Colic Soothing Methods That Help, and What to Skip

It’s 6 p.m., your baby has been crying for an hour, and you’ve tried everything. First, breathe. You are not doing it wrong. No single method cures colic, but a short list of calming tools can take the edge off the crying, and a few popular products aren’t worth your money. This guide covers what to try in the moment, what the research says about drops and probiotics, how to handle the evening “witching hour,” and how to protect yourself when you hit your limit.

Babybareessentials

Feel More Prepared for the Hard Weeks

Baby Bare Essentials’ planner supports parents from pregnancy through toddlerhood with practical tools for navigating newborn care and early parenthood.

Explore the planner

TL;DR

Colic means long bouts of crying in an otherwise healthy baby. It usually peaks around 6 weeks and fades by 3 to 6 months, per a clinical review in the journal literature.
Start with the basics: check hunger, diaper, temperature and overstimulation, then try swaddling, holding, rocking, white noise and a pacifier.
Simethicone drops and acid-reducing medicines have not been shown to help colic. Probiotics have some evidence, but only for breastfed babies, and you should ask your pediatrician first.
Call your pediatrician first to rule out other causes. If you’re at your breaking point, lay your baby safely on their back in the crib and step away for a few minutes.

What colic is, and what it isn’t
Step one: rule out the obvious
Colic soothing methods to try, in order
Taming the evening witching hour
What the research says about drops, supplements and medicines
When you’re at your limit
When to call the pediatrician
Our perspective on colic
A simple tool for the hard weeks
FAQ
Sources

What colic is, and what it isn’t

Doctors describe colic with the “rule of three”: inconsolable crying for more than three hours a day, on more than three days a week, for longer than three weeks. It affects roughly 10% to 40% of infants, and the same review calls it a benign process. Benign means it isn’t harming your baby. It doesn’t feel benign at 2 a.m.

Two points worth knowing:

Colic is a diagnosis of exclusion. Your pediatrician should take a history and examine your baby to rule out other medical causes before using the label, according to the same review. Don’t assume crying equals colic.
It’s a phase, not a failing. The American Academy of Pediatrics’ parent site explains the “Period of PURPLE Crying”, a way of seeing intense crying as a normal developmental stage that peaks in the first few months. It is not a disease to be cured, and it is not a sign of bad parenting.

If your baby cries a lot from the very first weeks, our guide on why newborns cry constantly helps you sort normal fussing from something to flag.

Step one: rule out the obvious

Before you reach for any colic technique, run a quick check. Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia suggests asking the same simple questions every time:

Is your baby hungry?
Too hot or too cold?
Does the diaper need changing?
Is the room too bright, loud or busy?

If all four are covered and the crying continues, move on to the soothing tools below. If your baby has a fever, vomits repeatedly, has blood in the stool, isn’t feeding well or seems limp or unusually sleepy, call your pediatrician right away. Those are not colic signs.

Colic soothing methods to try, in order

There’s no perfect order, and what works on Tuesday may fail on Wednesday. Treat this as a menu. Give each option a few minutes before switching, because constant changes can overstimulate a baby.

Swaddle snugly, then stop when rolling starts

Wrapping your baby in a thin cotton blanket can be calming, as the NHS colic page notes. Safety matters here: a pediatric practice guide advises stopping swaddling at the first sign of rolling, usually between 2 and 4 months. Always place a swaddled baby on their back to sleep.

Hold, rock, walk

Motion and closeness are the most common first-line tools. Cradle your baby in your arms or a carrier, rock gently, walk, talk or sing. The AAP’s parent site suggests these along with reducing light and noise. A baby carrier keeps your hands free, which matters when dinner needs making.

Add a steady background sound

A low, continuous hum, like a fan or a white noise machine, soothes some babies. Keep it at a safe, moderate volume and place the machine across the room, not in the crib. Not every baby likes it, so treat it as a trial.

Offer sucking

Many babies calm by sucking. A pacifier can help, and the NHS suggests it’s fine once breastfeeding is well established. If you’re breastfeeding, ask your lactation consultant or pediatrician about timing.

Try a warm bath and skin-to-skin time

A warm bath can relax you both. Afterward, lay your baby against your bare chest for skin-to-skin contact. This one is easy to repeat daily, and it supports bonding while you wait out the crying.

Caregiver safely supporting newborn during bath

Gentle tummy pressure and movement

Many parents hold their baby face-down along their forearm, with the head supported, while awake and watched at all times. Gentle bicycle legs and a soft tummy massage are other common tries. Evidence is thinner here than for swaddling and holding, so go by your baby’s response. If your baby looks more distressed, stop. Always keep sleep on the back, and keep tummy time for awake, supervised play.

Gentle tummy pressure and movement — overview diagram

Use the “5 S’s” as a routine

Some pediatricians teach a structured sequence: swaddle, side or stomach hold while awake, shush, swing, and suck. One pediatric guide describes it as the most-studied set of in-the-moment techniques. It’s a handy checklist when your brain is fried. Put it on the fridge.

Quick reference

Method	Best for	Watch out for
Swaddle	Newborns who startle easily	Stop at first signs of rolling
Hold, rock, carry	Almost every baby	Your back and arms; share the load
White noise	Overstimulated babies	Keep it low and across the room
Pacifier	Babies who love to suck	Wait until breastfeeding is established
Warm bath, skin-to-skin	Evening fussiness	Check water temperature carefully
Dim lights, quiet room	Overtired babies	None; it’s free

Taming the evening witching hour

Many babies fuss most in the late afternoon and evening. Parents call it the witching hour, and it often shows up in the same weeks that colic does. You can’t always stop it, but you can plan for it.

Start the calm early. Dim lights and lower the noise before the fussing starts, not once it’s in full swing.
Keep feeds full. Hungry babies cry harder, and a baby who snacks all evening may simply be growing. See how growth spurts work in babies if the pattern shifts suddenly.
Hand off. Trade off with a partner or helper at a set time. Even 20 minutes alone can reset you.
Write down the pattern. A simple log of when crying starts, what you tried and what helped is more reliable than memory at 3 a.m. It also gives your pediatrician real information.

If evening crying turns into night waking, newborn sleep cycles are worth a read so you know what’s normal.

What the research says about drops, supplements and medicines

Walk down any baby aisle and you’ll find colic products. Here’s what the evidence says.

Simethicone and acid reducers

Gas drops with simethicone and proton pump inhibitors have been found ineffective for colic, and dicyclomine is contraindicated in infants. A systematic review of reviews and guidelines reached a similar conclusion. It found the most consistently recommended approach is parent education, reassurance and clinical assessment, not a quick fix. Don’t give any medicine to a young infant without your pediatrician’s go-ahead.

Probiotics

For breastfed babies, a systematic review found that the probiotic Lactobacillus reuteri (strain DSM 17938) reduced crying time, with a mean difference of about 56 minutes a day by day 21. That’s real but modest. It was studied in breastfed infants, so it doesn’t automatically apply to formula-fed babies. Ask your pediatrician which product and dose, if any, suits your baby.

Other remedies

The NHS notes that anti-colic drops and herbal or probiotic supplements are sold in pharmacies and shops. Sold does not mean proven. Skip herbal teas, gripe water and home recipes unless your pediatrician approves them, and never give honey to a baby under 12 months.

What about feeding changes?

If you’re breastfeeding or formula feeding, don’t change diet or formula on your own because of crying. Talk with your pediatrician first, since an elimination diet or formula switch is only appropriate for specific medical reasons. To learn what’s happening inside that tiny tummy, see how the newborn digestive system works.

When you’re at your limit

This part matters more than any technique. Prolonged crying is frustrating, and every parent has a breaking point.

The AAP’s parent site says it’s safe, and necessary, to lay your baby on their back in a safe crib and walk away for 5 to 10 minutes if you feel you can’t cope. Shaking a baby can cause permanent injury or death, and stepping away protects them.

A short plan for your worst moments:

Put your baby on their back in an empty crib.
Leave the room. Breathe, drink water, step outside the door if you need to.
Check on your baby every few minutes.
Call a partner, relative or friend to take over.
Tell your pediatrician if you feel overwhelmed often. Postpartum depression and anxiety are common and treatable, so ask for help early.

The CDC has also published guidance for caregivers reminding them that babies can cry a lot in the first months, that it gets better, and that you’re not a bad parent if it continues.

When to call the pediatrician

Call your baby’s doctor promptly if the crying comes with:

Fever (in a newborn, call immediately)
Repeated or forceful vomiting, or green or bloody vomit
Blood in the stool
Poor feeding or poor weight gain
A swollen or hard belly
Unusual sleepiness or floppiness
Crying that suddenly changes in character or seems like pain with every touch

If your baby is choking or struggling to breathe, that’s an emergency. Our infant choking first aid steps are worth learning before you need them. And if you’re ever in doubt, call. Pediatric offices expect these calls.

Our perspective on colic

We hear one thing from first-time parents more than any other: “I just want someone to tell me what to do.” With colic, the honest answer is that there’s no magic fix, and that’s hard to hear. What we can offer is a calmer way through it.

First, pick two or three soothing methods and stick with them for a few days. Parents who chase every new trick often end up more exhausted, and so do their babies. Second, write things down. A simple log of feeds, crying spells and what helped turns a blur into a pattern, and it helps you have a better conversation with your pediatrician. Third, plan your own breaks in advance, before you need them. That’s why we built our planner with physical logs, checklists and routines in one place: when you’re running on three hours of sleep, you shouldn’t have to remember anything.

We review our guidance against sources like ACOG, the NHS and the AAP, because you deserve information you can trust and not another 3 a.m. Google rabbit hole. Crying phases pass. You’re doing a good job.

— Rebeka

A simple tool for the hard weeks

Our Pregnancy and Parenthood Planner puts sleep and feeding logs, milestone trackers, first aid pages and routines in one permanent, offline place, so you can see your baby’s patterns and share them with your pediatrician. The physical planner is $120 and the digital edition is $25, both one-time purchases. See the planner at Baby Bare Essentials, or read more on what the planner includes.

FAQ

How do you soothe a colicky baby fast?

Check hunger, diaper and temperature first. Then try swaddling (until rolling starts), holding and rocking, a low white noise and a pacifier. Give each a few minutes. Nothing works every time, so the goal is to reduce crying, not erase it.

Does warm milk help colic?

There’s no good evidence that it does, and babies under 12 months shouldn’t have cow’s milk as a drink. Breast milk or formula is the only milk they need. If you wonder about feeding, ask your pediatrician.

How long does colic last?

It typically peaks around 6 weeks of age and resolves by 3 to 6 months, per the clinical review. Some days will feel endless, but it does get better. If crying lasts well beyond that window, mention it at your next visit.

Do gas drops or gripe water work for colic?

Simethicone drops have not shown clinical benefit for colic. Gripe water and herbal products aren’t backed by strong evidence either, so check with your pediatrician before trying any.

Will colic affect my baby long term?

Colic is considered a benign condition, so your baby isn’t being harmed by it. What does need attention is your own wellbeing. Sleep when you can, accept help, and talk to your doctor if you feel low or anxious.

Colic is one of the toughest parts of the newborn months, and it ends. If you’d like one calm place to track it all, explore the planner at babybareessentials.com.