baby hates swaddling

LmBahr

I've been trying every night to make swaddling part of our night time routine but my baby hates it. He cries and squirms turning himself red. When I take him out he is relieved and relaxes. He is only 3 weeks old and won't sleep longer than 2 hours at night (at a time).,I read online swaddling helps for longer sleep times and that babies eventually enjoy swaddling. Anyone have experience or advice on this? Confused ftm here.

AiramJ

I can imagine baby hating it. He has been crammed into a small space for months, he is probably happy being able to move around.

tracij12

Mine doesn't love it, but not to that extreme. It does help for longer sleeps with some baby's because it's cozy (like the womb) and because often baby's startle themselves awake which swaddling prevents. Maybe try a looser solution that contains the arms but still lets him move around a bit?

Also, at 3 weeks it's not that abnormal for him to only sleep 2 hour stretches. Just make sure his tummy is as full as you can at the last feeding of the night and be patient. In a few more weeks you should get a few longer stretches (fingers crossed!!).

sjembry93

My baby hates being swaddled too, has hated since she was born. She's a bit of a Houdini when it comes to escaping the swaddle, even when she was first born and in the hospital she managed to break free of the tight swaddle they had her in. Like pp said 2 hour stretches are pretty common. I've found that keeping my daughter awake as much as possible during the day and feeding her a bigger portion at night helps her sleep longer. She usually sleeps about 3 hours at a time when I do that, sometimes I get lucky and she'll make it 4.

crbpjb

Have you tried a Halo sleep sack? Sometimes they just want to be able to move their arms. The sleep sacks can be wrapped under their arms so they can still move them around. I've heard of a lot of babies liking that who hated being swaddled.

MandahGirly

My daughter also hates swaddling. She loves sleeping with her arms up. I use a sleep sack instead and it works for us. She is a wiggler anyway and loves to move around.

NathanheartsKim

I have 2 kiddos already and neither one enjoyed being swaddled and 1 of them was a tummy sleeper by 6 weeks. Kind of scary but she slept better!

sgoodsel

My first loved the swaddle, we swaddled her like a burrito until she was at least 6 months.

This one only likes it if I keep 1 arm out, he loves to touch his face.

ElleMF728

With my first I seriously thought people who said their babies hated swaddles were crazy but sure enough my second hates it.  My solution is to use the Love to Dream SwaddleUp.  It gives LO some arm movement while still helping to contain their startle reflex, it really is a great solution.  DS2 used to get so mad but he doesn't mind at all when we put him in this one. 

ETA: It gives them access to their hands so they can use them to soothe. 

Link Here

komorebi

Try other soothing methods. White noise is great. And you can try swaddling hands free.

rms924

I highly recommend the starfish swaddles (forgot the name but it was on shark tank). It looks ridiculous but my baby instantly calmed when I put him in it. He hates the traditional swaddles and will cry until his hands are free. I gave up pretty easily and just swaddle his bottom half until realizing this is the solution!

jesssaying

We have multiple kinds of swaddled and our LO hates every single one of them. At the hospital the nurse's even said that it was obvious she didn't like being swaddled but that didnt surprise them because bigger babies hate it. She was almost 9 pounds.

amyadd

sjembry93 said:

My baby hates being swaddled too, has hated since she was born. She's a bit of a Houdini when it comes to escaping the swaddle, even when she was first born and in the hospital she managed to break free of the tight swaddle they had her in. Like pp said 2 hour stretches are pretty common. I've found that keeping my daughter awake as much as possible during the day and feeding her a bigger portion at night helps her sleep longer. She usually sleeps about 3 hours at a time when I do that, sometimes I get lucky and she'll make it 4.

How do you keep your baby awake during the day? I noticed if my son sleeps a lot during the day then we will be up every 2 hours at night but on days when he is up more and eating during the day, we will get 3 to 4 hours stretches of sleep. But it's completely on his schedule. Is there anything one can do to keep them awake during the day?

mrsbelladoyle

My babe likes a loose swaddle where his arms are able to be taken out if he likes. Which he always has one flung out. Hes 4 weeks and sleeps 4 hour stretches at night. And stays in that loose swaddle for feeds and goes right back down with hardly a fuss.

EllieB82

@rms924 - the zippadeezip or something very similar it's called from shark tank

ameares721

I use the Ollie swaddle and my baby girl sleeps 6 hours straight at night. She fusses for about two minutes when I first put it on but then she gets really relaxed and sleeps. If she isn't being held or swaddled she will move her arms and legs a lot and wake herself up!

meganariel08

My baby hates the actual swaddle blankets that Velcro. She will throw a fit but I recently found out if I swaddle her with just a blanket and she has the ability to get her Arms out if she wants( with some effort) she actually loves it!! I don't know what you are using to swaddle but just a thought

knottie0d017f6472c8ffa4

It's not uncommon for babies to resist swaddling initially. Some infants find the confinement unsettling. Experiment with different swaddling techniques and materials to see if your baby prefers a looser or tighter wrap. As your baby adjusts to the routine, they might become more accepting of swaddling, potentially leading to longer and more restful sleep. Patience and persistence can be key in finding the right comfort for your little one.