Figuring Out Their Hands

At their 4 month old appointment, my ped told me that if they are sleeping well swaddled, leave them swaddled. So, dutifully, I went out and bought the next size up of Kiddpotomos Swaddle Me's (a favorite at our house). They were a little big on the boys, but they worked, up until about today.

Apparently the boys are getting uber strong, because yesterday I thought it was just me swaddling them badly- I'd go in to get them from their naps and they'd have their arms free. So DH (the master swaddler) started doing it today, exclusively. But now, they can break out of his swaddle.

So we're on to sleep sacks. & they are on to screaming. I know they have to figure out how to sleep unswaddled, but this sucks. :headbang:

Here's hoping they sleep ok tonight.

 

My boys hated swaddling with their arms tucked in from day 1. Even now if you wrap them up in a towel they pull their arms free. Hang in there!

 

It will take them a few days to adjust and then it will get better. :hug:

 

They will get used to it. Also, they will likely start sleeping on their tummies soon and they might sleep better like that. (I would let them make the switch on their own, though).

 

I agree, they will adjust. Unfortunately it takes a few days & that's no fun for anyone. :hug:

 

So how did it go last night? I am soooo not looking forward to this!

 

My girls were in the Kiddopotamus SwaddleMe blankets until a few weeks ago when they too started busting free (no matter how tightly DH and I wrapped them)!! I was up several times a night re-swaddling them (they are in an Arm's Reach co-sleeper next to the bed so at least I didn't have to get out of bed). Then I moved them into the Miracle blankets which are much more effective at keeping their arms pinned. At first I only bought one because they are double the price of the Kiddopotamus blankets and I wanted to see if they were worth it. I ended up getting a second one because the twin swaddled in the Miracle blanket was sleeping without waking up several times a night while the other one was still waking up crying with her arms out of the blanket. The first night I had both twins swaddled in the Miracle blankets no one one woke up all night and they slept until 8:30am. Woohoo! I want to swaddle as long as humanly possible. So you may consider trying one of those blankets or you could make the transition to sleep sacks now, which might be better in the long run I suppose even though it's painful in the short term. Best of luck!

 

It went pretty well. DH was gone at a NBA basketball game, so it was just me (first time he got out without me in months!) They slept as well as they did with the swaddle, actually- the longest they usually go is about 4 hours and they did 1 4 hour stretch, so, typical. Today, though, they are having a hard time, but either I had dairy or some bad chicken yesterday. I felt gross last night & they are pooping ALL THE TIME, so their sleep is off from that...

I've heard really good things about the Miracle Blankets, but as DH & I are both unemployed and have already got sleep sacks in their sizes, I just can't bear the thought of dishing out that kind of dough for continued swaddling. I'm very glad it worked for you, though!