Babies: 0 - 3 Months
Stop the Swaddle!
We're working on no longer swaddling at night but this is very difficult. LO is not swaddled during naps during the day, only at night. I have tried to swaddle with one arm out, loosen the swaddle, etc - none of this works. Letting him CIO is a bust - I gave up last night after two solid hours of him screeching (which he *never* does.) Does anyone have suggestions other then the norm that have worked for them? If it makes a difference, we use a SwaddleMe. Anything is appreciated - tyia!
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Re: Stop the Swaddle!
Danica 10.22.10 | Milo 12.23.12
Brady Phoenix, 8.29.09
Claire Zoe, 10.26.10
Yes.
There is no reason you need to stop swaddling. DS#1 was swaddled with the miracle blanket until he was 6.5 months old. He loved it, and never tried to roll over in it even though he'd been rolling since 3.5 months. Some babies really like the feeling of closeness.
And if you're worried about development, our pedi said there was nothing wrong with swaddling for that long. DS rolled, crawled, and walked perfectly "on time".
Without going into too many details, Rylan was born with a congential development issue. Strangely he's ahead on a few things, but behind on others.. and one of them is rolling over. I heard a strange thump on the monitor Thursday night and when I checked on him, he had somehow flipped himself over while swaddled. Scared the tar out of me. I brought it up to his pediatrician who told me that it may be time to start breaking him of it since he figured that out. I asked what to do, and she gave me the suggestions I mentioned earlier and said to let him cry 15min at a time over a period of a few days to see if that may work. I didn't know everyone would get so upset when I mentioned that.
Have you heard of the Woombie? It's a zip up swaddle thing that allows movement of the arms to an extent. We tried it with DS#1, but he preferred the miracle blanket. He was able to move his arms enough to lift his head/shoulders. Maybe that would be something better to try in this transition period, so he gets used to some extra movement, but isn't cold turkey, and if he flips over he can still move his head?
ETA: People got upset because babies this little can't self soothe. I totally understand trying to take your pedi's advice, but sleep is one of those things that I think pedi's don't have a place in. I think they feel they need to tell parents the "easiest" ways to get sleep, and end up using the CIO approach where it often isn't necessary.
Hmmm...does he roll all the time, or is this a one-time thing? If it's not a regular occurrence, I'd keep him swaddled until he doesn't need it. Or you can swaddle him and then undo the swaddle once he's asleep if you're really that worried. Or you could kind of pin him in the crib with a blanket over him tucked under the mattress.
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This makes sense. You don't want LO to suffocate. Try a Halo or wearable blanket or a swaddleme, but leave the arms free. I would stay in the room, sleep in the room, rather than CIO at this point. Don't beat yourself up though -- a night or two of CIO at this age will not scar your child for life in an otherwise loving household.
This exactly! The Halo sleep sack is a great... our DD has been hating the swaddle lately, so we've been trying the sleep sack. Her arms are out, but she's still sort of bundled up. She seems to really like it. And I agree with the PP about CIO- it's not the end of the world, but if you can try to soothe him yourself, it will make the transition easier. He can't self soothe yet, and the transition may be tough on him. He'll get used to not being swaddled by being put to sleep gently by you rather than having to deal with it on his own by crying! It will probably take a few nights for him to get used to not being swaddled. But I completely understand your fears after he flipped himself over in bed!
If LO still wants to be swaddled you can try to swaddle with a larger blanket (I think they sell them at Target), and just leave his arms out.
Also the sleep sacks are great! If you don't want to spend $30 on something that you aren't sure of you can buy Carters, that's what we use. The arms are still free in the sleep sack as well.
HTH.