How to Swaddle a Baby

Ah... how pretty is the sight of a cute little baby sleeping peacefully! Babies and toddlers have no worldly worries, no deadlines, no studies, no targets and whoa! No assignments! But the same sweet looking bundle of joy could perhaps be a little cranky and would not appear to be as sweet then, right? No problem there, we love babies don't we? One way in which you can affirm that the baby will sleep well is swaddling it in a proper manner. Swaddling refers to wrapping the baby up with the help of a blanket to calm the newborn and help prevent and cure crying and colic. It is an age-old method to see to it that the baby gets a good sleep and not allow it to cry. It gives a newborn baby the same warmth which it experiences when in the womb. So, is every new mother ready to know how to swaddle a baby? Then read on!

How to Swaddle a Baby in a Blanket?

• Lay the blanket flat on a firm receiving surface, folding a corner down, about 6 inches.
• Gently carry the baby and keep it diagonally on the receiving blanket. Make sure that the baby's head and neck are on the folded corner of the blanket.
• Get one side of the blanket over and across the baby and tuck it underneath the baby.
• Now tuck the feet of the newborn into the bottom of the blanket.
• Then bring the bottom corner of the blanket up, slipping that corner below the top portion of the blanket, which was just crossed over the baby.
• Grab the last side of the blanket, bringing it over and across the baby. Finally, tuck it under your baby's back.

This I believe is the best way to swaddle a baby. However, the question arises as to how safe it is to swaddle a baby. Sometimes, babies may get used to it and might not sleep unless you swaddle them. Thus, here is the answer to that query, a significant part of baby care.

Is it Safe to Swaddle a Newborn?

Well, as mentioned earlier, babies may not go to sleep unless they are swaddled. Still, they have to be swaddled, because it gives them warmth, comfort and security. It helps him or her sleep well and prevents the baby from throwing his or her arms or scratch his or her face. If you know how to swaddle a baby correctly, there is no risk factor. On the other hand, if the baby is swaddled too tightly, it can roll over onto his or her stomach, posing a risk factor for baby safety. Overheating is another issue when it comes to the risk involved in swaddling. This leads us to the question of how long is it safe to swaddle a baby. The answer to this is simple. Once the baby is around 2 months old, it does not generally need swaddling. That is because they, at that stage, do not need extra security or warmth. In fact/ there are studies regarding baby sleeping which prove that if you are swaddling your baby to prevent him or her from crying, it is hardly of any use once the baby is 2 months old. Moreover, you might restrict the baby's motor development if you do so. Thus, if you say when to swaddle a baby, the best time is between the stage it is newborn till the baby is a couple of months old.

So, these were the aspects related to swaddling a baby. That is what swaddling a baby was all about. I hope this information proved useful!