Why Swaddle?

Before I start this entry, let me just greet my husband HAPPY 6TH WEDDING MONTH! I can't believe it! We've been married for half a year now and nothing has changed! It's like we're still dating. I feel so lucky to be married to my best friend. It's the best feeling in the world. I love you Dydy!

look how young we were! *reminiscing* now married and have a baby together :') life is definitely A-MAZING!

So, on to the real purpose of this blog post...

I've been getting a lot of questions from mommies asking me what the heck is swaddling. It seems to be unheard of in the Philippines but is a common practice around the world. Let me first define swaddling your baby:

Swaddling is the art of snugly wrapping your baby in a blanket for warmth and security. It can keep him from being disturbed by his own startle reflex, and it may even help him stay warm and toasty for the first few days of life until his internal thermostat kicks in. Most important, it can help to calm your baby.

Nurses in hospital do this to your newborns (remember seeing them snugly wrapped in a blanket? Yes, that's swaddling) but new moms forget about this extremely comforting act when they get home. Nowadays, there are baby blankets that are specifically endorsing swaddling like SwaddleMe by Summer Infant, etc.


My baby Zeke has two SwaddleMe blankets and he loves them! These blankets were my lifesavers especially during nights when Zeke is particularly having difficulties in sleeping.

Zeke wearing a SwaddleMe blanket

However, if this blanket is not available at your favorite store, you could always use an ordinary blanket. That's what my hubby and I do now since Zeke's SwaddleMe blankets are getting too small for him. Here's an easy step-by-step way on how to properly swaddle your newborn using an ordinary blanket (thank you, Baby Center!):

• Lay a blanket on a flat surface and fold down the top-right corner about 6 inches.
• Place your baby on his back with his head on the fold.
• Pull the corner near your baby's left hand across his body, and tuck the leading edge under his back on the right side under the arm.
• Pull the bottom corner up under your baby's chin.
• Bring the loose corner over your baby's right arm and tuck it under the back on his left side. If your baby prefers to have his arms free, you can swaddle him under the arms. This gives him access to his hands and fingers.

Voila! You have now successfully swaddled your baby. Trust me, once you've learned this art, you'd be able to minimize those sleepless nights. However, once your baby is about a month old you might want to stop swaddling him while he's awake, as it may interfere with mobility and development in older babies. It's fine to keep swaddling your baby for naps and nighttime if he seems to sleep better that way. He'll let you know by crying or kicking when he no longer wants to be bundled up.