No matter what you do, having a baby means that you will have to deal with your baby crying. Whether your baby rarely cries or cries almost all of the time does make a huge difference in our lives as parents.

But since babies cannot talk and express how they are feeling, crying is their most obvious way of telling you their needs.

Trust me I had two babies that cried a lot and I wish I knew all of these tricks when they were still little.

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1. Are Your Baby’s Basic Needs Met?

First and foremost, always check to see if your baby’s basic needs are met. So is your baby –

hungry
thirsty
too hot or cold
in a wet or dirty diaper
overtired

Just by checking some of these basic needs, most babies can be calmed down.

2. Check for Discomfort

Unfortunately, babies are prone to having a lot of discomforts that they cannot express to us in detail so it’s often up to us to be the detectives. Some of the most common types of pain and discomfort that babies experience are –

gassiness or needing to burp. If your baby seems like their tummy may be hurting them try to do bicycle movements with their legs to help release any gas they may need to eliminate.
colic
acid reflux. Both of my babies had acid reflux. Try feeding them and keeping them in an upright position to keep their food down.
fever or sickness. If your baby is sick sometimes there’s nothing you can do but keep them comfortable and loving on them.
food allergies. Food allergies are super common among babies. If you are breastfeeding try eliminating certain foods that can cause allergic reactions such as gluten, dairy, wheat, etc. And if you are feeding your baby formula consult your pediatrician about switching to a different type of baby formula.
teething pain – Teething pain is a really difficult time for your baby. Try these tricks I used to help relieve my baby’s teething pain.

3. Walk Around While Holding Baby

For around nine months your baby lived inside your belly and got very used to your movements throughout the day. Therefore it’s only natural that your baby would be comforted by feeling you hold them against you and while walking around doing your daily activities.

4. Change of Scenery

Babies are experiencing a lot of sensory input in their first few months of life and sometimes they can be overwhelmed or even underwhelmed by their surroundings. So when you have a crying baby try taking a quick step outside to let them and you get some fresh air and get some vitamin D.

5. Baby Massage

Just like we as adults find a massage relaxing, babies do too. Giving your baby a massage has been proven to help your baby sleep and stay much for relaxed. Try these quick tips for massaging your baby

6. Wear Baby in Baby Carrier

Babywearing really is the easiest way to get most chores done when you have a baby. And if your baby cries a lot babywearing could help soothe your baby by having them up against you.

Baby carriers are also really great for helping moms keep their hands free while also calming their babies.

7. Swaddle Your Baby

Does your baby feel comforted when they are swaddled up? Some babies are scared by the big world that they have just come into. And swaddling is a way to make them feel snug and comforted like they were inside the womb.

My little guy loved to be swaddled in these blankets.

8. Music or White Noise

Some babies need a bit of music or noise to settle down and stop crying. Whether it’s a –

white noise machine
vacuum cleaner
a fan

Babies love loud noises that remind them of all of the systems they heard moving around from inside the womb. Both of my kids loved the vacuum cleaner and fan noise to help them get to sleep when they were fussy.

9. Go for a Walk or Drive

Just like having a change of scenery, some babies like going for a walk or a drive in the car to see other things. This sensory input is calming for some babies that are fussy and cry a lot.

10. Dim the Lights

Is your baby crying because they are overtired and overstimulated? Turning down the lights and sitting in a quiet, dark room can help your baby settle down and try to get some rest.

11. Offer a Pacifier

Some babies just need to suck. It’s really true. Babies are born to suck to eat some just need to suck to soothe themselves. This is one reason so many, babies rely on a pacifier to help them calm themselves to sleep.

A pacifier can also help soothe a baby when they are upset and crying.

12. Try A Relaxing Bath

Does your baby love to take a bath? If so, this may be the perfect way to calm them down when they are fussy.

Many babies love the feeling of a relaxing bath and if you add a few drops of Lavender Essential Oil to the water you can enhance their relaxing experience.

13. Skin to Skin Contact

Skin to skin contact is encouraged from the moment your baby is born to help with breastfeeding. But it can also help with calming your baby when they are overwhelmed and crying a lot.

Many babies benefit from skin to skin contact because of the ability to breastfeed, feel their mother’s warmth, and hear her heartbeat.

14. Baby Swing

Do you feel like your baby is crying non-stop and you need to set them down? This is where the baby swing comes in. Some babies find sitting in the baby swing very relaxing and it even helps them to calm down.

In fact, since both of my babies suffered from acid reflux, they loved sitting upright in the baby swing to help keep their food down.

15. Change Baby’s Position

Most babies that suffer from tummy troubles hate to lay on their backs because of the pain and discomfort it causes. Therefore many parents have found that by holding their baby on their side or tummy their baby calms down and cries less.

16. Hand Off

We as parents are human. And because of that it is completely normal to get frustrated and overwhelmed when your baby has been crying for a while without any changes.

This is one reason why it is so crucial to hand your baby to someone else for a while so you can take a break when you are feeling frustrated. So if you been trying to calm your baby for a while, give dad a try and take a few minutes for yourself.

12 Fun Ways for New Dads to Help and Be Involved with a Breastfed Baby

17. See Your Pediatrician

When your baby is not being consoled by any of these tips, check in with your pediatrician to make sure there is nothing wrong that you cannot see.

Sometimes babies can be suffering from a simple ear infection or sickness that the parents don’t know about. But these can easily be treated by a doctor.

17 Ways to Soothe A Crying Baby