Communication - that is what a baby's crying is for, to alert you of their need of something. This sweet thing that suddenly turned into a fit of tears is just craving your immediate attention. All cultures in the world agree that this pattern is what all infants and parents/caregivers are accustomed to.
A baby cries the most during his or her first three months. Although the amount of crying will steadily increase, the crying time period may vary from as little as an hour (did I really just say that?) to as much as most of the day. Believe it or not, this could still be considered within normal range. Like, whoah, right? Maybe that is why the younger generation refers to Babies as 'howling tear factories'.
When newborn, normal noises in the household that most would assume will wake a baby (because the noises are new to the baby) are not even heard by the newborn. The most widely accepted assumption now is that babies have this automatic screening ability that they use to shut off all the noise that may stimulate some response from them so they could get enough rest. Unfortunately, this filter weakens more and more every day, and totally disappears during the approximate age of six weeks. This, then, makes a baby very sensitive to the external factors such as noise, more prevalent during the afternoon, when people are coming home from school or work, movements, sounds from outside, etc. And these generally elicit a reaction from a baby. And how best could he or she respond but only through crying? This is why at about 2 months, most parents are asking themselves (while trying to comfort a crying baby in their arms), 'where did my sleeping angel go'?
There are many reasons why a baby succumbs to crying. Deciphering these reasons is the major feat a parent must surmount. Here are some of the baby crying causes your sweet baby is trying go make you understand through crying:
* Baby crying causes number 1-Hunger. Yes, your attention-hungry baby is crying to let you know that his or her tummy is grumbling. This is the most common reason for a baby to cry, especially, during their early months when they need food every few hours. The pattern of the hunger howl could be characterized as being persistent, demanding and almost rhythmical. And if a parent trains themselves, they can actually distinguish this cry from all others. But that rhythm is not at any rate close to becoming musical to the parent none the less, of course.
* Baby crying causes number 2-Boredom. What can I say? Aren't these babies just plain spoiled (uh, of course, it is the only time in their life every need is catered to, wouldn't you be?)? But, seriously crying because of boredom? Yeah, babies are really built like this. Crying is their way of telling you, "Hey get me a life here!" In addition to all the requirements for attention and food, babies need a lot of stimulation. And when they don't get this, then you are going to get your waaaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhh!!! (I'd find this a bit more twisted or weird if the action was associated with an adult by the way, but it does happen too-I know you have heard the expression 'bore yourself to tears...').
Anyways, the trick is to pick the baby up and play with him or her. When you're bored you need some sort of stimulation or something to take your attention don't you? This move may be frowned upon by some because of its amounting to spoiling the baby. But it is important to know that stimulation is also one of the major necessities of an infant and it won't hurt to provide him or her with some while their are in their infantile age. This boredom cry is said to be also rhythmical and full of sobs and moans (also known as the 'poor me!' cry).
* Baby crying causes number 3-Discomfort. Pain is another precursor of the baby's crying. Who won't cry when in pain, right? Babies are not 'Marines' to endure the most excruciating discomfort they could undergo with little emotion. They are little, vulnerable beings that need to be attended to when injured or when in an inconvenient situation. This could be anything from a soiled diaper, being too hot, being too cold, having clothes binding on them being uncomfortalbe, or a rash or skin irritation. This cry could be more persistent, louder and more demanding (shrieking and screaming, having a tantrum, and freaking out those are words that better describe the crying pattern roused by pain).
* Baby crying causes number 4- Disturbance; surely, howling will proceed just when they're about to sleep or are already fast asleep and suddenly gets surprised by some noise, movement, or even a bad dream (yep, even at that age-abandonment, lack of food, and other dreams can break up a restful sleep).
* And finally, Baby crying causes number 5-An Illness. An illness that causes discomfort to a baby may also be the reason for a baby's bursting into fit of tears. This is easily verified by a temperature check for a fever (NOTE: a rule of thumb is that anything over 100 degrees ferinheight should seek medical attention, babies are a lot more sensitive to excessing body temperature than a child or an adult). But even if a fever is not present, they could be having an upset tummy, gas pains, a rash, a headache, or even a reaction to something externally or internally.
There could be a large number of reasons a baby is crying, but the above covers probably 0ver 75% of them. You will get acquainted with the various styles of crying and start to see certain patterns that give you clues to what baby is crying about. If rocking, holding, feeding, changing, and everything else fails, I have found a quiet ride in the car can soothe them to sleep. Of course, gas prices weren't as high when my children were infants as they are now, but can you really put a price on sanity?
