Swaddling in hot weather

[postingwithlove]

So with my first, I swaddled her in those early weeks/ months and it worked wonders. It was cold weather so felt also nice and cosy.

Not pregnant yet but we now live in a hot country and I am wondering how it would work in hot weather.... surely the baby would overheat?

Anyone have any experience of swaddling in hot temperatures....?

My DS was born during a heatwave, and on the advice of the midwives I still swaddled him, I just used a thin cotton swaddle. It worked, he slept very well.

I never did swaddle as don't think it fair to restrict their movement. I'd think you would have to use something very thin and light if you were to in hot weather.

Never really swaddled. I did sometimes roll up a small blanket and put on either side.

If you are in a hot country do you not have air con in your home? I had my first in the Middle East but our home had air con so we would have that on at night to keep the room cool enough to swaddle

You can still swaddle if it's hot, just dress baby in a vest (and nappy!) and use a Muslim cloth instead of a blanket.

And (IMO) it is fair to swaddle a new born who is used to restricted movement, as it makes them feel safe, like when they were in your womb.

My kids were both born in an Australian summer (we didn't have air-conditioning at home). We swaddled both of ours, they would only have a sleeveless/short sleeved vest under a very light muslin swaddle. You want a very thin layer of fabric between body/arms otherwise if lots of bare skin is touching they'll get more sweaty.

Singlet, nappy and a light muslin cloth to swaddle them. Have a pedestal fan set up to blow across the top of their cot to help create air movement but don’t point it directly at baby. Ceiling fan on if you have one. Check on baby every 15-30 mins to make sure they’re not too hot or red. Once you work out what they’re comfortable in you won’t need to check so frequently.

If you have air conditioning then use it and dress and swaddle baby to suit the cooler temperature.

I had my DD in the middle of summer in Australia. The above worked well. If it was really hot and humid I’d put on air conditioning. If I did that I’d put a short sleeved shirt on her instead of the singlet, maybe some shorts, and socks if her feet felt cold. Layers and separates make it easier to adjust to the right coverage so that baby is comfortable.