Magic, miracle, no it’s a reflex. Dr. Karp’s discoveries about babies means most parents can soothe even colicky babies in minutes…or less…AND boost sleep 1-3 hours/night.
Most parents (especially dads) say it's easier to learn this amazing approach by watching than by reading. The Happiest Baby DVD is the most watched parenting video in history! Watch as Dr. Karp shows a treasure sought by parents for centuries... the "calming reflex" (an automatic "off-switch" for crying and "on-switch" for sleep all babies are born with).
Learn how to easily transport any baby from screams to sleepy serenity...in minutes. No wonder millions of parents, from working moms to superstars like Madonna and Michelle Pfeiffer have turned to Dr. Karp to learn his secrets for making babies happy. (Then read The Happiest Baby book for lots more practical tips about babies!)
WOW!!! She CAN stop crying!!!August 22, 2002 Kim(NJ, USA) 167 out of 172 found this review helpful
After 5 straight weeks of sleepless nights, my husband and I were walking zombies. Our infant would wake every hour to 2 hours throughout the night and just scream. During the day she would also scream uncontrollably - even though the doctor found nothing wrong with her physically. I had convinced myself that she just wasn't a happy baby like our 6 year old was and life with Isabel would be tough!
Then I searched Amazon one night under "Colic" and found this book and video. Even though we have absolutely no time to read, we did watch the video (while she wailed). My husband tried the swaddling and shhing techniques that night and she quieted down after about 10 minutes. Now 1 week later she calms after 5 min or so AND she is sleeping 4 hours at a time. We feel great and she finally looks peaceful - and not agitated.
Both the book and video are geared toward the first 3 months of life.... and the notion that most babies 1st 3 months of life are really the 4th trimester in their developement. Our first child slept soundly from day one..... but we were blown away with this second one. Thank you Dr. Karp! We finally feel like humans again and the stress level in our home has dropped tremendously.
NEW solutions for crying, difficult babiesJuly 31, 2004 K. Corn(Indianapolis,, IN United States) 70 out of 74 found this review helpful
Raised 3 kids, thought I knew most of the techniques for ssothing babies, helping them through rough days (colic, teething, fussy times). But this video brings NEW research and tips to make life easier for parents of new babies...and if you're an aunt or grandparent, you'll learn something new too. SOme of the suggestions are simply amazing, making specific sounds gently into the baby's ears and seeing an instant, peaceful transformation.
Many of these suggestions come from looking at life from the baby's perspective and, in retrospect, seem like common sense (but not as easy as it sounds, otherwise there'd be no need for this video). Well worth your viewing time and could bring relief to many an exhausted parent (and baby).
Unbelievable: common sense solutions for crying babies!September 23, 2003 Manny Hernandez(Bay Area, CA) 39 out of 42 found this review helpful
Dr. Karp applied common sense to the "problem" of crying babies that most new parents face, by borrowing from traditions being used around the world to calm babies down as if you had "flipped a switch." He acknowledges the existence of a 'fourth trimester', i.e. the first three months of the baby's life and the need to use techniques to make the baby feel as in the mother's womb to calm him/her down, appealing to their calm reflex.
These techniques are summarized as the five S's: Swaddling (very tight, to resemble the tight environment of the uterus), Side or Stomach position (otherwise known as the football hold), Shushing (as loud as the baby cries), Swinging (making the head jiggle slightly, to replicate the mom's movements with the baby in her tummy) and Sucking (with your finger, or a pacifier in place).
As intuitive or odd these techniques may sound to you, you need to view this video: it will probably make the difference for you as it has for so many parents. As I write this, we're in our last couple of weeks of pregnancy, and we're ready to apply them to our upcoming baby boy.
Works only if...June 16, 2006 C. Cole 17 out of 18 found this review helpful
We're using these techniques on our second child and it works. However, it only works if you do them like the DVD shows you. I've had friends that see the movie, think it's great, but somehow missed it when it came to applying it to their screaming infant. Then they complain about what to do with their child, and say, "We just have to find what works".
You have to figure out which combination of the 5 "S's" work, or maybe you need all them. It varies on the day. But if you do them like the DVD shows you, then it does work. After all, the infants in the DVD are not acting. Every one of them is screaming, and they stop! They are all from different families and races.
People envy our sleepJune 19, 2006 Kawika(San Diego, CA United States) 17 out of 18 found this review helpful
We are lucky parents...our baby sleeps pretty long (4 or more hours at a time). All of these techniques work pretty well. A pediatrician recommended the book version of this at the hospital...but once that baby is born, you won't have much time to go through that, and the book has a lot of filler that this DVD doesn't. I checked both the DVD and book out from my local library. While I do not use the same swaddling technique as Dr. Karp, I do use similar blanket swaddling methods and storebought burrito-wrap swaddlers, and they work like a charm. Our baby was born in the UCSD system, so they recommended this, probably b/c they're on the same system as Dr. Karp (UCLA).
To the neg reviewers who say that this stuff is all common sense, I would have to disagree. People marvel at my ability to calm our baby as if it's some voodoo...but it's what I learned from this DVD and a pediatrician at the hospital. The real benefit of DVD over book is that you get a clear picture of what Dr. Karp is talking about and how he calms babies.
