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The Witching Hour: Why Your Newborn Gets So Fussy Every Night & How to Help
The Witching Hour: Why Your Newborn Gets So Fussy Every Night & How to Help

The Witching Hour: Why Your Newborn Gets So Fussy Every Night & How to Help

Ask a veteran parent about the witching hour and you'll get a familiar nod. We can help through this common newborn challenge.

author- Sarah Bradley
By Sarah Bradley
Updated On
Updated On
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In This Article

What causes the witching hour?
Overstimulation and overtiredness
Cluster feeding needs
Newborn gas  
The witching hour versus colic, reflux, and allergies 
How to Make the Witching Hour Easier
The bottom line

It’s 6 p.m. and even though your newborn has been freshly changed, snugly swaddled and recently fed, they just won’t stop screaming. None of your parenting hacks seem to soothe them—and you might be about to join their crying.  

If this sounds like your nightly routine with your new baby, know that you aren’t doing anything wrong. You’re simply in the middle of what’s known as the “witching hour”: a predictable period of time every evening when your baby gets especially fussy, often with no apparent reason. The witching hour usually happens sometime between 5 p.m. and 11 p.m., and despite its nickname, can last up to two or three hours. It tends to peak when babies are just a few weeks old, but typically gets much better when the newborn phase ends. 

In the meantime, a few soothing strategies may make those evenings a little easier (and, of course, keep your baby calmer). Here’s why the witching hour happens, how you can soothe your newborn through it, and when to contact your pediatrician for advice.

What causes the witching hour?

No one really knows for sure why newborns go through this predictable period of extreme fussiness every night, but there are a few good working theories.

Overstimulation and overtiredness

According to Dr. Ilan Shapiro, Chief Health Correspondent and Medical Affairs Officer at AltaMed Health Services in Los Angeles, California, overstimulation and overtiredness are two possible explanations for why young babies melt down on a nightly basis. 

Every day, newborns are bombarded with sights, sounds, smells and other sensory experiences they can’t filter out on their own yet, he explains. By the end of the day, they may be overstimulated—and crying is their way of letting you know they’ve had enough. 

In addition to overstimulation, newborns keep a pretty irregular sleep schedule, especially in the first few weeks of life. Depending on how well your baby sleeps during the day, they might be especially tired in the early evenings—a bad combination that leads to hard-to-soothe fussiness. 

Cluster feeding needs

At night, it’s normal for newborns to cluster feed, or want to feed frequently in a short period of time (every 30 minutes for 3 hours, for example). If your baby seems to only settle down during the witching hour when they’re feeding, it could mean that increased hunger—or even just a desire to be close to you—is contributing to their fussiness. 

This may be more likely if your baby is breastfeeding. Your prolactin levels naturally drop in the evening, which lowers your milk supply slightly; this could increase your baby’s need for more frequent feedings at night, especially if they’re preparing for a longer stretch of overnight sleep.  

Newborn gas  

Newborns have immature stomachs that are still figuring out how to digest foods, which can lead to the formation of a lot of gas. And because babies aren’t very efficient at passing gas yet, it can sometimes cause discomfort. Unfortunately, newborn gas pain tends to peak around six weeks and improve after three months, directly overlapping with the witching hour timeframe.

Although newborn gas is common and generally not harmful, it can definitely be painful enough to cause fussiness during the witching hour, especially since swallowing air while crying can also contribute to gas. If your baby is already crying a lot every night, it basically creates a vicious cycle: crying causes gas, which causes more crying.

The witching hour versus colic, reflux, and allergies 

Even though many newborns go through a predictable period of fussiness in the evenings, sometimes persistent crying is a sign of another issue, like colic, gastroesophageal reflux (GERD) or an intolerance to something in your breast milk or their formula.

Colic is the trickiest to differentiate from the witching hour since the signs are similar—inconsolable crying that often happens at predictable times. But Dr. Shapiro says colic follows the rule of threes: crying for more than three hours a day, more than three days a week, for at least three weeks. It can also happen any time of the day, not just at night.

“The witching hour is evening fussiness in a healthy, thriving baby,” he adds, “and most fussy evenings are just that—an evening, not colic.” 

Other potential reasons for frequent fussiness in a newborn are GERD and food sensitivities, but these issues may come with symptoms beyond nighttime crying. According to Dr. Shapiro, signs to watch for can include poor weight gain, forceful spit up, blood in the stool and intense crying throughout the entire day.

These symptoms are worth a pediatrician visit, says Dr. Shapiro, but typical witching hour crying doesn’t: “Most of the time, this is just a healthy baby's nervous system learning to handle the world, and that part gets easier every week.”

How to Make the Witching Hour Easier

Sometimes the only way to get through the witching hour is to ride it out, but there are some things you can do to help soothe your baby during this fussy time.

  • Swaddling: Swaddling can help some newborns feel more secure and settled (as long as baby hasn’t yet started to roll). You can use a simple baby blanket or choose a wearable swaddle with straps or zippers if your baby moves around a lot. 

  • Playing white noise: Steady, calming sounds are soothing to many babies. Running a white noise or sound machine can relax them while also drowning out other more distracting or startling noises around the house. In a pinch, you can run a floor or box fan for noise.

  • Babywearing: Many babies find closeness and gentle movement soothing. You can give them both by wearing them in a carrier (which also frees you up to do other tasks around the house). 

  • Providing movement: Speaking of being in motion, some babies respond well to swings, bouncers or rockers because they mimic the slow, gentle movements of the womb. You might also have luck taking them for a walk in the stroller or even a bounce on a yoga ball (you do the bouncing while holding them).

  • Reducing stimulation: Dr. Shapiro recommends dimming the lights and turning down the noise level in your home before the witching hour even starts; this can head off a lot of fussiness, he says.

  • Treating gas: Gas pain can make your baby pretty uncomfortable. You can help them pass stuck gas by bicycling their legs, gently massaging their belly or doing a little supervised tummy time. Over-the-counter gas drops can also provide some temporary relief; talk to your pediatrician first.

If you’re just starting to explore ways to soothe your baby, Dr. Shapiro recommends trying swaddling and white noise first—these sensory experiences may help some newborns settle and sleep more comfortably. 

It’s also important to have a plan for taking care of yourself on those nights when nothing you do seems to make a dent in your baby’s fussiness.

“One more thing I always tell new parents [is that] taking care of yourself matters just as much here,” says Dr. Shapiro. “This window can be intense and draining, and a five minute break or asking someone to step in for a bit isn't a failure—it's what lets you keep showing up for your baby with a full tank.”

The bottom line

The witching hour is a tough phase of newborn parenting, but it doesn’t last forever: by the time your baby is outgrowing their first set of bodysuits, they’ll probably be outgrowing their predictable nighttime crying, too. Meanwhile, practicing soothing strategies like swaddling, movement and white noise can help them stay calm. 

With a little practice, you’ll figure out what your baby likes best: “Parents get the hang of these [strategies] fast, and this stage passes quicker than it feels like it will in the moment,” says Dr. Shapiro.

If it seems like your newborn is always crying, however, or if their crying is accompanied by symptoms like poor weight gain, forceful spit up or bloody stool, contact your pediatrician; there could be another reason for their persistent fussiness.

Expert Sources

Babylist uses high-quality subject matter experts to provide accurate and reliable information to our users. Sources for this story include:

  • Ilan Shapiro, MD, Chief Health Correspondent and Medical Affairs Officer at AltaMed Health Services in Los Angeles, California

Other Sources

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