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Swaddling How-To And When to Stop
Swaddling your newborn to sleep can be very beneficial. Many people wonder if they can ever swaddle their baby like the nurses did at the hospital. I admit, my husband was better at making our little burrito than I was until we bought The Miracle Blanket. This article is your swaddling how-to, including deciding when to stop swaddling and how to stop swaddling.
Why Swaddle Your Baby?
The reason why you swaddle your baby is to make her feel like she did when she was in her mommy’s tummy. She didn’t have room to stretch out and, for months, found comfort in being tightly “held” in your belly and the movement, when you walked, lulled her to sleep. Harvey Karp in The Happiest Baby on the Block suggests that babies actually need more time in the womb (a fourth trimester), but if they had that time, they’d never get through the birth canal because their head would get too big, so swaddling extends the womb feeling for them. When they are first adjusting to this big, cold world (compared to your belly), swaddling helps a lot to keep them calm and relaxed (especially when they haven’t outgrown the moro / startle reflex where their limbs “jump” uncontrollably). You might also want to read more here for recent information about swaddling and tips to safely swaddle.
What if Your Newborn Doesn’t Like Being Swaddled?
Sometimes it appears your baby doesn’t like to be swaddled. This could be true, but sometimes, they are just so overtired and wound up that they resist the swaddle only because they are agitated and fatigued. It does not necessarily mean he doesn’t like it. After you swaddle your newborn, try swaying him and soothing him to see if he will calm down. My son loved to be swaddled, but at first he’d still cry once he was swaddled. Contrary to the video you’ll see down below, he did not calm down instantly once he was swaddled (just his personality). But, he did sleep better and longer once he did fall asleep and he was swaddled. If your baby just never calms down or if swaddling used to work and now it doesn’t, it might be time to stop swaddling. More on that later.
How to Swaddle Your Baby
It is pretty difficult to describe, in words, how to swaddle your baby. Some people call it wrapping up a burrito and if you’ve ever made a burrito, it is a little similar. You want to fold the bottom of the blanket over her legs and then wrap up the sides, so the “contents” don’t fall out. 🙂 Better yet, let’s just watch a video on how to swaddle your baby:
How to swaddle your baby video –
When to Stop Swaddling
From my research, it does not harm your baby to swaddle them for months and months unless they are not getting free play time during the day. They need to be able to move their limbs to grow big and strong, so you don’t want them swaddled all day and night. But, swaddling while your baby sleeps until 6, 7, 8, and even 9 months is not unheard of and if your baby likes it and hasn’t learned to break free, this should be fine (check with your pediatrician for any doubts you might have about your own baby). Once your baby starts breaking out of the swaddle very often and especially when it becomes a hazard where she might suffocate with the blanket, it’s time to stop swaddling. The average age seems to be around 5-6 months. Again, all babies are different. We stopped swaddling sometime around 4 months with both boys.
How to Stop Swaddling
The most common method to transition away from swaddling is to swaddle with legs out, then one arm out, then to stop swaddling all together. Some swaddle one arm out, then both arms out and then stop swaddling. A baby who was once sleeping through the night may not do that while adjusting to sleeping without the swaddle. Keep in mind that it might take a week or two for her to get used to not being swaddled and getting used to having her limbs out. If her moro or startle reflex hasn’t stopped, it might be especially difficult and you might swaddle her again and try again a few weeks to a month later. Babies change very fast in the first year that something that didn’t work at one time might work great just two weeks later. You must be patient and give your baby time to adjust.
You might also want to read more about these two products that can help with the transition from a full swaddle.
Can you sleep train while baby is swaddled?
A common question is whether you should sleep train while your baby is swaddled. It never hurts to try to let your baby fall asleep unassisted, even while swaddled. Some babies simply will fall asleep within a few minutes when they are put down awake. Other babies (like mine) will not. So, in general, I do NOT recommend sleep training while your baby is swaddled, especially if you are using a variation of cry it out. Your baby needs to find a way to self-soothe whether it’s sucking on her fingers, thumb, or holding on to her sleep sack. But, if you put down your baby and he fusses or cries for 5 minutes or less and he’s swaddled, it appears you have a very good self-soother and you can continue swaddling and when he’s ready, you can probably stop swaddling fairly easily.
What if stopping the swaddle is not easy?
You’re in luck! This whole site is dedicated to when things don’t come easy when it comes to your baby’s sleep! Make sure you get your FREE guide and helping your baby sleep through the night, check out our Facebook Fan Page, or consider our baby sleep consulting services, where you can get a custom sleep plan for your family that you can feel good about.
How long did YOU swaddle your baby and how did you stop swaddling?
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Babies can usually start rolling by around 2-3 months old. If they are swaddled while rolling onto their front side, they might not be able to push their face up or roll back over to their backside…so how can you justify advising parents to swaddle at 6+ months, knowing that it’s a safety hazard?
https://www.aappublications.org/content/34/6/34
Hi Mary,
Thank you for your comment! Safety if of utmost importance to us, as we are all parents too! As we mention in the article, we do recommend parents immediately stop swaddling as soon as it becomes a safety hazard, such as when a baby is breaking out of the swaddle or rolling, since the swaddle can then become a suffocation hazard. Although many babies roll early at 2-3 months as you mention, an equal number do not start rolling until much later, 6-8 months-old, and so those families may choose to swaddle for longer. Each baby and family is different, and we must all make the best decision for our baby. I hope this helps!
Hi! My baby is 4 1/2 months and we started to transition her out of the swaddle (one arm out) because she started to get out of her swaddle and is starting to roll from her back to her side in bed. We taught her to self soothe and fall asleep after being put down awake before when she was fully swaddled. She would fal asleep within 5 minutes of being put down. We are on day four of sleeping with one arm out and she just screams and cries when we put her down to sleep. We try to not pick her up and calm her while she is still in the crib, but nothing works. I’m finding myself desperate and going back to old habits in desperation for her to sleep such as picking up and rocking and nursing. Any advice?
Hi @Nicole, thanks for writing to us. I’m sorry the transition out of the swaddle has been difficult for you and your little one, but this too shall pass! Hang in there! This is similar to breaking any other habit so if you found a method that helped her self soothe that worked (other than using the swaddle) you may try going back to one of those techniques. Here is a link to a free guide as well that will provide additional tips for helping her sleep: https://www.babysleepsite.com/sleep-through-night-free-ebook/
I hope you all adjust soon! If you need more help, let us know! We have a ton of additional resources I’d be happy to point you in the direction of.
My baby is 6 weeks old and “let’s” me swaddle her during the day and can stay asleep while swaddled for 1-3 hours, although she fights it the entire time she is awake, and I have to swing and shoosh until she wears herself out and passes out. Does that sound like I should keep swaddling her?
Nights are a different story: no matter what she will fight the swaddle (free her arms) and cry until she is absolutely hysterical (and I am, too) and it is impossible to console her. Should I stop swaddling her at night?
Hi @Bobbi Jo, thanks for writing to us. Some babies to take a while to get the hang of the swaddle, while others hate it from the start and never like feeling constricted. If she will sleep without it, you are not putting her at risk by leaving her out of the swaddle (and if you’re concerned about her getting cold during the winter you could get warmer pajamas, and perhaps a sleep sac which is a safe “wearable” blanket) if that’s what she prefers. You also could try swaddling her with her arms out, this is an options some parents do to help transition their baby out of the swaddle to get use to more freedom, but you could do it now if she preferred it and you really want to swaddle. Sorry for not a clear cut answer, but hang in there! You will eventually find something that works for both of you. If you need more help, please let us know! We have tons of resources available to help you with your sweet growing baby girl!
My son is 16 weeks old. He sleeps 11-12 hours at night now but is still swaddled. He breaks out almost always once a night and cry’s until we reswaddle him. We have tried to let him fall back to sleep on his own but most of the time does not. He is starting to try and roll from back to front as well. Help! What should we do to stop the swaddle i think it’s a sleep crutch now
@Constance Lewis – Thanks for stopping by the Baby Sleep Site! That is amazing your son has been sleeping such long stretches for you. 🙂 It is can definitely be scary getting rid of the swaddle in fear of it messing everything up! As the article mentions, it may be rough, but you will have to teach your son how to fall asleep without it. Here’s a link to another article with some tips as well as some links to transitional swaddle products that may help if you choose to slowly wean him: https://www.babysleepsite.com/sleep-training/weaning-baby-swaddling/
Good luck!!
We swaddled my daughter for the first month then it stopped working, at about 2 months, recently we’ve been having trouble getting her to sleeo on her own so one night after more than 24 exhausting hours of her waking up every 20-30 minutes I tried swaddling her again and she fussed for maybe 2-3 minutes before she fell right to sleep and slept for 6 hours. We have still been swaddling and she’s 12 weeks, 3 months on October 19.
@Thea – Thank you for stopping in to our sleepy little village and for your comment. I’m glad to hear that your little one is enjoying her swaddle still and sleeping better for it! We find that many babies do enjoy this close, cozy feeling for several months after birth. Best wishes that she keeps sleeping well for you. Please keep reading and commenting on our blog!
We were convinced that our baby hated swaddling. But, we started again after having a rough time putting her down and she became very easy to put down. Can put her down awake and she will put herself to sleep. No pacifier or anything. Now at 4 months, she wakes up a lot with her arms wrestled out of the swaddle and in her mouth and falls asleep instantly when reswaddled. But I think it’s time to break her of the swaddle as I don’t like getting up 5x a night to fix her swaddle.
Same here! What can we do?