Q&A: Baby being spooked into crying while asleep

A friend with an almost-4-month-old asks:

"Have you heard of babies spooking easily, especially when they're asleep? The baby breaks out into crying in middle of (light) sleep, like she had a bad dream."

This seems early for night terrors, and there's no indication that she can't get back to sleep.

I'm wondering if it's teething, actually. Both of my kids seemed to have these random jolts of pain that would jerk them into crying briefly but then pass so they settled again, whther asleep or awake.

If the baby has any of the following symptoms of teething that will help you know for sure:

• drooling
• biting on hands
• little "smoker's cough" in the morning (from the drool going down the back of the throat)
• shards of drool in diaper (aka "drool stool")
• very acidic poop
• rash around the anus
• rash around the mouth
• excess peevishness (although with a baby, who can tell what's excess?)
• flash fevers
• sweatiness
• refusing to eat
• eating more
• difficulty staying asleep

 

What did I forget?

If you do suspect it's teething you should give pain relief. (I adored the tylenol suppositories, because you can't beat a suppository as a dosing mechanism for an infant.)

You can layer that with one of the homeopathic teething remedies people have been using with no side effects for years. (Do you know how they work? I never cared, as long as they made my children more comfortable.) Do not bother with the homeopathic teething gel as it's useless. Instead, go for the Hyland's teething tablets or the Humphries #3 tablets (recommended by both my old pediatrcian and several old-school nannies on the playground).

If none of this matches up with what you're observing in your child, then I think it's just something that's going to pass in a few weeks anyway. Who knows why babies cry?

Has anyone else observed this in their child? Was it teething? Was it something else entirely? What did you do about it?

Comments

[Alyssa]

Our son (just about 2 now), used to do this quite often when he was 3-4 months old. I distinctly remember holding him while he was napping and he would cry out or wimper - almost like he was having a bad dream. He didn't get his first tooth until he was a year, so I don't think it was connected.

During the episodes, he didn't wake up, and I could sooth him by just brushing his face or hair with my fingers.

[Devin]

At that age, my daughter started having ear infections, so usually her crying was ear related (she was a late teether, so it wasn't the teeth at that point). Usually the ears meant she'd eventually wake up and not be able to get herself back to sleep, but it usually started with the whimpering. Just a thought that a look into the ears might be warranted if it continues or doesn't seem like the teething symptoms listed above.

[Jan]

I have a 3 1/2 month old right now and he does this, too. I think my other kids did it, too. Also, occasionally laughter. I think it's dreaming myself, though I guess that's just my own personal theory. It makes me think of what we always call puppy dreams -- when the dog is asleep and starts "running" in her sleep, or whimpering.

My baby also seems to get sudden pains related to digestion (i.e. a poop is coming soon) that make him cry "out of the blue". I don't recall my other two having it, but the pediatrician says it's pretty common.

[Liza]

My two month old does this and it usually seems to be gas in his belly. It will happen mostly if I don't burp him well enough, like if he falls asleep while nursing. If I raise his head up a bit it will usually pass, or he'll burp and then go back to sleep. Sometimes I need to pick him up and have him more upright for a minute until he burps or it passes. I suspect it's like being woken up from intense heartburn (remember that from pregnancy?).

[Cordy]

The teething tablets work (for a given value of "work") because they're sugar pills. A hit of sucrose jolts your brain and soothes pain in babies. In the ICU, nurses will dip a pacifier in a sugar solution before a procedure on an infant.

[Ashleyk]

My baby does this occasionally. I assumed it was gas/indigestion at 4 mo because we'd just started cereal, but teething makes sense too. During the day he will cry like that for no apparent reason.

[paola]

It's been a while, but I think I remember my kids doing this when they were wee babies. I've also noticed it in animals. Our cat used to miao loudly when asleep as though someone had pricked her with a pin or something. I always assumed she ( the cat) was dreaming and same for my kids.

[laura]

I'd say probably gas...

[Katie B]

My elder daughter did this from the time she was born.. snoozing along, suddenly a frown and a high-pitched whine. I always figured nightmares, as I get those too (there is a genetic component). She had a few night terrors, but not a lot; mostly she continues to have nightmares fairly regularly. She's 4 now. I don't know what an infant could have bad dreams about (mommy running out of milk?), but we know even fetuses have dreams, so why not nightmares?

My younger DD (now 18m) never cried in her sleep, but even now laughs in her dreams (she had a great big belly laugh the other night in my arms!).

[Anon]

Overtired is a possibility (too-tired/wired to stay asleep - wakes up crying).

[Jen]

"Old-school nannies on the playground"... I think this should be the name of my new punk-rock album.

Love it!

[anon]

Agree with possibly teething. We liked a frozen wet washcloth as a chewy.

Just a caution about tylenol and kids- there seem to be increasing data associating even a little tylenol use and asthma. No cause and effect proven as far as I know, but the association is strong. We've a big FH of asthma so we stay away from the tylenol.

[anon]

oops FH= doctorspeak for family history.

[Jess]

Always happened for us when a kiddo was still tired yet awoken via normal sleep cycling. Ignoring sometimes worked, other times the girl was awake and there wasn't much to do about it. By about 6-8 months it was almost entirely gone, and when the oldest now does it, I know to just leave her be and she can put herself back to sleep if I don't interfere.

[Heather]

My son did this until we figured out that it happened during his first sleep cycle after being exposed to television. He wasn't watching it, but I was while nursing him. If he heard a TV, the very next nap he would have a nightmare. No TV, no nightmare. It completely stopped once we made the connection.

[Heather]

#1 sleeps like a rock, but #2 was like this. Even the newborn nurse in the hospital could not put her down without waking her us--would fall asleep like a charm, but could not stay asleep unless held, even during the coma phase the first few days after birth. She startles awake like nobody's business. She's three now, and it is starting to get easier. I think she's just wired to be a crazy light sleeper.

[MA]

Hyland's teething tablets were recalled in 2010. I'm not sure if they are back on the market...

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[gemma]

My baby did the same at 3/4 months - and you could set your clock by it (45mins exactly). Our doctor said it was a bad dream / night terrors - just the brain doing its thing. So I started going in at 40mins and shushing him gently, so he stirred but didn't wake, and it sort of changed his sleep cycle transition process.

(Or maybe it was just luck.)

[Engin]

Lol. I am laughing baeucse Buchela did this to us a couple of times too andI felt like a complete idiot at the Doctor's office baeucse he was just fine by the time we got to see a pediatrician. Boy, do I hear you! On a different note, little j is totally adorable:)

[Emilio]

Poor baby Wills, who obviously codlun't get the shot, has had it pretty bad. Coupled with heavy teething (his top two came out this week, and one more is breaking too), he's had a tough time. And so

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These types of people are most plbabory miserable buggers who've had nothing but grief themselves. They plbabory had tons of problems bringing up their own child because they thought they were "always right" and wouldn't listen to any advice so now, they feel it's their given right to dish out their experiences and expect all new mums to just follow suit. Best way is to ignore them. That's what I always did and still do.Some people are just so ignorant they beggar belief. Having a child with autism has been a massive eye-opener for me over the years when I've had to endure advice from people who wouldn't know a special needs child if he or she slapped them in the face with a notice board saying "I am autistic". I learned from early on to smile and ignore. CJ xx

[Amir]

Sleeping through at 7 weeks! Wowzer! Just wait until his marlos start cutting...joke :) Iyla was a terrible sleeper until a month ago so I have always been open to any help I can get but it would annoy me is I didnt need it. Just because people have had a kid, doesn't mean that they know everything about all kids! Every baby is different and anyone who's had a baby will know that it's a learning process that you get better at with time! They should mind their own business! X

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[Danielle]

throw a washcloth in the frezeer for a while than give that to him, its the only thing that helped by daughter through teething (the gels and such would make her ill and the teething toys did nothing either).

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Beautiful girls and adorable outtfis! Did you make the clothes? I am trying to sew some dresses for my toddler this summer, but my experience sewing so far has been curtains, pillowcases and one awesome pirate cape, none of which really required a pattern. I'm not sure my skills are up to this, but I will try! I am with you on the lack of sleep and 5 a.m. seeming like an acceptable time to get up in the morning. It's about all you can do to function through an entire day, much less write anything down. Hang in there! I have a 4 year old who sleeps through the ENTIRE NIGHT until 6:30 or 7 every day, so I know it can be done

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[Kenji@nutrihealth]

Babies have to go through a lot you know. Sometimes as adults we look at life as though childhood was easy and an idyllic period where there was no worry, no pain. However even as children we went through a lot.

Pain is a part of life. I don't know if your little one is waking up in the night because of nightmares or because of pain. There are so many factors that could be causing it.

You've listed some that I didn't think of. I hope your baby starts having more peaceful nights soon.

[Monique]

For some reason, tetnhieg pain always seems to be MUCH worse for my son at night. I think it's because there isn't anything to distract him. You might try giving Trixie some Tylenol before bed. I've also found that when the pain is really bad, it works better for us if I alternate between Tylenol and Advil every three hours. So, if I give him Tylonol at 8:00 AM, I give him Advil at 11:00 AM, and then Tylenol again when 2:00 PM rolls around. I don't keep this routine up around the clock, but it does seem to work when the teeth are the most painful (right before they break through).Hope this helps!-Rozanne

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