Weaning from swaddle

[nancybotwin]

DS is pretty dependent on the swaddle. I think we are pushing it with still swaddling but he sleeps horribly if he isn't bundled tightly. Anyone navigate this successfully? Advice?

[twodogsandababy]

When we weaned DS1 from the swaddle we started by loosening it slightly. Then after a few days we swaddled with one arm out, then both arms out then loosened again, then took it away.

[auberge]

Not gonna lie it was hard for about a week or two. We just loosened the swaddle every night gradually and let one arm out at a time.

[dcn]

We did it when he was 6.5 months. I did naps first, one arm out for a few days, then tried night with one arm out. Some nights I reswaddled motn. Once he was good with one arm out I did both. Again, sometimes reswaddling if needed. I think it took a week or so all together.

[ilikedonuts]

DD2 is a few days older then your little one and her arms are still swaddled and she's in the RnP (buckled so feet not swaddled). You are not alone! We can get a 4-5 hour stretch swaddled in the crib, but then she's up on and off unless we put her in the RnP.

Right now we're getting rid of the one MOTN bottle she gets (5am) and then we are going to just go unswaddled in the crib and do CIO if I can handle it. Loosening it unfortunately doesn't work for my kid (we try that every month or so and then she just ends up getting her arms out, smacks herself in the face and cries on and off for hours.

So I have no real help other than to tell you that you're not alone with a late swaddler!

[livinitup]

I swaddled DD forever. I saw no reason to give it up. None. Sleep was the most important thing - for both of us.

[ssmjlm]

Our first night of swaddling with one arm out was a disaster and we were a mess.

So we took the coward's way out and went to the merlin sleep suit and then to swaddle free.

[soozy87]

Looks like my son is just a few days older than yours. We got rid of the swaddle last Thursday. We had one rough night but since then it has been okay. We just went cold turkey and started sleep training that same night.

[jenn248]

May 12, 2014 8:12:17 GMT -5 soozy87 said:

We just went cold turkey and started sleep training that same night.

Same here.  Figured we might as well get all the misery over with at once (it turned out not to be all that bad though).

[schrodinger]

May 12, 2014 7:58:14 GMT -5 ssmjlm said:

Our first night of swaddling with one arm out was a disaster and we were a mess.

So we took the coward's way out and went to the merlin sleep suit and then to swaddle free.

This is what we did too.

[littlepeanut]

May 12, 2014 7:56:12 GMT -5 livinitup said:

I swaddled DD forever. I saw no reason to give it up. None. Sleep was the most important thing - for both of us.

This.  We have tried multiple times, but he still needs it.  I have him swaddled and strapped into a flat, non-moving swing.  He still doesn't sleep great, but its far better for him swaddled than unswaddled.  Good luck!

[wavepool]

Merlin's magic sleep suit!

[niq]

It was hard for us for 2-3 weeks.

Do you swaddle for naps? Could you switching to sleep sacks for naps, so he gets used to the idea of falling asleep without the blanket? If I had everything to do all over again, I would have started using the new bedtime routine at naptime.

[nancybotwin]

May 12, 2014 11:04:50 GMT -5 niq said:

It was hard for us for 2-3 weeks.

Do you swaddle for naps? Could you switching to sleep sacks for naps, so he gets used to the idea of falling asleep without the blanket? If I had everything to do all over again, I would have started using the new bedtime routine at naptime.

Perhaps I will try this.

He is currently sick and naps are saving him (and me) right now so I will wait until he feels better. But I could try this...

[ilikedonuts]

May 12, 2014 8:12:17 GMT -5 soozy87 said:

Looks like my son is just a few days older than yours. We got rid of the swaddle last Thursday. We had one rough night but since then it has been okay. We just went cold turkey and started sleep training that same night.

Was he still waking up to eat? That's what has been holding us back from STing and getting rid of the swaddle, but I've got it down to just a 2 oz bottle at 5am. Mainly bc I never really knew if she was truly hungry so I was terrified to cut the bottle out (bad mom?)

[soozy87]

He will always eat, but we were trying to get away from him thinking that he needed it. The doctor said that he was absolutely fine if he didn't eat overnight. There were nights that he didn't eat so we knew he could do it.

ilikedonuts