Baby sling?

[tiffersslippers]

First time poster long time listener. Has anyone here used a sling for a newborn as their only means of travel? I'm pregnant with my 3rd. My 4 year old son has been a great walker from now age my almost two year old daughter does not sure that quality. I do not want the absolute head mangle of a double pram. My daughter will go for little walks to the park local shop etc. But in terms of doing a the school run and grocery shopping I would prefer to keep her in the pram. So thinking my best option is to use a sling for the new baby for at least 4/5 months but that time my daughter will be 3 and I would feel more confident in her walking. The only apprehension I have is the safety of a sling obviously I would buy a good brand with all the safety checks but general day to day what are the pros/cons. Any advice would be great as I'm an completely shitting them at the thought of a 3rd little human. Thanks so much in advance

There has been a recent death of a newborn caused by suffocation in a sling so don’t put your baby too soon

www.google.com.au/amp/s/amp.news.com.au/lifestyle/parenting/babies/mum-distraught-after-sling-suffocates-baby/news-story/8a331a8be8b38e844ce646963a405818
And in previous years as well
www.smh.com.au/national/infants-death-prompts-baby-slings-warning-20110918-1wqb1.html

You'll struggle to detach baby from yourself as they get older. Will create sleep seperation issues etc. I am a pro sling person. Used a strechy wrap in the newborn days. Now bubs is bigger i use the ergobaby 360 for walks. Volunteer at the local sling library. But using it as the only form of travel is not recommended. You may have to have a C section which puts you out of sling contention for a while. 2babys recently died from chin on chest positioning. SIL uses wrap for naps (baby will fall asleep wether you want them to or not) and baby has a sleep association with her. Cue 2hrly wake ups still at 5 months.
I would strongly suggest either investing in a double or a buggy board or similar. Long term its not the best idea imo. Sorry op. Good luck with pregnancy and 3 kids!!

I’m not sure if the advice you have been given is correct. It’s normal for 5 month olds to wake up every 2 hours due to their sleep cycles. There is no evidence that sling use makes your baby over attached. You can’t cuddle a baby too much.

Speak to a sling library or join a sling Facebook page.

You can get buggy boards with seats and you could do a mixture of two years in buggy and baby in slings and two year old on the buggy board while the baby is in the buggy.

There is a slings and carriers board - try posting there for other people who’ve used slings and no buggy. It’s doable but a pain if it’s boiling hot or pouring with rain, I chose basic Maclaren as a back up (and I always kept a sling in the bottom of it, so I had transport for two children if necessary).

In safety, do follow the TICKS guidelines, here. And if you can get to a sling library to try a few and learn how to use them safely, then that would be ideal.

I solely used slings for all 5 mine. I dont agree that they create separation issues or sleep issues but each person's experience will be different. Go on Facebook and look up local sling library's. They let you borrow them and show you how to use them.

Oh, and my experience was that the more time dd spent in the sling in the day, the more likely she was to settle at night in her cot (after about three months, before that she just wanted cuddles). She slept through at 9 months, and was still spending hours in the sling each day at that point (school run).

I have a izmi wrap for my 10 week old. I've carried her in it since she was 4 days old.

My ten week old sleeps 10pm till 7am and is more then content through the day having tummy time or sitting in her swing if I need to do things. ( I do appreciate that a baby sleeping through from 3 weeks is extremely rare but both my girls have done it ...ds never slept for three years but that's a whole other thread!)

I use my wrap everyday and she has zero issues mentioned by other posters. I always make sure she is positioned correctly to avoid the issue of suffocation. I echo the posters who mentioned visiting your local sling library.

@allergyhelpsnewbaby prolonged sleeping close to mum creates a sleep association to mum and as a result, seperation anxiety. They also learn to rely on a cuddle to get back to sleep. Hense the 2hourly wake ups post sleep regression. Regression happens at around 4 months when the sleep cycle changes. Babys who have slept in a cot rather than attached to mum are more likely to be able to link their sleep cycles. Those who have created a sleep association need that to get them back to sleep. Eg. Rocking, feeding or being held. So while i agree you cant over cuddle a baby, prolonged use of a sling for the only mode of transport will most likely result in a seperation anxiety a few months down the line. OP, you've had 2 kids already, im sure you are aware of the consequences of holding a baby to sleep. A sling will do the same thing. If you're happy with this then go ahead and use it. But IMO, you're making it more difficult for yourself then spending a few bob on a double.
Also, you dont know what your birth will be like. I personally wouldnt risk not having a buggy ready should you have a C section or require surgery and not be able to sling baby.

Maybe a combination of sling, buggy that can lie flat so can be used for either child and buggy board? I refused to get a double buggy for a 2 year age gap too and I'm so glad given the short time it would have been needed. After a slow-ish start, DD1 is now an excellent walker. We've got a fantastic sling library here which was great for finding the perfect sling for me and my newborn, but I was glad to be able to put her down sometimes too.

I attempted similar when mine were small. I'm a massive sling user and also didn't want to buy a double buggy. I tried, goodness I tried, to get by with just a pram/buggy board/scooter and baby in a sling. It didn't work out for me. It was winter though when mine was a newborn and walking around with newborn in a sling, holding an umbrella so baby didn't get wet and pushing a buggy was not joyful! Then there days when, even though I'm a massive sling wearer and advocate, I simply wanted to be without a baby strapped to me. In the end, I bought a double buggy (Phil and Ted one with one under the other as we didn't have much space in the house to accommodate a side by side one) secondhand. It was great and was pretty much the same size as my normal buggy. I used it for three months solid until the older child was reliably standing on the buggy board/scootering/walking. Then I sold it for £10 less than what I had paid for it. It was a great investment! Could you do similar?

For what it's worth, in my experience using the along didn't make it hard for my babies to detach. I suppose everyone has different experiences though.

Good luck!