Welcome to 7 Swaddles from ABC Doula Service

Baby not sleeping well?

Needs to be held all the time?

Think your baby hates their bassinet?

Trying to get longer sleep stretches?

Baby waking up by flailing hands?

Desperate for a calmer baby?

These are all good reasons to swaddle your baby! If you have struggled with swaddling, it might NOT be your baby that is the problem, but it might be the swaddling TECHNIQUE. We have 7 different options for you to try here, all based on what your baby needs and what age and stage your baby is in currently.

Please use all precautions with your newborn as you support their sleep;

Firm surfaces, appropriate layers relating to temperature, a sleep environment free of suffocation or entrapment risks, breastfeeding if possible, and providing a non-smoking environment will support healthy sleep for your family, and will provide optimal safety for your baby, according to current guidelines set by the AAP and First Candle.

While we do not know what causes SIDS/SUIDS (the new term is Sudden Unexplained Infant Death Syndrome, which separates out accidental deaths that do have known causes i.e. suffocation or entrapment) we know that keeping babies asleep on their back both lowers the risk by an average of 50%, and also extends the time they are able to sleep safely on their backs (by some studies, up to an hour for each time they are swaddled and placed on their backs). For this reason we want to help families to find a swaddle that works for their baby, in the absence of co-sleeping/bed-sharing, which provides swaddling benefits without the use of blankets.

Our hope is to achieve longer sleep stretches for healthy babies and their parents, although most babies would probably prefer to sleep close, wake often, and feed frequently throughout the night. We encourage families to be sensitive to their baby’s needs, and follow their own instincts in caring for their child, both during the day and night. One of the primary reasons for swaddling is to encourage babies to sleep safely on their backs, while parents sleep peacefully near them.

One more thing to consider is that your baby truly might not need to be swaddled. There are many babies that sleep great on their backs, relax completely and wake up at regular intervals to eat and never need swaddling. Co-sleeping and bed-sharing need to be factored in as well, as often the parents provide the comfort and physical reassurance needed without swaddling. Make sure to consider heating concerns as well as all the safety issues surrounding shared sleep surfaces, many of which can be found in Dr. James McKenna’s list of safe co-sleeping guidelines.

We trust you to take great care of your baby; we know that parents–more than anyone else–want their babies to thrive. Our aim is to give you more tools to help everyone get sleep and enjoy newborn baby life!