You may be told that parents can identify their babies needs by the type or tone pitch of the cry. For example, crying would sound differently when your baby is hungry compared to when he or she has pain. Don’t get unsettled. This is a myth!

You can tell from the intensity of the crying how much your baby is seeking contact with you, but not exactly what the reason is. Through shared experiences you can find out what your baby needs from you when he or she cries. The individual situation helps you to assess why your baby is crying, e.g. if the last meal has already been 4 hours ago, the crying could express hunger. However, in terms of excessively crying babies, it is not always possible to detect a cause for the crying. The tone pitch or the type of crying is not decisive in understanding your baby.

You may have already received plenty of advice and “valuable tips” from your social environment on how best to calm your crying baby. After all, every baby can be soothed by their parents – can’t they?

This is also a myth! Every baby can have times when they cannot be soothed despite their parents’ best efforts. Nothing you try seems to help – cuddling, rocking, carrying, singing, feeding… You may be familiar with these situations and have tried many things without success. Research shows that around 40% of babies’ cries in the first 3 months of life cannot be soothed – no matter how hard the parents try.