Do You Unswaddle Your Baby for the Night Feed?
It’s no secret that once you have a baby, your nights of sleeping without interruption will be put on hold for quite a while.
For the first few months, you should expect to feed your baby in the middle of the night. And in the first couple of months of your baby’s life, you might have chosen to swaddle your baby. To learn more about that choice, we recommend you read this article from Claire McCarthy, MD, from the Harvard Health Blog: Should you swaddle your baby?
If you do swaddle your baby, you might be wondering at this time “do you unswaddle for night feed?”. We’re here to answer all of your questions surrounding the subject to ensure everything goes off without a hitch and you both get the sleep you deserve.
Should You Unswaddle Baby for Night Feedings?
Absolutely, yes, you should.
Babies use much more than their mouths to nurse, as they use their hands and arms to locate the nipple, encourage milk letdown, latch correctly, and even recognize hunger cues. After all, we don’t eat without our hands, right?
Hunger cues go much further than crying or being fussy. Before things even get to that point, they’ll move their fists toward their mouths to signify that they’re ready to eat again.
You’ll probably notice that your baby truly enjoys being swaddled, and it makes sense. Swaddling essentially mirrors that feeling of being in the womb, helping them relax and drift off to sleep. You may feel like feeding them in this state is perfect so they fall asleep right after feeding. However, there are many reasons why you shouldn’t do so.
The Key to Quality Night Feedings
Aside from missing hunger cues, keeping your little one swaddled while feeding could make them too comfortable, causing them to fall asleep. This means they may fall asleep before completing a feeding. A complete feeding can help promote proper milk supply and ideal growth.
When you take your baby out of their swaddle, you make sure their movements are free and their mind is stimulated, helping them stay alert to feed. Not to mention, swaddling while feeding can cause your baby to overheat. It’s also harder to keep a baby upright after feeding when they’re swaddled.
This is important, because keeping baby upright after feeding at night will help prevent the milk from coming back up.
By now, you may be wondering how long to keep baby upright after night feeding. Experts suggest doing so for at least 10 to 15 minutes. If your baby tends to spit up or has GERD, extend that even longer.
How To Swaddle Your Baby Correctly
Once you’ve wrapped up the night feeding, it’s time to re-swaddle your bundle of joy. For this to be effective, you have to know how to correctly swaddle. It may seem somewhat complicated, but after a few times you’ll be a pro!
First, choose a blanket to use for swaddling. Ideally, the blanket will be made from a breathable material like cotton or bamboo, to prevent overheating. You don’t want it to be bulky, as it should be able to be used with their arms in or out.
Spread the blanket out on a soft, flat surface. Keep one corner point folded down, creating a kind of diamond shape. Make sure the bottom of the “diamond” is pointing toward you.
Lay your baby down facing up on the blanket, with their feet pointing toward you. Their shoulders should be right below the fold you’ve made in the blanket.
Straighten their left arm, gently pulling the left corner of the blanket. Wrap it in-between their right arm, tucking it under the right side of the body.
Now, repeat that process with their right arm, tucking the right corner under the left side of their body.
You can simply fold the bottom part of the blanket over your baby’s feet. If the blanket is long enough, you could even tuck it behind their shoulder.
Make sure that the blanket isn’t wrapped too tight around them and that their hips can move. There should be at least 3 fingers worth of space between their chest and the swaddle.
Do’s and Don’ts with Swaddling
If you’ve chosen to swaddle your baby, here are some do’s and don’t’s.
Do’s
Follow the Safe to Sleep Guidelines to reduce the risk of SIDS
Monitor our baby after swaddling to make sure they don’t roll over
Use an app like Baby Connect to monitor their activity and arousal state
Add swaddling to part of their bedtime routine, which is one of the many hacks to help encourage them to fall asleep
Don’ts
Don’t double up on blankets. The extra thickness can cause your baby to overheat and can even make it easier for the blankets to dislodge.
Don’t wrap your baby’s legs. While their arms should be close to their body, their legs and hips should have full range of motion
Don’t swaddle as soon as your little one starts showing signs of being able to roll over
Don’t swaddle a fussy baby when they’re new to swaddling
Disclaimer: This article has been prepared for the sole purpose of information and education. It is not intended to provide, and nor should it be relied on for, medical advice. For all medical issues, we recommend you contact a qualified pediatrician immediately.
