Swaddling Your Baby

Swaddling, a child care technique used universally for thousands of years, has started gaining popularity with parents interested in getting back to basics. It involves snugly wrapping a baby’s body with a light blanket so that only the baby’s head is exposed.   Almost like giving your infant a nice big hug, the idea is to create a warm and safe feeling as the infant adjusts to life outside of the womb.

Swaddling helps combat over stimulation and prevents the newborn startle ‘moro’ reflex from waking an infant, calms restless infants down, and helps them fall asleep and stay asleep longer.  It is especially helpful for colicky babies or if a baby is just fussy for no apparent reason.

It is easy to get started, any large thin soft blanket will work

1. Lay a square blanket down on a flat surface so that it looks like a diamond. Fold the top corner down about 6 inches toward the center of the diamond; the top edge now forms a straight line.
2. Place baby on her back face up in the center of the blanket with shoulders just below the fold. Her body should extend straight down toward the bottom corner.
3. Gently hold your baby’s left arm straight down along her side. Then take the left side of the blanket and wrap it over her left arm and across her chest. Tuck the blanket underneath her right arm and to the back. At this point your baby’s left arm will be covered but her right arm will be free.
4. Fold the bottom corner of the swaddle up and over baby’s feet. Tuck the point of the fabric into the top of the swaddle under the baby’s chin.
5. Straighten your baby’s right arm and pull the right side of the blanket over your baby’s arm and body, tucking snugly underneath her left side.

The American Academy of Pediatrics believes that swaddling can be effective, but advises parents to make sure they are doing it correctly. 

The swaddle should be snug, but not too tight. Make sure you can place two to three fingers between your baby’s chest and the blanket. To allow for the baby’s legs to move freely, the blanket should be loose around her hips.

Swaddling too tightly can overheat your baby so check that she is not flushed or sweating.  Don’t overdress the baby under the swaddling blanket.

Always lay your swaddled baby down on her back and make certain that the blanket corners are tucked in underneath the baby.

If your baby doesn’t seem to like being swaddled, try it a few times before giving up completely. Around 2 to 3 months as your baby gets more active and starts to roll, she will outgrow the need for swaddling.