[The 3-Week Mystery] The 'Mysterious Crying Spells' That Happen Every Day at 8 PM, and the Surprising 'Specifications' Revealed by Medicine
To all the new moms and dads out there, thank you for your hard work today.
Our baby is about 3 weeks old now.
Every day, when the clock strikes around 8 PM, 'it' arrives at our house.
—A sudden, limit-breaking, intense crying spell.
The diaper was just changed. The milk was just finished. Even when we hold the baby, they arch their back and cry.
'Oh no, are they in pain!?' 'What should we do!?' My partner and I scramble around in a panic. Our house instantly turns into the climax of a disaster movie.
However, after crying their heart out for a while...
'Click.'
Our baby suddenly falls asleep as if a string had been cut.
What was that storm just a moment ago? All that's left are the exhausted, bewildered adults.
This 'mysterious crying loop' actually has a proper medical name and reason.
I spent my nights researching papers and medical information, and I'd like to share the surprising facts I discovered.
💡 The culprit is the '3-Week Witching Hour' x 'Colic'
This mysterious, intense crying that begins around 3 weeks of age is known in the parenting world as the '3-Week Witching Hour,' and medically as 'colic' or 'PURPLE Crying.'
It is by no means because your 'parenting is bad' or 'there isn't enough love.' Babies all over the world are showing their potential in the same way during this period.
🩺 The '3 Causes' of intense crying, according to medicine
Why 8 PM? Why does nothing work?
Here is a fun, simplified translation of the latest medical findings.
1. The brain's 'We are closed for the day' sign (Capacity overload)
For a 3-week-old baby, every day is like a 'super-stimulating festival.' The light they see, the sounds they hear—everything is fresh.
However, a baby's brain memory is very limited. Around 8 PM, they can't process the day's stimulation anymore, so they freeze (cry intensely) as if to say, 'Waaaah! My brain is fried!'
2. A 'bug' in the autonomic nervous system
Humans switch to the parasympathetic nervous system, which is the relaxation mode, from evening to night.
However, the autonomic nervous system of a 3-week-old baby is still as immature as a dial-up internet connection.
They experience an error, wondering 'Which switch is for switching modes again!?', and end up crying intensely while still excited.
3. 'Forced shutdown' from crying exhaustion
That exquisite system where they 'suddenly fall asleep after crying for a certain amount of time.'
Medically speaking, that can be described as 'a state where the brain has entered a forced shutdown (sleep mode) for self-defense due to crying exhaustion.' It's like a forced restart on a computer.
Conclusion: This is not a malfunction, it is a 'specification'
In other words, that intense crying where neither diapers nor milk work is not a sickness at all; it is 'proof that the baby is successfully updating to a human brain (=specification).'
When nothing you do stops the crying,
'Okay, the brain is updating right now,' or 'Maybe the Wi-Fi is acting up,'
you can think that, lay them down in a safe place, and it's okay for you as a parent to take a breather.
An end will definitely come someday (it often settles down around 2 to 3 months of age).
To all my fellow 'bewildered' parents across the country, let's take it easy and watch over them until the update is complete...!