happiest baby on the block?

Hi,
We're expecting our first baby in June and recently saw the dvd "Happiest baby
on the block"
Have any of you tried the techniques in this book/dvd? Do the calming
strategies work in real life?

Thank you in advance,

Clare

"Clw31" wrote in message
...
Hi,
We're expecting our first baby in June and recently saw the dvd "Happiest
baby
on the block"
Have any of you tried the techniques in this book/dvd? Do the calming
strategies work in real life?

Thank you in advance,

I saw the video about 5 weeks ago at the hospital. DS is 2 yo, DD is 6
weeks. I realized when I saw it that I have tried many of the techniques
through instinct and trial and error.

Swaddling worked. I used a swaddle blanket (has velcro) and it works better
than a receiving blanket for that. It doesn't come undone as easily.

Shushing works. I tried doing it louder after seeing the video and it works
even better that way.

Side lying works, so does tummy lying. Side lying while swaddled works.

White noise works. Vacuuming is the best for knocking them out.

That gentle Jello shake works.

So yeah, they work. I do think one thing is a little misleading on the
video. They show these babies crying and then magically quieting. Once you
have your baby you'll see, placing a newborn unwrapped on a cold hard
surface is bound to make them cry and they almost always quiet when you wrap
them back up.

I would recommend the video to new moms, because it will let you cut a few
steps of trial and error out of the loop. If you never saw it, you'd likely
learn most of it sooner or later.

I saw the video about 5 weeks ago at the hospital. DS is 2 yo, DD is 6
weeks. I realized when I saw it that I have tried many of the techniques
through instinct and trial and error.



I read the book not long ago and had the same reaction -- I pretty much *did*
everything it suggests with DS, instinctively.

However, DS was not a particularly colicky baby. I think that the book (or
DVD) might very well be helpful to fine-tune your technique if you've got a
fussier baby -- or if you've got the sort of relatives who are likely to whine
at you about not "spoiling" your baby and you need the extra reassurance that
you're doing the right thing.

Holly
Mom to Camden, 3yo
EDD #2 6/8/04

On a related note, the author has come out with a book for older kids.
I read (or maybe heard) an interview with him somewhere (mommy
mush-brain kicks in), and it sounded good.

He's certainly right that babies Caterpillar's age are in a chimpanzee
stage. Not only does she alternate between walking and a very
monkey-like scoot, but her favorite way of communicating is with grunts.
We nurse. She grunts at me. I grunt back. Repeat louder and more
excitedly until she laughs.

Phoebe

Thanks for your replies, I'm glad we saw the dvd then if the techniques work on
the whole.

(HollyLewis) wrote in message ...
I saw the video about 5 weeks ago at the hospital. DS is 2 yo, DD is 6
weeks. I realized when I saw it that I have tried many of the techniques
through instinct and trial and error.



I read the book not long ago and had the same reaction -- I pretty much *did*
everything it suggests with DS, instinctively.

However, DS was not a particularly colicky baby. I think that the book (or
DVD) might very well be helpful to fine-tune your technique if you've got a
fussier baby -- or if you've got the sort of relatives who are likely to whine
at you about not "spoiling" your baby and you need the extra reassurance that
you're doing the right thing.

Same here. The main things I might try differently this time around
are trying swaddling again - we never really got the hang of it, and
it didn't seem to do much good, but we didn't wrap up his arms and
that seems to be one of the crucial parts. Also, the swing never did
much for us - I might try it at a higher speed next time. I also
agree about the reassurance bit - ds was never truly colicky, but had
plenty of fussy evenings. I *knew* I was doing the right thing by
walking around with him and swaying for what seemed like hours on end,
but I sometimes did feel a little defensive when around other people.

Irene
mom to Thomas 7/01
& Marcus or Gwendolyn EDD 4/10/04

"Irene" wrote in message
om...
plenty of fussy evenings. I *knew* I was doing the right thing by
walking around with him and swaying for what seemed like hours on end,
but I sometimes did feel a little defensive when around other people.

When you're a new mom, everyone thinks you don't know what you're doing,
even if you do. It's much better with later kids. People think you're set
in your ways and leave you alone.

"Clw31" wrote in message
...
Hi,
We're expecting our first baby in June and recently saw the dvd "Happiest
baby
on the block"
Have any of you tried the techniques in this book/dvd? Do the calming
strategies work in real life?

Thank you in advance,

Clare
------------------------


YES! I read the book while still pregnant, and tried out the methods
sometime in DS's third week. Worked like an "off" switch one day when he
was particularly fussy. He's now 15 weeks and they're still just as
effective.
--
Deirdre

Sorry this post is so late...I just saw your post now!

Our baby who is now almost 7 months was our first child. The couple of
months were terrible at night. She didn't want to sleep, would only
sleep for short periods and my wife and I were losing our minds!
My aunt saw an article about "The Happiest Baby on the Block" book/DVD.
I checked it out from the library and that night she slept 5 hours
straight! It was like Heaven! From that night on, we would use his
"swaddling" technique and she has been sleeping an average of 8 hours a
night...some times more, some times less. What also helps that he
mentions is having "white noise" when they are going to sleep. We ran
the vacuum and she'd fall right asleep! Now we have a tape of it that
we put on when she first goes to bed. The swaddling and the vacuum tape
were total life savers!

I highly recommend the book and especially the DVD!

Rich