My daughter just turned three months old. She has slept in a kiddopotamus swaddle blanket from the day she was born - even during naps. I am lucky that she's been sleeping 12 hours at night since she was 6 weeks old! She has always been a great sleeper - we feel blessed! However, she just learned to roll over - and I caught her during a nap trying to flip onto her stomach while swadddled. I am freaking out because I know she can roll over, and if she is swaddled and rolls over in her sleep I am afraid she wont have her hands free to flip back over, and she could suffocate with her face in the cribsheet. She is a strong baby and can lift her head up - and my husband said if she flips onto her stomach - wont she just turn her head to breathe? I tried a sleep positioner - but she is very very wiggly and moves all around her crib. She wiggled down off the positioner and still rolled over!
I have tried to put her to sleep without the swaddle blanket and she cries! I dont know what to do! Please help I cant sleep now because I am so worried about her!
You will need to transition her out of the swaddle if she is rolling over. I started with one am out of the swaddle until my son was used to it and then the next arm (just swaddling his body) and when he was used to that then I stop the swaddling all together. Good Luck.
D.,
My 8 month old still goes to sleep swaddled- just now we use a blanket and as she moves through the night she can get her arms free- that way when she flips she can push herself up. If you don't like the blanket idea- you can start with easing her out of the swaddle by leaving one arm free, then just having it around her torso leaving both arms free- that way she is not shocked into not having the comfort feeling of having the swaddle.
When my son rolled over swaddled, I was freaked out too. He loved the swaddle so much, I couldn't imagine him sleeping without it. To break him of it, we swaddled (same blanket you have) with one arm out for a few nights, then both arms out for a few nights. He did much better with the transition than I thought he would.
Jennifer
if she can flip over, can she also flip back over? (onto her back) And can you simply swaddle her in a regular blanket or sheet of flannel cloth (so that she can free her hands, if necessary)?
best of luck!
Hi D.,
I know they say to place your baby on his/her back to sleep, but since she can roll over on her own I would try putting her to sleep on her side. My daughter hated being swaddled, but would also fling her arms around and wake herself up when on her back. Once she was strong enough to pick up her head by herself I started putting her to sleep on her side and she always goes right to sleep now, no swaddle needed. Good luck:)
Hi, it is time to stop swaddlling her. You should stop swaddling them at three months so as not to hinder their development. Have you tried putting her to sleep in a swing? When we stopped swaddling my son, he had trouble adjusting as well. Often times we would just hold his hands down firmly until he fell asleep. Eventually he got the hang of dealing with his wild arms. My babe slept best in his car seat when he was that age. I think because it was so snug. They like to be squished. I would put his car seat in the middle of the bed and let him sleep there all night. If you buckle her in, no worry about turning over. You gotta do what you gotta do to get some sleep. My recommendation would be to try other sleeping situations to find one your babe likes. Most babies do not like sleeping flat on a bed or crib. They feel un-protected. Best of luck.
Get an ordinary flannel swaddling blanket and start swaddling her under her armpits. We did this for a few months after my daughter started to roll.
Hi D., I have dealt with Autistics for 20 years now and they also like the tight, weighted feel for sleeping. My suggestion is to put her in a stretchy sleeper that fits like a glove and then a blanket sleeper that fits the same. She will get the same tight feeling but will be able to move around. It worked for my daughter (autistic) and she loved to be swaddled until she was almost 4. BTW, don't freak out, this is not to say she is autistic, it is just the experience that I have being the mother of one :)
We swaddle our 8 month old with a blanket too. It is snug around her shoulders but loose around her hips and she can bend her legs. From the reading I have done they should not be swaddled tightly around their hips for any length of time as it can hinder hip development.
If you are with her during the day, you could try making changes to her sleep arrangements (transitioning her out of her swaddle) during her naps first before making the change to her night-time sleeping arrangements. That way, if she cries for 20 minutes before getting to sleep, no one looses sleep. Once she is comfortable with the change at naps, you could introduce it to bedtime.
That said, would she sleep unswaddled on her tummy? I know it's against all advice, but if she's rolling over on her own, it sounds like she'll end up there anyway. My daughter has been sleeping on her tummy her whole life - it's the only way she'll sleep.
Good luck!
Try swaddling her in a very light wrap with her arms out and put her in a sleep sack and see if she will sleep well that way. Maybe when she gets used to the sleep sack you can quit swaddling her.
Another idea is to swaddle her to go to sleep then gently pull her arms out once she is asleep so her arms are free to assist her in roll back over.
Once a baby rolls over, it is hard to keep them on their back. Usually when they reach this milestone it is okay for them to lie on their tummy as they normally will turn their head to the side to breathe.
Baby is growing up mama! Enjoy her and good luck.
Time to take her out of the swaddle. Try sleepsacks. They are great for transitioning. Babies can roll around, but still feel cozy. If she can flip over and lift her head, she'll be fine. She will not suffocate. We have all been made to be so afraid of babies sleeping on their tummies - like they will die instantly if the sleep on their tummies for one minute. My sister put her son to sleep on his tummy on purpose because he slept better that way due to his reflux. I wish I had done the same with my son. When I was growing up, doctors told our parents to put us to sleep on our tummies. I know the Back to Sleep campaign has saved babies lives, but still, at three months, if shee can roll over, she is ready get out of the swaddle.
There is some proof that SIDS (which is what I assume you're worrying about) may be caused by gases given off by mold inside mattresses, and the "Back to Sleep" method helps to protect infants. Since she is a wiggler and will be moving all over the place, right side up and upside down, I would suggest that you go to www.criblife2000.com and learn about the mattress covers that are protective. Your pediatrician may not be aware of this information, as it is a rather controversial theory about SIDS, but Dr. Davis is very knowledgeable and accessible if you want to ask him questions about this. Good luck!
Hi. My son also loves to be swaddled. What I do is i swaddle him with his arms out. so just the rest of him is swaddled tight in the blanket and he likes it just as much as if his whole body was swaddled. Hope that helps, and she will be able to use her hands if she needs to.
sometimes he acts fussy so i put his elbows in the swaddle to where if he moves around alot then his arms can come out on their own.
HI D.,
As long as the swaddle is away from her face, I'd let her sleep on her belly. And I agree with the other posters... may be time to transition from the swaddle or try swaddling under her arms... With our first born we followed back to sleep and she was not a great sleeper. Could have been a coincidence. As soon as she was able she slept on her belly.
Our son was born early and slept on his belly in the NICU and on. He had some developmental delays and when I talked to the physical therapist about concerns I had about him sleeping on his stomach she told me that they actually see more kids with delays because they are put on their back too much. It was her opinion that the frequency on SIDS and the back to sleep movement was due to thick mattresses and blankets in beds with babies. After that I never worried about our son another day. He's perfect now and has been a fabulous sleeper.
Just a side note, and not one to concern you more... you said she's a great sleeper and sleeps for 12 hours straight. Be mindful about her always sleeping on the same side on her head. We hear a lot about babies who are on their back a lot developing a flat spot on the back of their heads, but babies who sleep on one side of their faces can develop something called tortacolis (spelling?). This can affect their necks and cause problems in development as well.
Good luck and joy your sweet little one!
My son will be 1 next month and he is still being swaddled at night. He rolls over all the time and he just turns his head. He does like to be propped up at night though. We started with the boppy and put him swaddled in the middle. He fell asleep upright when we did that. Now we have transitioned him to a regular pillow which he sleeps with in his crib, still swaddled. Everyone tells me that he will let me know when he is ready to not be swaddled anymore. It has happened yet.... hope this helps.
S.
