The end of the day can be ROUGH for your little one. It may include many tears and it probably lasts more than an hour. This is something that many babies go through and can be taxing on you as a parent.
The witching hour is when an otherwise calm baby has an extremely fussy period usually occurring between 5pm and 10pm at night. Normal soothing methods that work the rest of the day don’t usually help during this time. This witching hour usually starts at about 3 weeks and is at its worst at 5-6 weeks and then usually goes away by about 3 months.
Try these soothing methods first:
1. Shush
2. Swaddle
3. Swing - hold the baby and lightly sway back and forth
4. Suck - offer the breast or a pacifier (if using)
5. Side - hold your baby on their side or stomach which can help with gas
Some other tricks to try:
Try to prevent your baby from getting overtired. Newborns can easily get overtired. When they get overtired, adrenaline and cortisol are released into their bloodstream and this makes falling asleep really difficult and starts the cycle of crying. Try to encourage the baby to sleep before this cycle begins – they may need to be held a lot during this time. Babywearing is a great option for this!
Go outside. Sometimes going outside relaxes both the baby and parent– taking the stress off the crying. The white noise of cars driving by, the cool air and constant movement often helps.
Try a Bath. Often times bathing a fussy baby late afternoon helps. Better yet - get in the bath with them.
Reduce Stimulation. Use white noise, and decrease lights and noise when inside. The regular daytime noises are sometimes overwhelming during the witching hour. The over-stimulation sends the baby’s immature nervous system into overdrive, and they can start crying. Dim the lights, turn off the tv, and phone, and just try to hold and walk them. Shushing or white noise also often helps.
Cluster feed - Most babies want to eat more frequently during this time. Let them! If nursing, this is the time of day your milk flow is usually the slowest so baby may need to go to breast often. This may be relaxing for both the baby and you.
Know that you are not alone! Most babies go through this. Be sure to take a break and hand baby off to someone else if you are able.
Need more help? Book a visit with Wisco Lactation! We offer home & office visit in SE Wisconsin and NE Illinois. We also offer virtual visits worldwide.
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