We’ve been swaddling Piper ever since we brought her home from the Hospital. It is the only way she seems to get a good sleep. Around the time she was about a month old she would wiggle her way out of the swaddling. Once her arms are out it’s all over, she’s mad and crying and if it’s the middle of the night mom and dad feel like crying as well. Our pediatrician recommended using the swaddling blankets with the velcro over the top of her other blanket. This has worked great for the past month but recently she started stretching out her legs and wiggling out of both the blankets. I was up just about every hour last night reswaddling her and getting her calmed down. She still has a strong startle reflex and that seems to wake her up if she’s not swaddled. I’m really not sure what the next step is, do we stop swaddling her? Do we swaddle her each time she wakes up? I’m sure like anything else with small babies this will pass. It’s just a tad frustrating because she had just started sleeping longer at night and now we’re back to getting up every couple of hours.Update: We have tried a few new swaddling techniques and things are going much better. I'm afraid Piper is just one of those babies that needs to be swaddled in order to get a good rest.
Both of my girls did not like being swaddled, though Guthrie liked it a tad bit more than Harper. I think it is all a personal choice...some parents swear by swaddling for many more months past Piper's age. I'm more on the side of going with what the baby seems to like/not like. Her sleeping longer and swaddling may have just been a coincidence and if she is a nursing baby she is bound to wake up lots in the middle of the night. Heck, Guthrie at 13 months STILL wakes up some nights to nurse...Perhaps she is going through a growth spurt and just needs more mama...? Perhaps try dressing her comfortably and then starting her out not being swaddled but just covered up and see if it makes a difference. Maybe the act of feeling swaddled and then startling herself when she has gotten out of it is what is bothering her? In any case, good luck! I know how difficult lack of sleep can be!
ReplyDeleteThanks for the Advice Ashley. I got her to sleep with out being swaddled and that's huge! we'll just have to see how that goes. Personally I'd be happy if she could sleep with out being swaddled, it's kind of a hassle.
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