The Happiest Baby on the Block

Not only is Dr. Harvey Karp's method of soothing crying babies in a book, but it's also in dvd form. I have both from the library. We watched the dvd.

He was impressive.

Tantrum-throwing babies calmed almost immediately in his hands.Remember Spock from Star Trek? It was like Dr. Karp put the Spock hold on the infants. An on/off switch. He claims it's a reflex babies have for the first three months.

Karp calls the first three months "the fourth trimester." He believes that babies are still developing and getting accustomed to the world. The only reason they have to come out is because their brains are growing so big...or something like that. Nonetheless, the techniques he uses to calm these babies imitate the mother's womb. He calls them the 5 S's.

1. Swaddling. By keeping the baby tightly wrapped, he will feel back at home in the womb. Make sure to keep the arms down by the sides, not across the chest.
2. Side/Stomach. After swaddling, hold your baby and shift her to her side or tummy. Often, these first two techniques were enough to switch off the crying. In the womb, the baby is never on its back, so it makes sense that other positions are reassuring. Of course, once you put baby in the crib, she should always be on her back.
3. Shhhhhhh. Many cultures around the world make this sound to soothe crying babies. It emulates the sound of the womb. The key is to make the sound loudly. Shush as loudly as the cries. Apparently, the womb is noisy. Aside from shushing, other white noise is great for baby.Karp suggested vacuum cleaner, hair dryer, static from a radio station, etc. He highly recommends those womb sound makers like the teddy bears you can buy at the store.
4. Swinging. When mom moved, baby was rocked in utero. He likes that because it's familiar. If the other techniques aren't working, then swing the baby. Karp recommends a slight jiggling. This one makes me nervous because of Shaken Baby Syndrome, but he goes on at length about the difference between a slight bouncing and whiplash. He claims dads are better at this because they're more willing to shake the baby. O-kay.
5. Sucking. This technique is used after baby starts to calm. It allows her to slip into total relaxation. Following the "fourth trimester," babies learn the use of their hands and will often replace a pacifier with her fingers. This is a step toward self-soothing.

Well, we'll just see if this works.