Poll Results: What Method Did You Use to Drop the Swaddle?

Results:

Cold turkey: 28 votes (29%)
Gradual weaning: 9 votes (9%)
Unwrap arms but leave trunk wrapped: 23 votes (23%)
Stopped nights/swaddled naps: 2 votes (2%)
Stopped naps/swaddled nights: 11 vote (11%)
Other: 6 votes (6%)
Still swaddling: 17 votes (17%)

Total of 96 votes

11 thoughts on “Poll Results: What Method Did You Use to Drop the Swaddle?”

  1. It’s summer at last! My husband is a teacher and has some time off this summer. We’re going to be traveling for a week at the end of June with my in-laws, as well as for about ten days in July to see friends in another state. Any advice you can give on not getting stressed about getting off schedule? Or advice on how to best keep on schedule despite travel circumstances?

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  2. I’m a brand new babywise mom (my son is 6 weeks old)…and I am SO EXCITED to see that you have this blog! I will be combing it for the next few days/weeks to read your advice. THANK YOU!

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  3. We are in the process of trying to drop the swaddle with our 5.5 month old. It is not going well. We have started by just taking her arms out for naps. The few times we have tried she never goes to sleep. She will lay in there for two hours and go back and forth between screaming and then tapering off into a whine. She normally does not cry for naps at all. Do you think that we should just go back to the full swaddle or is she just going to have to CIO until she learns to get to sleep without the swaddle? Anyone have experience with this?

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  4. It depends on the reason you are dropping the swaddle. If you think there is a saftey issue involved (some babies will roll over swaddled then be unable to roll back for example), then I would stick with it. If you were just trying it out, I think I would go back to swaddling for a bit and try again later.You could also try just having one arm out first. I did that with Kaitlyn for a while. Odd, but it is what she liked 🙂

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  5. Thanks for the advice. I am not really worried about a safety issue because she doesn’t roll over from back to tummy yet even when she is not swaddled. I went back to the full swaddle yesterday and she is going down easily again. Still takes her a half hour to go to sleep, but at least she goes to sleep and there is no crying! Guess I am just getting paranoid picturing her wanting to be swaddled still at 12 months! 🙂 She is a very big baby 28 inches and 20 lbs. We had to cut up a bed sheet to get something big enough and cool enough to swaddle her in!

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  6. Abby,My daughter is 8mo. now, but when we stopped swaddling her the only thing that finally worked was to put her down on her belly. I know that they say you shouldn’t do that, but it’s what she likes. I started only doing it for naps, and then continuing to swaddle at night, but around 6mo. we stopped swaddling completely. Now that she rolls, she sleeps on her side/tummy/and back. You might give it a try during a couple naps and see what happens. Maybe set up the playpen in a room where you are so that you can keep a close eye on her if you are worried about her being on her belly.

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  7. You might try lengthening playtime just a bit. Whenever Kaitlyn would start to play before a nap suddenly, I would lengthen her playtime by only 5 minutes. That was usually enough to get her to go right t sleep.

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  8. I am not sure that Abby would go to sleep on her belly, as she absolutely HATES being on her belly still. I am sure this is the reason she is still not rolling over. Tummy time is always a struggle and she will usually only tolerate it for about 5 minutes at a time. Seems strange since she is getting close to 6 months. I am wondering if it is something I should mention to her pediatrician.Val- I think I may try different wake times and keep a log. I have just been putting her down when she starts rubbing her eyes which is always about 60-75 minutes after she woke last. Only problem with that is that she has never been a 2 hour napper. Naps are usually 45-75 minutes. She ALWAYS wakes during the transition (between 30-45 minutes) but will go back to sleep some (65%) of the time.

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  9. Abby,My daughter didn’t like being on her belly during her awake time either, but when I put her on her belly after about 10 min. of crying (the first time) she went right to sleep for 2hrs!! You might try it a couple of times just to see if she likes it. 🙂 good luck w/ whatever you try!

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