Samantha Myers survived parenting two colicky
babies. But, by the time her second daughter, now 20 months, took her first
step, Myers, of Warrington, had already placed an order for the first shipment
of ByeByeCry,
a baby sound machine she designed primarily for infants with colic.
While on maternity leave following her second
daughter’s birth, Myers made it her mission to develop a product that could
help other parents of colicky babies struggling to find peace. Random sounds
she heard while walking around her neighborhood – including lawnmowers and
chainsaws – helped soothe her crying daughter and gave her hope for an end to
incessant crying.
She narrowed down the “magic” of five sounds
proven to calm colic and another five sounds for anytime and worked tirelessly
to see the product behind her business, 365 DayDreams, LLC come to fruition.
“After I finished my full-time corporate job, When the baby was asleep, I would be up working
until the sun came up,” she said.
Her passion for helping other families struggling
remains the driving force.
“This is it,”
Myers said. “It was worth all of the risk and
sleepless nights because of the reward of making other families feel supported.”
In addition to selling ByeByeCry on Amazon Prime
and her website,
Myers is committed to creating a community for moms feeling disconnected from their
inconsolable infants.
“You feel helpless when you can’t comfort your
newborn,” Myers said. “For a first-time mother it’s just so hard.”
According to the Centers
for Disease Control and Prevention, “inconsolable
or excessive crying” is the leading cause of Shaken Baby Syndrome.
Early on in the process Myers hit a few bumps particularly
with the creation of her product prototype. In November 2021 she sought
guidance from SCORE Bucks County mentor Leah Cianfrani, who was immediately cautious
of a middleman between Myers and her supplier who refused to put anything in
writing. Cianfrani consulted with SCORE Bucks County mentor Yenting Liu, who
was familiar with the product prototype process and he agreed that continuing
work with the manufacturer’s representative was not in Myers’ best interest.
“I had to completely start over,” Myers said. “I
wanted to give up, but because my SCORE mentor convinced me that I could do it
on my own, I kept going.”
Leah said, ‘I know you feel like you are at
ground zero, but believe me you are 90 percent of the way there, keep pushing,’
Myers recalled. “I can’t tell you how important those words were to hear at
that time.”
Cianfrani’s support helped Myers arrive at a
much better place than she had been in with developing her product prototype.
“I’m on the front line at this point because
of Leah,” Myers said. “I now have full control of my business and I am dealing
with my supplier directly. Because of her I was
able to harness the power within me that I never knew was there.”
Along the way Myers was discouraged by other
professionals who made her feel like she should quit. Because of the continuous
validation from her mentor, she kept going.
“Leah would always knock down the critics and
say ‘it’s just noise. Keep going.’”
Cianfrani helped Myers write a business plan
and continues to mentor her as she looks to scale her business with the
upcoming launch of the ByeByeCry app, as well as other future additions.
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“I have no doubt her sound machine will be a
huge success because of her passion and tenacity,” Cianfrani said. “As I have
come to know her so well during our mentor/client days I am so proud of her and
how hard she has worked.”The timing of her product launch – during Colic
Awareness Month in March – was another way the stars seemed to align on what
she describes as a “journey.”
In addition to the support Myers receives from
her SCORE mentors ByeByeCry received a ringing endorsement from Dr. Kathy Chen,
a pediatric gastroenterologist affiliated with one of the top children’s hospitals
in the country.
“Over
the years, parents have come into my office with similar experiences – they’ve used
traditional sound machines and other colic remedies with no success,” Dr. Chen
said. “I am happy to see a mom-made product come to life that will really help
families.”
Learn more
Families seeking inspiration,
support tips and more for their colicky babies can connect with other parents
on social media @ByeByeCryClub on Facebook and Instagram and @365DayDreams on
TikTok.
