Swaddling your baby - What you need to know!
Updated: Nov 24, 2022
Your ultimate guide to swaddling your newborn baby!
Swaddling is the practice of wrapping a baby around the body with a light, breathable cloth or purpose made swaddle. When swaddling, make sure your baby has lots of space around their legs and hips to prevent hip dysplasia.
Swaddling a new-born helps to provide a small amount of pressure that replicates the womb, and is highly beneficial with calming and settling as it reduces waking from the startle reflex.
I recommend swaddling until around 12 weeks, then you can gradually transition with one arm out and then to both. However, if your baby shows signs of rolling before this, you must remove the swaddle and transition to a sleep sack for safe sleeping.
What are the benefits of swaddling your baby?
Reduced startle reflex
Possibly longer sleep duration
It recreates a ‘womb-like’ experience of being tightly wrapped or held
It may provide some sensory input for your baby with the calming pressure
Which type of swaddle should you use?
Try to experiment with what you works best for your baby. My personal preference is an arms down swaddle for the first 6-12 weeks, and then moving to one with their arms up.
What is the difference?
Arms up - These swaddles allow for more movement of the arms and suit babies who like to use their hands to suck for comfort. You may have seen The Love to Dream swaddles and these can work well for babies 2 months and above.
Arms down - You can achieve this with a muslin swaddle, or purpose brought swaddle such as an Ergopouch. They involve tucking your babies arms at their sides and maintaining space around their hips for movement.
Important reminder: Make sure you only swaddle your baby for sleep, to allow for lots of free movement during wake times.
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