Your baby used to cry like a normal baby – with its mouth fully opened. When she turned five months, they started producing moaning sounds instead, with the mouth closed! By now, you’re worried and wondering, “Is this normal?’
Like you, most mothers seek to know what causes this habit. I have researched about a baby crying with mouth closed and what you can do about it.
A Baby Crying With Mouth Closed: Why?
Factors that may make a baby cry with its mouth closed include teething, ear infection, severe illness, and fatigue. Also, babies love trying new things and may experiment with different sounds and vibrations while crying.
Once you get home with your bundle of joy, you officially start a new, intriguing journey. Babies don’t know how to talk like you and me. They often cry to communicate their feelings, needs, and emotions.
Trying to decipher what the cries mean is tricky and full of guesswork. Nevertheless, don’t give up. You’ll graduate into an expert mother soon.
Loud crying and screaming are common in babies seeking attention or signaling hunger. But, most parents find it hard to understand when their little one produces moaning, crying sounds with a closed mouth.
Always follow your maternal instincts and talk to your doctor if you feel concerned about anything.
What Are the Different Cries in Babies?
These little ones vary the pitch and tone when crying to make you understand their different needs. They know how to differentiate their emotions through crying. Before attending to it, please pay attention to different cries to understand the meaning.
As your baby grows, they improve language skills, and soon, it’ll be easier to communicate with them. Avoid comparing your little one with their siblings. Every baby has its unique temperament. Some rarely cry, while others do it a lot. Handle them differently, and don’t panic.
Babies cry when communicating needs as follows:
- Hunger- like in adults, hunger also bites the little ones. The cry starts with slow whimpers before growing into loud wails if you don’t respond by feeding them in time. This type is easy to manage as the baby calms down after eating.
- Sleep – Before six months, babies have trouble falling asleep independently. They often give a loud yelp asking you to soothe them to sleep. Rocking your little ones makes them calmer. They also sleep better and longer.
- Pain – When your little one is in pain, they give a high-pitched wail followed by very loud crying. It’s usually their calling to stop what you’re doing and immediately relieve the pain. An alarm-like shriek may also signal pain/distress.
- Sadness – Babies have emotions too. They feel angry, upset, frustrated, and sometimes happy. A deep yelp may mean your baby feels lonely or low-spirited.
They may require attention, and a warm hug/cuddle may do the trick. The cry occasionally indicates that their diaper is full and needs a change. Your baby may cry if feeling too warm or cold.
- Fatigue or overstimulation– Too much of anything is poisonous. Sometimes, your baby may be overstimulated by a loud noise or too much play. Overstimulation results in annoyance.
Additionally, excess fatigue causes irritability and crankiness in babies. They commonly make whimpering sounds to tell you they want to take a rest. You may also find that occasionally, your baby cries with mouth closed when over-tired. Try putting the baby to sleep to calm them down.
Why Does My Baby Cry With His Mouth Closed?
While a baby’s cry is their best form of communication, how they cry matters. What makes babies cry with their mouths closed?
The most common reasons babies cry with their mouths closed are-
1. Teething
Teething may be an awkward phase in a child’s development. They must deal with swollen itchy gums before the first pearly whites pop out. As the teeth struggle to break out, the little one is likely to experience discomfort in the mouth, making them fear exposing their gums while crying.
2. Serious Illness
When a baby is ill, you can quickly tell. They rarely cry and wail loudly. You’re more likely to hear whimpers and moaning when expressing the deep suffering they are going through.
According to the Meningitis Research Foundation, a high-pitched wail or moaning is one of the main symptoms of meningitis in babies. Call your doctor immediately if your munchkin has other additional signs, including irritability, poor appetite, sleepiness, and fever.
3. Ear Infection
Not only in babies, but ear infections are also similarly painful in adults. For your little one, they may be feeling excruciating pain on opening their mouth.
They find crying with their mouths closed a bit soothing and less painful. Watch out for other symptoms of ear infection such as ear-pulling and fluids draining from the ears before seeking medical attention.
4. Tiredness and Sleepiness
Sometimes, the moans aren’t anything serious. When a baby is over-tired or sleepy, they find loud wailing draining, forcing them to whimper and moan silently.
Aside from crying with a closed mouth, you may notice the baby rubbing their eyes vigorously. Try nursing and putting them to bed.
5. Experimentation With Sounds and Vibrations
Babies find fun in trying new things. It’s all in the process of learning. If your munchkin doesn’t show any other alarming symptoms, they could be experimenting with how the crying sounds and vibrations feel when their mouth is shut. Keep a close watch to see how often they cry like this, and you’ll be shocked to find they are perfectly normal.
No parent likes the unpleasant sight of a crying baby. Personally, the cries send me into panic and confusion as I try to figure out if the baby is ill, hungry, or uncomfortable. Usually, you may not decipher the meaning right away. That’s OK.
Now that we have explored different possible causes, it’s easier to rule out what’s ailing your munchkin. For medical–related causes, let a health practitioner examine the baby.
Calming a Crying Baby
Whether it’s the typical wailing and screams or deep moaning sounds with the mouth closed, calming a baby isn’t easy. Nothing gives a mom peace of mind than watching her little munchkin sleeping or happily playing.
Further, you have ample time to relax and attend to other things when the baby isn’t crying. First, don’t blame yourself. The little one doesn’t cry because you are a poor parent. In most cases, there’s no apparent reason, or it’s just a bad mood day.
That said, let’s find out practical ways of soothing a crying baby:
1. Give a gentle gum massage
With clean hands, use your finger to massage your baby’s gum gently. If possible, get a gum massager from Amazon to soothe your baby’s itchy gums.
2. Try cold/refrigerated teethers
Frozen teether toys greatly alleviate discomfort from swollen gums in teething babies.
3. Give them attention. Cuddle and hold them closely
Babies cry to ask for attention. Give them a warm hug, cuddle or hold them close to show affection and protection.
4. Swaddling
Swaddling helps your baby feel comfortable and secure. This is so, especially for newborns.
5. Gently rock your munchkin
Sleepiness is another cause of fussiness. Gentle rocking motions are effective in soothing them to sleep.
6. Humming, whistling, or softly singing a lullaby
Unknown to many, your baby loves hearing your voice. Humming or softly singing a lullaby is one soothing technique.
7. Try distracting them with a colorful toy
Giving your little one a shiny, colorful toy is a great way to distract them.
8. Change the environment
Your baby may do with a new environment. Going outdoors or taking a walk to the park helps relax your munchkin. New sights/sounds and movement may be the refreshment they need.
9. Reduce or avoid stimulation
Minimize noise and activity around your baby to provide a peaceful environment.
10. Kangaroo care
To soothe fussy newborns, kangaroo care is an effective technique. It involves lying down with your baby, skin-to-skin, and covering yourself with a warm blanket.
11. Try a pacifier
The benefits of using pacifiers outweigh the possible risks. The Sleep Foundation recommends using pacifiers to calm babies’ fussiness and anxiety, leading to quality sleep. Get a good-quality pacifier such as Dr. Brown’s newborn happy pacifier from Amazon.
12. Give a stroking body massage
Massages are soothing and can help your baby relax. However, let them guide you. If they don’t stay calm and alert as you stroke them gently, it shows the baby doesn’t like it.
Wrapping Up
Crying is a normal form of communication in babies. But, what if you note unusual crying patterns?
Are you seeking the answer to, “why is my baby crying with his mouth closed?” Let’s see a summary of the issue.
Babies vary intonations and pitches when crying to signal hunger, fatigue, discomfort, or an illness. When a baby cries with mouth closed, they may be over-tired or lonely, which shouldn’t cause alarm. Other causes include teething, ear infections, or, worse, meningitis.
Swaddling, massaging gums, rocking the little one, and taking a walk are practical ways to soothe your munchkin. If you’re concerned about the baby closing their mouth when crying, seek medical attention immediately.
