When you become a new parent, there are a lot of new skills that you will develop. You’ll have a lot of people telling you to do things in certain ways, and you’ll often question whether you are doing something right, or if you should even be doing some things at all.
One of these things is swaddling your newborn baby. You may not know how to do it. If you’ve been shown, watched videos, or read books on how to do it, you still may worry that you’re doing it wrong.
Your baby might not seem to like being swaddled, and you might end up not feeling comfortable with it. In all of the doubts that you have around swaddling, you may wonder if you should swaddle your newborn at all.
Why Swaddling Is Good For Your Baby
Swaddling isn’t just wrapping your baby up to make them look cute. It serves a purpose that is helpful to you and your baby.
Swaddling Helps Your Baby At Bedtime
One of the biggest benefits of swaddling your baby will come at bedtime. When you lay your baby down to sleep, if they are wrapped up, they won’t be able to pull the blankets over their face or roll over onto their front. This helps your baby get a safer night’s sleep as there will be a lower risk of suffocation. It will also help minimize the chance of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome.
Swaddling Helps Stop Reflux
If your baby has reflux, it can be uncomfortable for them. Swaddling can help reduce crying episodes which in turn can help prevent reflux which crying can aggravate so if the correct swaddling technique helps reduce crying, it may also lessen reflux.
Babies Will Cry Less When They Are Swaddled
It can be hard as a parent of a newborn. All your baby seems to do is cry. You lack sleep, and you can’t seem to get your baby to settle. You may feel as though you are at your wit’s end.
Swaddling can help your baby to stop your crying by helping to recreate the feeling of being in the womb. This is very soothing for your baby and will help them feel safe and secure. It will also help to keep your baby warm without them overheating.
How To Swaddle Your Newborn Baby
You can start swaddling from day one. From the day that your baby is born, if you use gentle swaddling, they’ll get used to it, and you’ll get into the habit of doing it.
Make sure you swaddle your baby firmly but not too tight. Your baby should feel comfortable and secure, but they still need to breathe and be able to wriggle around a bit. To find the perfect firmness for your swaddling, you should be able to fit two fingers between your baby’s chest and the swaddling.
Stick to swaddling at set times. If your baby is swaddled around bedtime, then they will learn to associate it with sleep. If you feed your baby in the night, keep them swaddled throughout.
