling and sometimes scary. Some babies have a difficult time adjusting to this new environment. Their nervous systems aren’t fully developed and as they become overloaded with all this new stimuli, they kind of become stressed out.
Babies handle stress innately by crying. Colicky babies cry a lot. Generally, the “rule of threes” determines if you have a colicky baby. If your baby is otherwise healthy (other than the crying), the “rule of threes”applies if the crying:
• Begins within the first three weeks of life
• Lasts up to or more than three hours a day
• Occurs at least three or more days a week
• Continues for at least three weeks
• Disappears at about three months of age
As funny as it sounds, a tool that is incredibly effective in calming a colicky baby fast is turning on your vacuum cleaner or hair dryer. The sound of a vacuum cleaner or hair dryer running is very similar to the sound frequency and tone (remember the “whoosh” your baby heard while in the womb. When your baby hears this sound, she is immediately reminded of a place that was warm and happy. And she stops crying.
But you really don’t want to drag out your vacuum cleaner or hair dryer every time baby starts to cry. It will burn up the motors. Playing a white noise cd is much more practical. You can control the volume of the cd. Also, you can put it in a cd player, press repeat, and have a soothing, atmosphere for your baby to sleep and relax for hours.
So, the next time your baby is having a colic meltdown, instead of heading out to the car to drive around for hours, put in a white noise cd and make both you and your baby very happy.
Cherie Stirewalt is a freelancer who has first hand knowledge of coping with infant colic. Find out about the benefits of White Noise for babies on her website White Noise for Baby.
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