Looking for Help with Older Infant Still in Need of Being Swaddled

Hi,

I have four kids, and they all loved being swaddled. My oldest was still being swaddled at her first birthday! It helped them feel safe and secure. We used the velcroe-swaddle blankets that you find at Babies R Us, and even though my kids were big (22 pounds by one year), those blankets still stayed on tightly. My youngest is now 5 months, and still sleeps swaddled.

If your son likes being swaddled, I'd keep right on swaddling him. If you haven't tried the velcroe blankets, I'd highly recommend them. If they're done up tightly (not tight enough to cut off circulation, but pretty snug), then he probably won't get out of it, and hopefully will sleep well. Some babies just really like that snug feeling!

Good luck!

Hi D.,

I don't think that a 6 mo. old still needs to be swaddled. It may just be a "habit" that he has become accustomed to and it has been compounded by reinforcement.

A 6 month old baby loves to check out their toes, fingers, etc. They will eventually doze off to sleep. Let him roll & play in his crib until he falls asleep. Try nursing him before bed, then put him down, unswadled, while he is still awake. Let him "learn" to fall asleep by himself. He will eventually get it. Try to "ween" him from his nursings at night. Let him fuss a little bit, it will not hurt him, he may just learn to soothe himself back to sleep.

We finally got it right with our third and he is an amazing sleeper who knows (& likes) his crib and how to fall asleep on his own.

Good Luck!

Have you tried sleep sacks? We like the Halo Sleep sack that comes in either fleece or cotton and they make them in sizes up to 24 months. Both my kids have/will sleep in one every night until moving to their own big boy/big girl bed. When little, I would "swaddle and sack" even though the swaddle would get undone eventually. When it seemed like the swaddle wasn't really working, I just used the sack. Since it's April now, you might try a 6-12 mo cotton sack...with a swaddle inside at first? Then see if you can do without the swaddle? Not sure.

Hi,
I have 4 children 7-21, same marriage. I would make sure his feet are covered, sox or footy pjs, maybe his feet are getting cold and that's what wakes him up??
If he likes to be a tight bundle, I would swaddle him and tuck him between to pillows so he doesn't unwrap with excess movement. You can take two regular pillows and bend them horizontally, may be wrap the pillow in a roll, sort of tuck them on either side of the crib mattress.
Good luck. L.

There is a product called "Back To Sleep Blanket" - it is a sleeveless, zip up sack - this way when they roll around, the blanket is still on them and they stay warm. They sell them at Target - it is also a safer way to have them sleep, rather than a regular blanket that can accidentally cover there face. My kids all used it - good luck. C. B

You could try a blanket sleep sack it will give him the feeling of being swaddled and he wont be able to get himself unwrapped.

All my kids have required late swaddling--my son until 10 mos!! In any event, to minimize 'escape' I bring the back of the blanket (or the foot-pouch if you're using a miracle blanket) up between the legs and secure it to the front of the swaddling with a diaper pin. The free edge of the swaddling on the body I typically secure to the rest of the blanket with either another diaper pin or a small square of duct tape. This way the swaddling can't ride up around the head and face if they thrash free, and there's less chance of them thrashing free, too!

I wouldn't worry too much about the swaddled and rolling thing. Once they're strong enough to roll in the swaddling they have good head and torso control and even sleeping on their stomach swaddled isn't an issue as long as they're in a safe sleep space to begin with: ie no loose bedding, pillows, stuffed animals etc.

My 8 mo old currently naps unswaddled on her stomach and swaddled on her stomach at night. Unswaddled she can't stop trying to crawl, playing with her feet, etc and gets really restless and frustrated!

Good luck!

There are sleep blankets that are like swaddling and will comfort baby and keep him from reaching those toes, but they do not bound the legs too much. Many doctors discourage swaddling after a couple of months because swaddling babies too often and for too long can interfere with the normal development of the ball-and-socket joint in the hip (infant hip dislocation is common in cultures that use long-term swaddling). His waking habits may be because he isn't eating enough, perhaps he is going through a growth spurt, or he just likes to roll over, or he is teething, which happened at 6mo for my baby, it was a nightmare. Try not to nurse him at night time (i did this and it created a bad bad pattern), I just had to quit cold turkey and he cried, but now understands that he doesn't eat during the night. I do give him a sip of water now (he is 11 months old). He isn't a great sleeper, but we have stopped the nighttime feeding habit. Now he just wakes up when he is sick or teething or something is bothering him, like gas. I do wish that he would sleep through the night, but not every baby does. good luck!

Try those swaddles that velcro together so that he wont completely unravel, or maybe those halo sleep sacs so that he is covered and the sleep sac doesn't come off and he wont get cold. My boys loved being swaddled for a long time as well. It's security and comfort to them. It took atleast 5 month before my boys would sleep in their cribs. They liked sleeping in the graco swing (I didn't turn it on.. kept it off at night) because it kept them more "snuggly" and comforted. So I'm sure he'll grow out of the need soon. Good luck! T.

have you tried the sleep sacks? my son was an awful sleeper and i let my daughtwer nurse throwout the night but it is a little "aggrevating" when the kids don't sleep because then you can't
i feel your "paiin" of not sleeping

Check out this website http://www.pekemoe.co.nz/ . This is a friend of mine that lives in New Zealand. These are handmade by her and her mom. I know they have shipped to the US before, I just don't know how long it takes. I've heard they work wonders.

My son is exactly the same age and still needs to be swaddled to sleep. If he is not swaddled, he will move around and take his binky out of his mouth and not go to sleep. Also, if he sleeps unswaddled, he wakes up quicker. I swaddle him and then put him in a sleep sack and he sleeps much better than. We did that with our first one as well but, he slept wihout being swaddled at 3 months. I think it works great!

Hi D.,
I'm not sure about the swaddling thing, but if he's already rolling over, I can't imagine any type of swaddling that he won't roll out of. It seems the real issue is getting him to be able to get himself back to sleep without you. I have recommended this book to everyone who is having sleep issues with their kids, because it has worked for us at every age and every stage and sleep issue, EVERY time. We have 6 kids, and are expecting our 7th in May, so we have pretty much run the gamut of sleep issues! The book is "Heallthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child," by Dr. Marc Weissbluth. It takes you step by step through the process of sleep training at whatever age your child is at. It is so amazing, and because it's so detailed, it makes it much easier to maintain consistency, which is really the most important thing. Your baby will be happier and better rested, and so will you. Good luck.

My kids loved the sleepsacks. Basically little bags you stick there feet in over their regular pjs. There arms are free but legs are nice and cozy warm. They slept great when wearing these. Here is an example product link: http://www.mommysthinkin.com/halo_sleepsack_wearable_blan...

Good luck

At 6 months, that is what they do... he shouldn't be swaddled anymore if he is rolling, let him cry for a few nights and he will learn to fall asleep, go in and soothe him by rubbing his back, but don't pick him up. My 3rd is 7 months now, and she slept through the night from 2-4 months, I have struggled for the last month and a half of her waking up every 2 hours, I have let her cry it out in the middle of the nioght when I know she doesn't need to eat, it is hard at first, but so worth it if you want to sleep soon! It isn't safe to swaddle him if he is rolling. Good luck, and hope you get some rest soon!

Have you tried sleep positioners? They also make something & carry it at toys r us called SwaddleMe, its like a little swaddle bag and they make it in cotton and fleece and it also comes in sizes so that you can get the right size for the height and weight of your child.
My daugher used to roll a lot and it eventually stopped, when she got older.

hi, D.,

my son liked to be until he was 8 months! i was uncomfortable about it, as well. he turned out fine. he sleeps through the night, etc. he is now 17 months.

W.

First off, I have a 21mo old that I still swaddle!!!! I lay her down in the bed and wrap the blanket around her. She eventually rolls out of it. Then I just cover her for the night with the blanket.

I dont have much advice except for, could he be waking cause he is cold? You had mentioned him playing with his feet as well. I would just make sure he is dressed warm enough so if he is waking cause he isnt swaddled and getting cold, maybe he wont wake as much?

Best of Luck

My first son was swaddled until about 5 months or so. I thought he would always want to be swaddled because he slept really really well that way and would always wake up when he wasnt swaddled. He was also a very colicky baby so the swaddling helped too. We used a big blanket to swaddle him. He seemed to like the weight of it and it helped him sleep even better. When he was smaller we used a Swaddle Me but he grew out of those. At around the 5 months + mark he just stopped liking the swaddling and slept fine after that. He used to hate being on his tummy too...He is now 17 months old and loves sleeping on his tummy. It will get better believe me, and things will change..Keep up the good work!! :)

My nearly 4.5 month old daughter is still being swaddled as well. She has extremely active hands. They are always at her face or in her mouth. We had a doctor's appt last week and I asked whether or not this was doing her any harm. My doctor said my daughter's motor skills are excellent and she sees no reason why I can't continue to swaddle her. It allows her to sleep very well. We use the Miracle Blanket and love it. We plan to swaddle her until she fights it or grows out of the blanket. I have read that one way to help them transition out of being swaddled is to start swaddling them with one arm out during nap time and see how they do.

Hi D.. My 5 month old is a rocker and a thrasher when she sleeps! We swaddle her, but leave her arms out so she can suck her fingers. You might want to start with that.
Then there are sleep books that you can read that help you get your baby to sleep through the night. There is Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child, and there is The No Cry Sleep Solution which has some great tips on weaning babies off the need to nurse back to sleep. GOOD LUCK.

My 4.5-month old also still needs to be swaddled and can break out of the blanket. I find that the blankets with Velcro (Swaddle Me and the like) are not tight enough, so I use a large blanket and then a Swaddle Me on top of that. The regular blanket keeps him tight, and the Swaddle Me with Velcro prevents him from breaking out.

I recently discovered a better blanket (with Velcro) called Snug 'n Tug. It works much better than a Swaddle Me, although still my son can get out of it eventually if I don't use a regular blanket underneath.

I own a business (www.eieiobabygear.com) that sells swaddling blankets larger than most available in the stores. My son (who is already 17.2 pounds) no longer fits in even these large blankets, so I made him an even larger one and would be happy to make one for you too if you are interested. I might start selling larger blankets on my site as well -- it seems we're not the only ones who need to swaddle our older babies!

I had good luck with the SwaddleMe's by Kiddopatamus. You can find them at BabiesRUs. My son stayed swaddled for quite some time, too and that's how we did it when he got bigger.

Hope that helps!

Hi Dianne- My son was a huge fan of being swaddled too. I use to laugh with friends and tell them if he slept thru the night I would swaddle him until he is 10! If he is rolling during the day, I dont think it is a big deal if he is swaddled thru the night. There is a great blanket called the kiddappolous (sp?) They sell them at Target and Babies R Us. They come in light cloth as well as fleece for the winters. It is a velcro system so the baby will not come out during the night. It is up to you if you want to velcro in his arms or leave them exposed. I believe it is sized all the way up to 12 mths.

Hope this helps. I am expecting a girl in a couple mths and definetly will be using this blanket again!

My suggestion is to bring him to bed with you. He probably won't roll around enough to uncover himself, and if he does you can cover him back up before he really wakes up. It will make nursing easier as well. I've found it to be the easiest, most satisfying way to sleep, and when the new baby comes, we just plan to have a fouth person in bed :)

Hey,
I just read somewhere that you shouldn't swaddle a child over 4 months... I mean like 2 days ago, they say it can lead to SIDS!

Not trying to scare you but I never thought I would ever have to share that kind of info. I am having a baby (my 3rd) so now I'm reading all these baby mags, again... However, if u try to keep the baby up till later, then maybe they might sleep later thus waking you up less... or more towards the morning.

You can try that... you might have heard it already but keeping them up might make you more tired but it's better in the long run and sometimes it helps.

Hope that helped!

Good luck
C