THE FRETFUL CRY
The babe who is wet, soiled, too hot, or is wrapped too tightly, or who has on a tight, uncomfortable belly band, or whose clothing is full of wrinkles, has only one way to tell us of his discomfort, and that is to cry. It is a fretful cry and should command an immediate investigation as to the possible cause. It takes but a moment to discover a wet diaper; to run the hand up the back under the clothes; to sprinkle with talcum if perspiring; to straighten out the wrinkled clothing; to find the unfastened pin that pricks; or to loosen the tight band. Acquire the art of learning to perform these simple tasks easily, and any or all of these services should be rendered without taking the child from its bed.
Let the child early learn to rest happily and quietly in his own bed. The pillow or mattress may be turned or perhaps the mattress be raised nearer the edge of the basinet. One poor youngster instantly stopped his fretful cry when his mattress was raised four or five inches so he could get the air, at the same time taking him out of his hot room to a cooler room with raised windows. Babies like cold air. They cry when the air is hot, or even warm and close. Every day—rain or shine, wind or sleet—babies should nap out of doors on the porch, in a well-sheltered corner. A screen or a blanket protects from the wind, sleet, or rain; and if the baby's finger tips are warm, you can rest assured the feet and body are warm. Scores of babies will sleep out on the porch, on the protected fire escape, or in a room with opened windows, from one bottle or feeding to another; being aroused at the end of the three or four hour interval just enough to nurse, when back they go to their delightful, warm nest in the cool, fresh air to sleep for another period. Babies should never sleep in a room with closed windows.
One of the incidents that surprised me most in my early work with dispensary babies was the utter misconception of the purpose of the belly band. Invariably it was put on so tightly that I could not slip a finger between it and the babe. It is not a surgical instrument, neither is it a truss. These tight belly bands are a source of much fretting and crying.