Curing My Daughter’s Colic

A Pediatrician and First-Time Mom Confronts the Limits of Medicine and Learns the First of Many Parenting Lessons

I should have seen this coming. I was too lucky during pregnancy, contending only with a few weeks of morning sickness and a bout of sciatica. By week 37, I was still able to both see and touch my toes. Delivery was perhaps even easier (please don’t hate me), with my obstetrician imploring me not to tell my friends about my quick and easy labor. I may have been exhausted, overwhelmed, and wearing mesh underwear, but my first three weeks as a first-time mom were magical.

Then came colic. Night after …