Dr. Harvey Karp, Author Of The Happiest Baby on the Block, Tells Us How To Calm Colic, No Meds Required

It’s a sign as to just how huge and frustrating the problem is that we have so many medical professionals attempting to solve it. And let me tell you, there are a whole lot of people looking to put an end to colic. That new-parent scourge that keeps babies an parents struggling through the first four months. There’s just no stress like a colicky baby.

Which is why Mommyish has spent so much time looking into the problem and those who believe they’ve found the cure. It all started when research out of the University of Cairo suggested that colic was caused by an intestinal bacteria called H. pylori. We reported on the research and the chance that doctors had finally found a cause to the mystery crying. Then, we sat down with the wonderful Dr. Bob Sears and discussed his work with other intestinal issues and food intolerances, as well his attachment parenting principles and how they fit in.

However, there’s another voice in this crying debate, one that isn’t so convinced colic is caused by stomach issues at all. So Mommyish talked to Dr. Harvey Karp, the author of The Happiest Baby on the Block and proponent of the Five S system for “curing” colic. Dr. Karp and his team had noticed our recent pieces on colic and wanted to speak up for another side of the issue.

“If colic were really intestinal issues, why would it stop immediately when you turn on a vacuum or get in the car,” Dr. Karp explained to me. “That doesn’t make sense.” But this parenting guru has created an entire system that he believes works to calm babies, help them sleep longer and help make happier parents. The Happiest Baby isn’t just a book. It has a DVD to help show parents how the techniques work. And there are also Happiest Baby educators located in cities around the country. Much like you could contact a La Leche consultant to help with breastfeeding, you can get a hold of a calming specialist to help show you the finer points of swaddling, shushing and swinging.

(Photo: Christo/Shutterstock)

So if it’s not intestinal issues that cause newborns to cry for hours, just what is the reason behind colic? Dr. Karp believes in what he refers to as “the fourth trimester.” It’s the idea that after birth, babies are transitioning from the soft, jiggling world of the womb and into a very different existence. The next three months, parents really need to try to recreate that womb-like experience for their children as much as possible.

What parents are trying to do is evoke the calming reflex. “It’s just like your knee reflex. If it I hit it in just the right place, your knee will jump. And if parents follow this steps, they’re going to be able to calm their baby down just as easily,” Dr. Karp explained. This is where his five S’s come in. They’re swaddling, side/stomach position, shushing, swinging, and sucking. Using these five techniques, Dr. Karp believes that your baby can stop crying and sleep longer, helping relieve problems for parents and little ones.

When I think about those steps though, they seem pretty basic to me as a new mom. Aren’t those all things that parents are already trying? “Just like with the knee,” Dr. Karp explains, ” if you hit just an inch too low, you aren’t going to get the same reaction. With this, you need to do the steps just right to get the calming reflex to work. That’s why we suggest things like getting the DVD to see it work or contacting a coach to get lessons.” But once done right, is the system really a cure-all? What if we’ve watched the DVD, read the book, gotten classes and we’re still dealing with a crying infant? “90% of the time, I would say that it’s parenting error. They still don’t have the system down. The other 10% might be where you’d find things like those intestinal issues or other medical problems.”

Now, I have a pretty unique little girl. I’ve been convinced of her uniqueness from the very beginning. My daughter was never the swaddling type. She hated those sleeper bags that didn’t let her kick her feet around. What would The Happiest Baby make of my rebellious little girl who never wanted that swaddling nonsense? “This seems pretty one-size-fits-all,” I mentioned to Dr. Karp. “Well, babies are still different. And parents can use the five S’s in combinations that work for them. For some, it’s swaddling and side position. For others it’s shushing and swinging.” So it adds another layer to the process for parents to figure out just what combination makes their little ones happiest.

(Photo: Happiest Baby)

Still, as a mother who remembered all the doubt and insecurity of those first few months, I couldn’t get past this idea that there’s always a solution. I definitely remember times, sitting in a rocking chair and singing lullabies, that solutions seemed like foreign concepts, when I had tried every bit of advice or wisdom and still came up short. “Do you think that’s a lot of pressure for new parents,” I wondered, “to hear that if their baby keeps crying it’s basically because they’re failing by not mastering your approach?” And while Dr. Karp is all about teaching parents, in this case, he didn’t have a ton of sympathy. “I’m not going to pat parents on the head and say they’re doing a great job,” Dr. Karp told me. “As a pediatrician, my first concern is the babies, not the parents feelings. But I would be failing them both if I had these skills available and didn’t teach them.”

Dr. Karp and I’s discussion got into the broader context of parenting instincts. Specifically, was all this advice from Dr. Karp and his peers drowning out a parent’s own natural responses. “Parenting isn’t an instinct. It’s learned, like manners. You aren’t born knowing manners, you have to be taught. This is one of the first generations who are becoming parents without a whole lot of experience with babies. It used to be that people had helped raise other infants in the family. They were familiar with newborns. We don’t have that anymore and that’s why parents need to learn the skills that we’re trying to teach them.”

In the end, parents are still going to be the ones deciding how to calm their children and what system works best for them, but Dr. Karp has certainly created a template that parents can benefit from. And he has a whole lot of true believers in his system. To Dr. Karp, his tools really should become standard for all parents. “There are generally agreed on standards for some things in parenting. We all know that babies need milk for the first year of life. It may seem boring, but we all agree that it’s what’s best for babies,” Dr. Karp explained. “So you want your techniques to become as standard as milk…” I offered. “Yes, I think we’d have a lot of happier babies and happier parents,” Dr. Karp agreed.

[UPDATE: Dr. Karp emailed me to clarify one of his quotes in this interview. He said, “As a pediatrician, my concern is BOTH the baby and the parents…they are really inseparable! Perhaps I was clumsy in getting my message across, but what I was trying to, I believe I said my worries that parents are fragile would never make me withhold the factual information that they need to succeed…even at the risk that some moms may feel pressure. Just like we encourage breastfeeding – even  though some moms may feel guilty if they choose not to continue –  we still encourage it because it’s ultimately best for the baby and parents.”]

(Photo: Happiest Baby)

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