Why is baby straightening body

This kind of baby tensing can be easily described as the baby making themselves stiff and straight. They are tensing their muscles in their legs and often they will accompany this action with grunts. This can happen at any time and each episode tends to only last a few seconds. This can often be accompanied by clenching their firsts, tensing their legs and shaking at the same time.

However, what we can imagine is the same if we tensed our muscles fully — the baby is engaging their muscles to their limit and contracting their bodies. This is why many parents are concerned when they see it. Are they in pain? Is it a normal baby development event? However, we are not medical professionals at Best For Mums and any information here should not be used as advice and genuine concerns should always be sought from your GP. At time I have known my baby boy has been irritable because of teething and when I see him tense up I put two and two together and move on.

If your baby tenses up and crying then this could be a leading cause of it. Possible solutions: We recommend letting it pass without intervention but if you can use any prescribed teething aids to distract them. Babies can get constipated often for a number of reasons, teething being one of them in fact. Being constipated is uncomfortable and can lead to some abdominal pain which can come and go in waves — tensing up during a particularly painful moment of constipation can be common especially if you see them tensing up their tummy.

If your baby is diagnosed with kernicterus, they can still be treated by a specialist doctor. Cerebral palsy is a group of muscle control conditions. It usually happens when there is brain damage while your baby is still in the womb. About 1 in children worldwide have a type of cerebral palsy. Signs of this condition might show up while your little one is a baby or toddler. Signs include muscle floppiness, strong reflexes, and stiffening like arching the back.

Babies with cerebral palsy may also have trouble swallowing and moving their eyes. Some babies with this condition may also be more likely to have seizures. Sandifer syndrome is a rare movement condition almost always associated with gastroesophageal reflux disease GERD.

It starts in babies or small children. Once the baby is treated for GERD or it goes away on its own , this condition goes away. Sandifer syndrome causes serious back arching in babies that can last for up to 3 minutes. It causes a frozen kind of back arching that can sometimes be mistaken for a baby seizure.

Back arching from this syndrome can happen about 10 times a day, usually after your baby has eaten. During back arching your baby will also stretch their legs out backwards and be very stiff.

Other symptoms of Sandifer syndrome include:. Children with autism spectrum disorder ASD typically show several signs. This sometimes includes repetitive motions like back arching, but remember that back arching is much more often due to other causes.

A newborn or a baby that is only a few weeks to a few months old will likely not show signs of this condition. By the end of the first year, an autistic baby may show characteristic traits that are more common, like:. For example, treating common baby problems like gassiness and acid reflux will take care of the back stretching. For normal gassiness and baby reflux you can try simple, low risk home remedies like:.

If your little angel is throwing their head backwards and arching their back in a toddler temper tantrum, gentle behavior training may help stop this.

Teaching your child how to express themselves in a less dramatic way might help. Ask your pediatrician for recommendations. Some babies with seizures will naturally outgrow them. Other more serious causes of back arching may need physical therapy, medications, surgery, or other medical treatment.

Look for symptoms of brain or nerve problems along with back arching. Babies arch their backs for many reasons — or for no reason at all.

In a happy, comfortable, healthy baby, back arching likely has no cause and is just one of those things they do. They do not have the ability to respond to frustrations and problems the way that we do, and one way they might deal with this is by tensing up their body. However, if you notice your baby tensing up often and they seem upset or frustrated more than usual, you should call your doctor for advice.

Noticing what area your baby stiffens can actually help you determine what the cause might be. For example, if your baby tenses up their stomach, it could be a sign that they are constipated or have a stomach ache. If your baby tenses up their arms, it could simply be them stretching their muscles, or it could be that they are frustrated or overstimulated. Often if a baby tenses their arms, they are frustrated.

Try to calm your little one down and remove them from a situation that could be causing them stress. There are many reasons why your newborn might tense up and shake.

They might be stretching, they might be having a stomach cramp, reflux, or they might be feeling frustrated. In order to try and figure out why your newborn is tensing up, you should take note of their behavior. If they are fine before and after tensing up, then it is fairly safe to say that they are just exploring their body and all that it can do. However, if they seem upset, frustrated, and uncomfortable, they might be having cramps, be constipated or be in pain.

It can be difficult to determine why your newborn is in pain or upset, and contacting your doctor is always the safest option. You could gently stroke them and speak to them softly, but their tensing and stiffening up is usually over within a few seconds.

They are made of amino acids, which are the smallest building blocks of proteins. A recent study showed that probiotics can help infants with colic. Probiotics are germs that are known to be beneficial which are added to the digestive tract. The two probiotics Culturelle Lactobacillus GG and Florastor a beneficial yeast help the colic in some babies. The dose is half a capsule of Culturelle once a day and half a packet of Florastor twice a day.

The formula companies are starting to add probiotics to the formulas in the United States. These newer formulas might be helpful in preventing colic. The reflux may back up only to the lower part of the esophagus. Even though the food comes back up through the esophagus, it does not cause pain. When the reflux causes erosion of the wall of the esophagus, the baby will show painful signs of heartburn.

GERD babies cry intensely after or during feedings. They often gulp during and between feedings. They sometimes wake up screaming after falling sleep contentedly after a feeding. The refluxing baby will often stiffen his legs and body and arch his back, throwing his head back. The upright position seems more comfortable, and many GERD babies are difficult to put down. Here are a few points about the management of this acid reflux: 1. Sleep position can be important in reflux disease.

A slight upward angle at the head of the mattress can be helpful. This is done by putting a folded towel under the head of the mattress, creating a degree angle. These infants often sleep better sitting up. It has been noted, however, that infant seats are not the best sleep chairs for reflux infants. This is because the baby is folded in the middle, creating back pressure on the belly. A bouncy seat or swing which allows the baby to keep his abdomen stretched out while seated is better.

Thickening feeds can help sometimes. If the baby is bottle-fed, it sometimes helps to add rice cereal to the formula 1 tablespoon to every 4 ounces. Thickened feeds seem to satisfy the baby with fewer ounces, so the stomach is less full. The hole in the nipple has to be opened to accommodate the thicker formula I have never found that giving cereal after feeding helps a breastfed infant. Burping, as mentioned before, is very important since the acid-full milk sometimes comes up with a delayed burp.

Constipation can add to the problem, probably by delaying the emptying of the stomach contents into the small intestine.