I am a big fan of baby swaddling, I think it’s a baby art that’s gone out of style with modern day parents but I think it’s well wort mastering. One of the first things I learned when I took my first childcare job and began working with infants was how to swaddle a baby. I quickly learned how to achieve a good swaddle and also how truly comforting it was to the babies. Babies really are calmer going to sleep and sleep sounder when they are swaddled.
I believe in the old school receiving blanket swaddle. I don’t buy the expensive, specialty swaddling items that involve Velcro or zippers or snaps or buttons. I just buy the cheapest flannel receiving blankets I can find (I’ve always like the Gerber ones but they are fairly small so get trickier with older and bigger babies). I’ve found that a little bit of practice is all it takes to get a good blanket swaddle and afterwards you aren’t stuck with a pile of swaddle things you will never use again (Honeybun still carries around her receiving blankets as her “lovey” item).
When I had Honeybun, I began swaddling her right away. She tolerated swaddling until she was about 6 months old when she began wiggling out within minutes but was still sleeping through the night without difficulty. I also swaddled Sugarplum, though she did not last as long. She was not as soothed by the swaddling (or anything for that matter) so I gave up after many horrific nights while travelling in Germany when she was about 5 months old.
I’ve be swaddling Doodle from the start and he LOVES being wrapped up. Even if he is super upset and crying hysterically, as soon as I wrap him he calms down, lets out a few grunts as I pull the blanket real snug and then he lays there content (cause he knows he’s going to get fed too!). Doodle is super wiggly though and figured out early how to get his hands up to his mouth. I don’t mind him soothing with his hands but after a few nights of him getting his arms completely out and flailing himself hysterical at 3 o’clock in the morning, I realized my swaddle style had changed somewhere along my parenting journey.
I had been swaddling him in the traditional, hospital fashion:
- Fold one corner of receiving blanket down to middle of blanket
- Place blanket flat on bed/table/other flat surface
- Place baby with shoulders at fold line and head above
- Place one arm by baby’s side and fold blanket across baby’s body and tuck in under baby’s other side
- Place 2nd arm by baby’s side and wrap other side of blanket around baby
(most methods also suggest you fold up the bottom corner to secure the baby’s legs. I’ve never done this step, I just leave the feet free. Also, I’ve also heard recently how important it is to never immobilize the baby’s hips. Baby should always be able to pull their legs up by their tummy whether feet are tucked or not)
When I learned to swaddle at work, though, we used a slightly different method that provides a much tighter, more secure swaddle which I used with Honeybun early on and I’m not really sure when I stopped. I’ve started using it with Doodle and has stopped the flailing (though he can still get his hands to his mouth):
- Place blanket flat on bed/table/other flat surface
- Place baby with head in line with top corner and shoulders above line of side corners
- Place one arm by baby’s side and fold blanket across baby’s body and tuck in under baby’s other side
- Place 2nd arm by baby’s side and wrap other side of blanket around baby
- Pull top corner down behind baby’s back until blanket is folded at approximately shoulder level
This second method provides a much tighter swaddle since the folds are tucked in. In the classic method, the last wrap of the blanket is loose and so enough rolling and wiggling easily loosens the wrap.
