Transition from Swaddling

Many babies love to be swaddled, especially while they are sleeping. Swaddling calms them, perhaps by reminding them of the cramped space in the womb, where they spent nine months. Eventually, though, you’ll have to break the swaddling habit and help your baby learn to sleep without it. After a few months, babies need freedom of movement to explore the world around them. Keeping them in cozy cocoons can interfere with that exploration.

Steps

Part 1: Preparing to Transition from Swaddling

  1. Consider safety. In general, swaddling young babies is completely safe. However, many babies start to roll over by about three to four months of age, and at this stage, they cannot control their heads very well. Keep in mind that an older swaddled baby may be at risk of falling or of rolling over onto his or her stomach and winding up face-down on a bed or other surface, posing a suffocation risk.
  2. Observe your baby’s behavior. When your baby is ready to give up swaddling (usually by somewhere between four and six months of age), he or she may give you some signals. These could include:
    • crying when swaddled
    • struggling to loosen the blanket
    • becoming unswaddled regularly during sleep. If this starts happening when your baby is still young, take care – remember that blankets and other coverings can pose a suffocation risk.
  3. Wait for the startle reflex to disappear. Babies are born with what’s known as the “Moro reflex” or “startle reflex” – when startled (and sometimes for no reason in particular), they fling their arms out sideways. Newborns tend to startle easily and flap their arms and legs a lot; swaddling helps them stay calm and still enough to sleep. For best results, wait until the Moro reflex disappears before you wean your baby from swaddling -- unless your baby has started rolling and safety becomes a concern earlier.
  4. Plan the transition. Once you believe your baby is ready, think about how you will make the transition? Will you start at naptime or nighttime? When will you begin? How will you handle the difficulties that arise?
    • Consider setting aside a weekend or another convenient time to experiment with unswaddling your baby. Know that you may have to sacrifice some of your baby's normal sleep time to do this. If your partner can help, that's preferable -- you can take turns observing your baby's preferences and trying to soothe your baby without swaddling.
  5. Stick to your routines. Plan to keep as many routines as possible in place when you wean your baby from swaddling. If you keep the same sleep routines (dim lights, bath, lullaby, whatever you typically do) in place, your baby will be more likely to accept sleeping unswaddled.

Part 2: Transitioning Gradually to Unswaddled Sleeping

  1. Know that the "cold turkey" method probably won't work well. In general, unwrapping your baby suddenly and completely doesn't work well; your baby may feel uncomfortable and struggle to sleep. If you have a very active baby who has been wriggling out of the swaddle independently, you can try this method. Otherwise, a more gradual approach is probably best.
    • If you do choose to unswaddle your baby "cold turkey," try it at nap time first. That way, if it doesn't work out, you won't sacrifice much sleep.
  2. Try unswaddling your baby’s legs. Many babies accept unswaddled sleeping more readily if you start gradually. Try leaving his or her hands and armed swaddled as usual, but unwrap the legs. You can use special swaddling products for this purpose, or you can improvise with blankets, cloth diapers, and the like.
  3. Consider starting with the hands. Alternatively, you can start by unswaddling your baby’s hands and arms, while leaving the legs wrapped as usual. For best results, leave just one hand free at first, then move on to both hands.
  4. Move forward gradually. As your baby accepts each stage of unswaddling, move forward until he or she is sleeping with no swaddling whatsoever.
  5. Pay attention to your baby’s signals. If your baby struggles to sleep, wakes frequently, or seems upset, do not move forward. Wait until he or she can accept the first stage (an unwrapped arm or unwrapped legs) before unswaddling further.
  6. Set time intervals. If your baby really loves swaddling, it might help to start by unswaddling only during naptime or only for the first few hours of nighttime sleep (say, until he or she wakes to breastfeed). Gradually increase the time spent unswaddled.
  7. Help your unswaddled baby calm down. If your baby is struggling to fall asleep without being swaddled, try gently holding his or her hands against the chest. This may soothe your baby and let him or her fall asleep.
  8. Experiment with baby sleeping bags. There are a number of products on the market, shaped like sleeping bags, to help babies stay warm and calm without tight swaddling. If your baby seems comfortable in one of these, use it! You can gradually unclip the sleeping bag to ease your baby into the feeling of freedom.
    • In addition to the bags, there are also swaddling straps available that keep older babies comfortably swaddled. If your baby is struggling to sleep without his or her usual swaddling, you could consider using one of these products temporarily.
  9. Soothe your baby without swaddling. If your baby wakes and cries more easily when he or she is not swaddled, try using other soothing techniques. For example, consider:
    • singing a lullaby
    • playing soothing music
    • wearing your baby in a sling and walking around
    • rocking your baby
  10. Be persistent. Soothe your baby as needed, but as soon as he or she is calm, put your baby back in the crib to go back to sleep. Every baby is different, and yours may take some time to accept these new sleeping arrangements.

Tips

  • If your baby seems very distressed, it won’t hurt to swaddle a little longer. Talk to your pediatrician, but don’t feel that you need to rush your baby through this process.
  • Take things slow. Let your baby get accustomed to partial unswaddling and/or sleeping unswaddled for short periods of time before moving on to complete unswaddling for longer periods.
  • Remember that babies are individuals – they tend to follow their own patterns, and they have different needs. Some babies love sleeping unswaddled; others resist sleeping that way for a long time. Understand that there is no one-size-fits-all pattern.

Sources and Citations

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