To swaddle (with normal blanket or a specific swaddling blanket), sleeping bag or just pjs and blankets? Help!

[Staceyrhe]

Hi,

I'm very confused by this subject. I'm due my first baby 17th December and haven't a clue what to do regarding sleeping bags etc for baby straight from birth. Do I just pop her in a sleeping bag her first night home from hospital or do I swaddle her? If I swaddle her, should it be with a specific swaddling blanket which are stretchy so help hip movements (advice I've been given and don't know much about) or will a normal blanket do for swaddling? Or do I not swaddle or put her in a sleeping bag and if no, what do I do?

Help needed for a panicking first time mummy!

I also panicked about this! I found swaddling too tricky and opted for 'gro bag' sleeping bags, they are pretty much fool proof and I found them much easier to deal with for the millionth time at 2am than swaddling, they are supported by the cot death charity too i think, or at least they were 3 years ago, and the company are very helpful if you have any questions over the phone. They do a special swaddle sheet thing that was really good when my baby was struggling to settle too, I found it much easier than a normal sheet\blanket. I just wanted to know I was doing the right thing to avoid cot death, became genuinely OCD about that unfortunately and gro bag sleeping bags kept me sane.

Just looked online - so they have a long relationship with the lullaby trust and say that 95% of parents use sleeping bags rather than blankets now, loads useful info on their website about safe sleep gro.co.uk/sleep-central#

I never got the hang of swaddling and DD wasn't keen either. I'm pretty sure I just used grobag sleeping bags from day one.

We're going to use these I think - my sister in law is buying us some as a gift for baby. You can use them to swaddle or have baby's arms out, which I like as the baby might like swaddling or hate it, and with these you can do either.
gro.co.uk/gro-snug
There is a cute video showing you how they work too.

Not from UK, so maybe not relevant.

Do you have "Love to dream" swaddle up bags here? It allows Bub to sleep with arms up but still be contained in a stretchy bag.

My son loved to be wrapped until about 4 months when we moved him to a sleeping bag. I always used a large thin-medium blanket that had a bit of stretch. A HV-type person showed me how to do it so his arms would still be up within the swaddle and it was great.

If you end up having a tummy sleeper then obviously you can't swaddle. And as much as you try to move them into back, some babies just prefer it.

Here's a link

www.kiddisave.co.uk/love-to-dream-love-to-swaddle-up-grey-large.html?gclid=CPL9-4rExMgCFYU_GwodrIQFtQ

Get some large muslin swaddles. They you can swaddle the first few months and use after as a regular muslin for face/ picnic blanket/ lightweight summer blanket. And use sleeping bags after. I recommend the Aden and anais bamboo swaddle blankets ( super soft), and the bambino merino sleeping bags ( last 0-2 years where most only 3 months at a time so no need to keep replacing)

Gro snug looks like the perfect solution, impressive! I struggled with scratch mits, always falling off, and with them no need. Also I imagine it keeps their arms and hands a good temp.

I'm OCD about cot death too and with so much advice out there it's hard to know what to do for the best. But on that note I think the sleeping bag option seems the best for me (you're right April2013, messing about with swaddling at 2am, doesn't seem like great fun for baby or me) and so long as she is placed at the bottom of her Moses basket so can't slip out of one, all should be OK. I hope. Thanks so much for all of your posts/advice, head feels a little less stressed and confused now! ??

I hates grobags for those first few weeks, I found doing nappy changes a pain then putting the bag bag on. As pp mentioned i swaddled loosely with a muslin then logjt blankets over the top. Grobags I found much better from about 8 weeksish when she started sleeping for longer stretches at night. Just play it by ear OP have one of each to see what you prefer.

We've got about 8 gro bags for £1/2 each but for the very diddy stage I got 2 newborn groswaddles and 2 summer infant swaddled for a tots, of £3 for all 4.

All preloved by the way, plan to use the four newborn gro-swaddledps initially then move to the gro bags,

I swaddle mine as he sleeps much better. I usually use a fine knitted shawl which has a good amount of stretch, but have also used a cellular blanket which has been fine. I then use a Muslim tucked under the mattress to hold him in place.

I would use a swaddling or cellular blanket because then even if your baby manages to wriggle the blanket over their face they can still breathe.

I didn’t get on with sleeping bags because his startle reflex kept waking him up. I’ll move to one though once he’s grown out of that.

Oh whoops, didn’t realise this was a zombie thread!