Is there life after swaddling?

[mamax2]

I'm really at a loss here w/my 5 m.o. She's in a serious love/hate relationship w/her swaddle. I use an extra large (homemade) flannel receiving blanket and I wrap a mean swaddle if I do say so myself, but she's just so big & strong now, that she can break it if she really wants to. She's now fighting like crazy, doesn't want to be swaddled.

O.k., fine. I've tried putting her to sleep on her side w/rolled up receiving blankets to 'position' her - no dice. I've tried putting her on her tummy... she can fall asleep, but it doesn't last more than 15 minutes before she needs helping soothing back down. I've tried putting her in - totally asleep - on her back; again, she's awake w/in minutes. I've tried leaving one arm free and still no luck. She flails her arms, hits & scratches her face, pulls out her binky and launches it across the crib. She's just a mess.

The past few nights we've gone through this shenanigans for about 2 hours at which point she's so exhausted, she lets us swaddle and then she'll sleep a good 6-7 hour stretch. During the day, it's more of the same. Today she only napped a total of 1.5 hours. She's so tired.

I'll do anything - rock her to sleep, nurse her, bounce her, walk her, etc. NONE of it seems to be working. How long can this go on?

[kat]

I don't have any advice, but to the extent it makes you feel any better, I have the same problem with my 3 mo. old daughter (my son is pretty good sans swaddle). She's a side-sleeper and is TERRIBLE on her back without being swaddled, so I fear the day when I can't swaddle her anymore (that'll be a while given the straightjacket, er, I mean Miracle Blanket we use :D ). Hopefully someone will have some good advice for both of us!

[fwgirl]

I have no advice since my daughter is the same way. She's days away from being 6 months old and only sleeps well when swaddled. I'm hoping some other mama's chime in with advice or encouraging stories!

[alisong]

We were serious swaddle addicts for about four months.

I never tried it (I think it's new), but this product seems like it might be good for transitioning away from a swaddle:

http://images.amazon.com/images/P/B000BTPTGU.01._SCLZZZZZZZ_V52100775_.jpg

[portlandbride]

Have you tried the Miracle Blanket? I used it to swaddle my DD until she was 7 - 8 months old and she never broke out of it. I think the website is www.miracleblanket.com.
Worth every penny! :)

[ihearttx]

Hi there..my DD was a Miracle Blanket Addict until 7.5 months. It became a struggle because she wanted to roll around in the middle of the night, but couldn't while swaddled, yet she would ONLY sleep swaddled.

We had to go cold turkey. It was only bad for 1 night. We also did the Ferber method, and luckily we have a very easy going baby who only cried for 5 minutes before falling asleep.

People suggested to us to slowly wean her from the blanket by putting one arm out etc, but that just didn't work. The only way it worked was cold turkey.

Hope that helps. It was a nightmare having to swaddle a 7 month old!!

[solongtogo]

We went cold turkey at 4-5 months. It was bad but only for a couple of nights...

[malala]

My DD is about 10 days younger than yours, and just started to sleep unswaddled 2 weeks ago.
I had been wanting to "wean" her for a while.
It sounds like we were going through the same thing. She fought me when I was swaddling her, but she wouldn't sleep, or she'd wake up a couple mins after going down, when unswaddled.

What I did was put her down with one arm out during naps, and try every once in a while and see if it worked at night (it never did work at night)
And also whenever she fell asleep on my arms, I'd put her down on her crib, she always woke up either right away, or a couple mins into her nap.

But I kept doing it, until one day, out of the blue, she stayed asleep. And that's how she didn't need to be swaddled anymore.
I don't know if any of the things I did worked, or if she just wasn't ready to sleep unswaddled before, and she was now.
I thought I'd share my experience.I hope she goes unswaddled soon!:)

[Kanga]

I don't know how sound your baby sleeps, but maybe try unswaddling her after she's asleep? If you don't think that will work, maybe unswaddling, but then re swaddling with an arm out after she's out? I have no idea if this would work or not, but it wouldn't hurt to try.

[EJM]

At 6 months we tried going cold turkey and those 3 nights were pure h*ll. I happened to have a WBV and asked our ped. He said to swaddle looser and looser. We started with swaddling from only the chest down (swaddle goes up to her armpits with arms free). Then we got looser after a week, after that we switched to sleep sacks about a week ago. Her sleep still isn't great, but I think that is because she is rolling over swaddled or not and isn't crazy about sleeping on her stomach.

[mamax2]

Thanks so much for the replies, everyone! I feel better knowing that some other babies were/are still being swaddled at this age or even a bit older and also that it is possible to overcome the transition!

Malala ~ Thanks for sharing your method! So, when she woke up after being in the crib a few minutes, did you then try to re-swaddle or just soothe her back to sleep other ways?

Does anyone else have advice to share on the going cold-turkey route? Like, what position did you put your baby to sleep? Any other things that helped them get settled? I feel like if she can get the hang of tummy sleeping, that will be our saving grace, but she doesn't go more than 15 minutes before waking. She's napping now - w/the swaddle which she didn't fight at all today (go figure!).

[malala]

mamax2: I swaddled her when she woke up. It was the only way she'd go back to sleep.

As far as positions go, my DD likes to sleep on her side, but I usually put her on her back, and she rolls onto her side.

One more thing, I don't think I mentioned before. Whenever I'd leave the one arm out of the swaddle, I gave her a blankie for her to be able to hold something in her hand.
That helped, because when she was swaddled she liked to hold her hands together (like in a prayer position), and this way she was still able to hold on to something. Keeping her little hand occupied, also prevented her from messing with her binky (most of the time)
HTH!

[solongtogo]

some cold turkey advice: I kept DD in a pnp beside my bed that week, because I was not about to keep getting up and walking down a hallway to her room everytime she got up. Also, if baby falls asleep unswaddled, but wakes up and won't go back down, I just swaddled her up. At least she fell asleep unswaddled...We've always put DD down to sleep on her back. Now a days she'll flip on her side, but she's never slept on her stomach.

[Dally]

We swaddled our DD for about 4-5 months. First I stopped swaddling at naptime (around 4 months). We used a sleepsack for naps. Once she got used to that, we stopped at night. We had a couple of bad nights (like Solongtogo, I kept her in a co-sleeper by my bed), and then it was fine. I also used a sleepsack at night (still do).

There is life after swaddling!

[ihearttx]

Cold Turkey Advice: We also put a lovey in with her as well. I would lay her down on her side..still do, and she either stays like that or flips onto her stomach. The lovey makes her feel secure.

[Kristen78]

We stopped swaddling our daughter before she was 2 months old. Now I am glad I did (and that she wasnt dependant on the swaddle). I feel for you!

We use Halo sleep sacks. Could you try that and maybe not put her arms thru the sleeves?

[elnelson]

My DS is a recovered swaddle addict as well. We swaddled him using a miracle blanket for every nap and at night until he was around 6 months old - started with arms in until about 3 months and then arms out from 4-6. The amazing thing is that at 6 months he just outgrew it - I tried one night without it and he was fine, waited a couple of days and gave it up for naps with no fuss at all. So - there's hope! I'm not sure if his willingness to give it up was based on his age or his increasing mobility but I was expecting a horrible transition and was very pleasantly surprised.. :)

[wildcat]

My DD slept swaddled for the first 4 months or so and then stayed swaddled with arms out until about 3 weeks ago (she's almost 8 months old). She's always been a good sleeper (asleep within a few mins, if she fussed, it was only 2-3 mins), but when she'd come unswaddled in the middle of the night she'd fuss and we'd have to go in and reswaddle (well, I mean DH would;)). So he decided (against my opinion) that we should stop swaddling, I told him I'd give hime 3-4 nights and that it was his deal to train her. We used a Halo Sleepsack and the first 2-3 night SUCKED. I'd go downstairs with the monitor turned off and let him stay upstairs with her (I couldn't listen to her cry, it breaks my heart!). He did the Ferber method and let her cry for 5 mins before he'd go in. For those first 2 or 3 nights, she cried for 5-10mins before she'd settle down and go to sleep and it's been heaven ever since. She goes right to sleep and never wakes up at night (or rarely, she sometimes wakes up and can't find her paci and we'll have to go in and give it to her, another habit we get to break). So, what can I say, DH was right:rolleyes:. It was a tough few nights at first, but well worth it.

To answer your other question, we lay her on her back, but she generally rolls onto her side to sleep.

[kat]

As mom to boy-girl twins, I think it's funny that most of the posters to this thread have daughters (and my own not-so-scientific experience is that my daughter is the swaddle addict, not my son). I dunno why, but I think that's interesting....

[ihearttx]

As mom to boy-girl twins, I think it's funny that most of the posters to this thread have daughters (and my own not-so-scientific experience is that my daughter is the swaddle addict, not my son). I dunno why, but I think that's interesting....


That IS interesting!

[cr8zyforaf]

My DD is almost 9 months and I still swaddle her. I have started to stop the swaddling for naps and do it looer at night. But if I don't, it is a nightmare - her arms are flying all over, she rips her pacifier out, scratches her eyes.

I swear, I feel like I will be swaddling her until she gets married at this point.

[mamax2]

I swear, I feel like I will be swaddling her until she gets married at this point.
Nah, her husband can take over the swaddling for you then :p

The other night, I was rocking DD to sleep, swaddled, and I had this image in my head of her being like 6 years old and me swaddling her in queen size bed sheets. I almost burst out laughing and I thought of this thread.

I am happy to report that we've had 1 successful attempt at swaddle weaning. She broke her right arm through almost immediately and I kept wrapping her fingers around her lovey. I also switched to a binky that just has a nub, not a ring, so she can't hold on/fling it as easily. After a couple of minutes of rocking to relax her, I put her in the crib and just sat next to her plugging up her binky and handing her the lovey repeatedly until she fell asleep on her own. It probably doesn't hurt that she was exhausted and had spent several hours outside in the fresh air. Anyway, I'm going to keep trying this method whenever she breaks an arm free and then eventually maybe she'll just get used to arm(s) being free all the time. So far, so good!

[dziner]

We were in the same boat until close to five months. Someone suggested putting your DD in a sleep sack but keeping her arms inside...my DS was so good at getting out of his swaddle (although he couldn't sleep without it) that for a while I had him in a Swaddle Me with a waffle weave over that and the sleep sack over those...and he could STILL get out!!!

What switched things here was that I realized one day it was (and this sounds nuts) his RIGHT arm that flailed around and unsettled him. He always sucks on his left hand. So I left his left arm out of the swaddle and bingo, he was able to sleep. I did that for a couple days' worth of naps and then loosened the swaddle so that he could learn to sleep without the right arm being bound. It worked. For a couple of weeks after that I still loosely wrapped his favorite waffle weave over his body to help him feel secure, and now it's his lovey. I spread it over him when it's time to sleep and he literally sighs with relief as his eyes close and he pulls it up to his face to caress his cheek. :)

Good luck!!!

[alisong]

Another thought - have you tried leaving her legs unswaddled? I think that was how we eventually broke the swaddle habbit - DS became too long for the miracle blankets, so we either had to start the swaddle at mid-chest (v. bad for breaking free) or leave his legs loose.

[carolc]

Just a word from the parent of a former swaddle junkie: DD was swaddled till, I believe, 15 months!! We tried many times to see if she was ready to ditch it, but she just wasn't till then. She is now 28 months and sleeps beautifully without it.

[mamax2]

*bump* for angelgirl8

[cr8zyforaf]

Just a word from the parent of a former swaddle junkie: DD was swaddled till, I believe, 15 months!! We tried many times to see if she was ready to ditch it, but she just wasn't till then. She is now 28 months and sleeps beautifully without it.


This is so nice to read...my DD is almost 10 months and still needs the swaddle...I worry about it from time to time but deep in my heart I know, when she is ready to stop, she will let me know just as she has done with everything else I've worried about as a first time mom (sleeping in the carseat, nighttime feedings, etc).

[angelgirl8]

am i the only one with a ds who is addicted to swaddling?! weird.


thanks for all the suggestions in this thread...hopefully something will work for my little addict because he breaks out about 10 times a night!

[charissa]

angelgirl - I know you've been having a rough time with the swaddling and breaking out, we were kind of going through the same thing, I thought that b/c DS was busting out of the miracle blanket, I should wrap him tighter, but one day I decided to just use the sleep sack and all of a sudden he just started putting himself to sleep... it was incredible. I think he was fighting the swaddle so much, he was waking himself up... now he REALLY sleeps through the night and takes consistent 1+ hour naps.

I know all babies are different, but I thought I'd share my recent experience with taking the swaddle away. Hope the sleeping sitch is better for you now :)