COLIC

Babies suffering with colic need constant attention. They will cry incessantly and pull their knees up to try to relieve the discomfort in their stomach. They will usually be happier when on the move. Nothing seems to alleviate their distress. Advocates of breast feeding claim that breast fed babies suffer less colic than bottle fed ones because of the way they suck. Whether this is true or not its a good idea to check that the hole in the teat on a bottle isn't to large and that the bottle is held so that milk is always filling the teat. When a baby feeds he sucks in milk and a certain amount of air. Whilst some babies merely burp out the air, others have difficulty getting rid of it and get air trapped in their stomachs and guts. The air builds up pressure causing irritation and pain. The baby's reaction to pain is to feel thoroughly miserable and cry until he is able to pass wind or burp. The strange thing about colic is that it doesn't always happen after every feed. It tends to be worse in the afternoon and early evening. Colic can last anything from 3 to 5 months before the baby grows out of it. Colic is very much linked to tension in the connective tissue and tends to occur in babies who's connective tissue is very tight. This tension can be caused by a difficult birth, problems in pregnancy, prenatal tension in the mother etc. Tension restricts the movement of food through the intestines and causes pain.

TREATMENT
By treating a young baby with Connective Tissue Manipulation the tension around the stomach and gut is reduced, letting food and wind sort themselves out without causing pressure, irritation and pain. The effect of treatment is cumulative and after 2 or 3 treatments the baby can feed and sleep better and generally be much more content.