Hearing your newborn scream for hours is heartbreaking, especially when you’re doing everything you can to comfort her. **Crying from colic has not been shown to shrink a baby’s brain.** NHS guidance describes no known damage from colic crying. Holding and rocking her are appropriate ways to help, even when she keeps crying. [NHS colic guidance](https://readytorelate.bdct.nhs.uk/toolkit/crying-and-soothing/colic/)

Cortisol is part of the body’s normal stress response. A temporary rise does **not** establish brain injury. Research about harmful “toxic stress” concerns prolonged, excessive stress, particularly when supportive caregiving is absent. Caring, responsive relationships help buffer that stress response. That research does not establish that a baby crying with colic while being comforted suffers brain damage. [Harvard Center on the Developing Child](https://developingchild.harvard.edu/key-concept/toxic-stress/)

**You do not need to meet a 10-second deadline.** Paediatric guidance recommends responding promptly to newborns, but sets no such cutoff. Newborns often need help settling, and no parent can stop every episode of crying. Your care still matters when she remains upset. [American Academy of Pediatrics](https://www.healthychildren.org/English/ages-stages/baby/crying-colic/Pages/Responding-to-Your-Babys-Cries.aspx)

Evening crying, difficulty settling and a red face can fit colic, which usually improves by around three to four months. **Because you describe six hours of inconsolable crying every day, contact her paediatrician again**, making sure they know its duration. Ask them to review feeding, weight gain and possible causes of discomfort. If she is currently crying continuously and cannot be consoled for over two hours, seek prompt medical advice. [NHS](https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/colic/), [AAP symptom guidance](https://www.healthychildren.org/English/tips-tools/Symptom-Checker/Pages/symptomviewer.aspx?symptom=Crying+Baby+-+Before+3+Months+Old)

Get urgent medical assessment for a temperature of **38°C/100.4°F or higher in a baby under three months**, poor feeding, markedly fewer wet nappies, or repeated vomiting. Call emergency services for difficulty breathing, blue or grey colour, unusual limpness or difficulty waking her. [AAP](https://www.healthychildren.org/English/ages-stages/baby/crying-colic/Pages/Responding-to-Your-Babys-Cries.aspx), [NHS](https://www.nhs.uk/baby/caring-for-a-newborn/soothing-a-crying-baby/)

For now, check hunger and her nappy, then try gentle rocking in a quiet, dim room. Arrange someone you trust to take a shift if possible. If you become overwhelmed or too sleepy to hold her safely, place her on her back in an empty cot with a firm, flat mattress and take a short break. Never shake a baby. Taking that break is recommended care for an exhausted parent. [AAP guidance](https://www.healthychildren.org/English/ages-stages/baby/crying-colic/Pages/Responding-to-Your-Babys-Cries.aspx)