newborns - questions about blankets, swaddling, sleeping bags and temperature

[badguider]

I know NOTHING!!!!

Arghhhh....

I'm thinking about baby sleeping bags from newborn. I'm due in September and we live in Scotland. It will not be warm at night. DH and I would prefer to have our heating off and let the room go down to about 14deg for sleeping but i've read that babies need it at least 16 so that's what we'd like to aim for (rather than any hotter) as we both find it impossible to sleep and wake with headaches sleeping in a hot stuffy room and we want to grab any opportunity to sleep we get!! (it's ok on holiday when the fresh air is hot, just an issue with central heating hot).

So.. I was thinking of a 2.5tog gro bag, but i see the baby has to be 8lbs8 to wear the smallest size so I guess it depends how big he's born.
This is a pity as I think the sleeping bag would be easiest for regular feeding and picking up / putting down all night.

One friend has said I should swaddle with a 'miracle' blanket to start with - which sounds good... but I don't understand; if normal blankets aren't allowed up past their nipple line then how can swaddling be ok?

If I did swaddle, could I feed him without unwrapping him?

We've got a side-cot so I don't want to have to get out of bed and lay him on the floor to re-wrap every single time....

God, they're not going to let me take him home from hospital at this rate - I'm soooo clearly clueless!

I was similarly clueless, but have discovered the following (dd now 3 months but only a tiddly 10lb7 still).

Swaddling- scared me at first because of temp but I used a 'swaddle me' with a vest under- could then add or remove blankets depending on temp. Found it much easy in early days to feed in this as well as flailing arms can make life tricky! The swaddle me velcros shut and therefore is only two layers. I've heard great things about swaddle pods as well, only one layer, still enclosed, but stretchy. We found swaddling only worked for about 3 weeks until she started trying to fight her way out, but was a godsend at the time.

We've got a gro bag and I still feel dd is too small for it, so we bought a 0-3 month one by a company called purflo. They're the only one I could find small enough. But like I said, she's very little.

For us, the sleeping bag doesn't work with the Moses basket as she feels too constrained but side cot should be ok. When she's in her Moses basket, she looks ridiculous in a babygro under pyjamas, with a blanket over the top. That way if she kicks her blanket off she doesn't get too cold. When she's in her own cot all night I'll put her in a long sleeved vest, pj bottoms if a bit cooler, in a 2.5 tog sleeping bag.

Gro company have a good temp/clothing guide on their website! Can't link on her but I think I searched for "baby sleeping bag temperature guide".

Hth!

thanks!

in the moses - do you have to do that 'feet to foot' and 'blanket only up to nipples' thing.... so is she all stuffed down the bottom of it? or are those rules just for cots?

Don't worry too much about baby being cold. The rule of thumb is that they need one more layer than you, which isn't that much! He'll let you know if he's cold. The concern is around them getting to warm, as its a SIDS risk.

Also remember that a cellular blanket folded over counts as two blankets!

As for getting out of bed to swaddle, you'll be doing it on your knee in no time.

I haven't any advice about sleeping bags as I've never used one I'm afraid!

Yes to the rules being the same in Moses basket, the idea being they mustn't be able to wriggle down under their blankets.

I know that warmth is a sids risk - but if having a blanket up to their shoulders is a no-no then I just don't understand why swaddling isn't dangerous too

They can't get their heads trapped when they're swaddled, whereas with blankets they can get tangled up and stuck underneath them.

Grobags are fantastic, DS has been in them since about 6 weeks (now 13mo). The 2.5 tog ones are toasty warm, and DS in the winter wore a flannel or fleece sleepy suit, a long sleeves vest and his grobag and that was fine. However 14 degrees is very cold, is it worth getting an oil radiator for his room so you can take the edge off it, without having to have the whole house heating on? DS definitely sleeps better when he's cosy and warm, 16 degrees is too cold for him.

I would be happy to warm up his room when he's in it... it's while he has to be in our room that I don't want it too hot :(

I guess we will see how he gets on and warm our room as much as we really have to but dh and i normally sleep with the windows open all year round (and even in ski resorts when it's snowing outside :) )

You can keep them swaddled to feed. The only thing you'll need to learn is where to place your muslin to catch the dribbles or you'll have a wet baby.

However as far as I can remember (my baby is 7 months now), we were changing nappies several times a night for the first few weeks which is pretty normal I think. We used zip up swaddle shells but got rid of them pretty quickly because she hated being swaddled and instead just layered cellular blankets.

Honestly, don't worry. You'll probably try a few different things at first to find out what works for you and your baby. Then you'll work it out and suddenly you'll feel like you know what you're doing and you'll wonder what you were worrying about.
I remember posting very similar questions before my baby was born! I just couldn't work out what you're supposed to swaddle with, what a cellular blanket is for etc. You learn, honest.

I'm sure I will learn but I'm just trying to do it without buying out the whole of mothercare ... I don't want to buy one of every option 'just in case' and then never use 90% of the stuff again... but I guess maybe everybody just has to go through that...???

Ds was a December baby and we never have heating on overnight. We had a temperature gauge in the bedroom and it did drop to 14 one night. Ds used sleeping bags with long sleeved vest and babygro but his hands were always freezing. In hindsight I would've got a sleeping bag with arms. I think vertbaudet do them. We used blankets and sheets for the first couple of weeks before he was big enough. Dd is swaddled with a sheet and then a cellular blanket over. Also look into a lambskin to use between the mattress and sheet, it will help to safely keep baby warm.

I was really worried about this beforehand too! I hate a hot room at night, in hotels I can never get much sleep, as they are always far too hot for me, even when I have managed to switch off radiators and open windows. 14 degrees seemed warm to me!

My son was born in the cold patch in feb, and in the end, we did keep the heating on overnight for the first few weeks, and it was fine. I forgot that I'd be spending half the night sitting up with my boob out, so I needed a warmer room too. The temperature was around 18, and we were all fine, no sweaty hell.

We have a side crib too, which I absolutely love, and until about 10 weeks old, the baby slept in a short sleeved vest with poppers below the nappy, a long sleeved nighty with elastic at the bottom, and the thin cotton jersey swaddle from Gro, with 2 layers of cellular blanket. We tried a coupleof Velcro swaddles, which he broke out of immediately, but the simpler Gro one was the best for us by far.
He stopped pooing at night quite early, but while we were still doing night changes, I had a mat on the foot of the bed, wipes and nappies under my pillow, and I'd do a quick change without ever getting out of bed, just on the mat on my duvet covered lap. The dirty nappy went in a ball on the floor to deal with in the morning.
To feed him I'd just lift up the swaddled bundle, stick him on the boob, and put him back again, no need to reswaddle. Once he started escaping several times per night we switched to grobags, which have been great too.

I had my baby in Scotland last September so was in the same dilemma!

We had a tiny baby so it was ages before she was big enough for gro-bags but have used them ever since. We initially used Gro-swaddle blankets (shaped jersey blankets) and cellular blankets over the top. They were ok but we eventually got swaddle pods which are much better as they stay on and you can transfer into (sidecar) cot without them unravelling.

We also used a baby sheepskin which was great. There are old wives takes about them being a SIDS risk but the only piece of research (done in the early 90s) found no risk from them as long as they are especially for babies (short pile)and babies are laid on their backs. They are used in neonatal units as they improve temperature regulation and avoid pressure points. However, they are expensive and can't be used once they are rolling (both ways at 14 weeks for us!)

Hope that helps

Sorry... Old Wives 'TALES' ( predictive text!?)

I found the hospital blanket to be the best for swaddling. (not suggesting you nick one, but they are ace)

Another option is a swaddle that has a zip or velcro - like a Woombie or a swaddle pod. We used the woombie till 3.5 months and then we went to grobags.