Identifying Colic

Identifying the difference between normal and simple fussiness and a full blown colic is very difficult.

Your child's doctor would use the Rule of Three to diagnose the colic infant.

• If the baby cries desolately for 3 hours or more a day.
• Cries desolately on 3 or more days per week.
• Has a pattern of desolate crying that lasts 3 weeks or more.

That means the baby is crying due to colic. When the baby starts crying inconsolably for hours together, it becomes extremely difficult for any parent to wait for three weeks for a diagnosis.

Before you get a confirmation from your baby's doctor you can consider the following to be an absolute symptom of colic:

• If the baby cries and cannot be calmed with any method which you usually do for example feeding, holding, rocking, changing etc.
• Crying in set pattern like in the evening or in the middle of the night etc.