5 Month Old Only Sleeps Swaddled

My now 10.5 month old daughter was swaddled until 8 months, the Dr. said it was nothing to worry about and to slowly start taking her out of it. We now have both her arms out and she's just fine! Don't worry about it!

I did have the same experience w/ my daughter when she was 5 months and really we had to quit the swaddle all together b/c she was rolling in all directions, but it was the only easy way to put her to sleep. The first 3 nights w/out the swaddle were awful...but w/ much persistence she made it through w/ lots of rubbing her back and her head and reassurance that I was still there. I didn't let her cry it out, but I didn't pick her up either...I would just whisper to her that I was still there etc....and by the 3rd night she was back to sleeping her 10 hours w/out waking or if she did wake she put herself back to sleep very easily. Hang in there and get ready...she is asking for some freedom!!!

The same thing happened with my daughter - at the same age. For a few days I swaddled her bottom half only, with her arms free; then I transitioned to a sleepsack. There is a woderful book called "The Happiest Baby on the Block" which gives lots of advice on swaddling and comforting and transitioning out of this phase. Good luck!

My son slept swaddled until 8 months of the same reason- I was sure he couldn't sleep without because of the few times he got a arm free he flailed. One day we realized we had better make a change. We swaddled him under his underarms one night (both arms free). The first night he was up a lot but night two, he slept straight through. Since it is hot, within a few weeks, we stopped the swaddle all together and now he just sleeps in pjs with a small blankie, even for naps.

Good luck! (ph, he's just over 9 months now)

The same thing happened with my son when he stopped being swaddled so I really sympathize with you. What I did for Nathan was to sleep him on his tummy. I know that they recommend saying to sleep on their back but sometimes on the tummy they sleep better. Once I put Nathan on his tummmy he was sleeping 8 hours per night. If you are not comfortable with the tummy sleeping I would recommend letting your little girl put herself back to sleep if she comes unswaddled. Once Nathan could roll-over from tummy to back but he couldn't go back to tummy he would wake up and cry because he didn't know how to sleep on his back. I had to let him cry it out and learn how to go back to sleep on his back, it only took a couple of days. Good Luck, I am sure that you will do what is best for you and your little girl.
Jenn

Its very exciting when babies start showing signs of the next developemental stage, like rolling etc. As parents naturally we want to encourage developement. However, if a swaddle helps her sleep, then why not leave her swaddled? Developing a healthy sleep pattern is more important right now. You still want to be aware of when the time is ready by occasionally trying one arm out or no swaddle at all at nap time.

To make sure my son does not get out of his swaddle, I wrap him first in a thin blanket then use the Miracle Swaddle Blanket. This creates friction between the blankets that wont allow loosening.

Currently my son is still swaddled and I think he sleeps only well when swaddled. I can't remember at what month but we gradually started to swaddle only one arm. That way he'd get used to is especially since he was starting to roll over. This way, now with one arm free, it's easier for him and he can move easily in his crib. So you might want to try the one arm and it's just going to have to take time for your daughter to get used to it. Sorry, that's the best advice that I can think of. Hopefully more people will give you their input.

I just went through the same issue. Ditto to the others who suggested the sleep sacks. I used to use the Kiddopotamus brand easy swaddler but my boy always broke out of it. After a few nights of transitioning to a sleep sack with lots of tummy rubs and checking in the night, Nathan is back to his normal sleep schedule of 8 pm to 6 am and one night feeding. What I realize is that the swaddle is one of his sleep cues and I just needed to tweak that one. I still kept the bath, book, and last feeding routine. The sleep sack is still a pouch for his legs but there's more room and his hands are free to roll and move around. I also put some socks on his hands so he doesn't scratch his face too much. I really thought that my boy wouldn't sleep well but so far, he has gotten used to the sleep sacks. Good luck with your daughter. This is an exciting time of rolling and moving!

Hi K.,
I have a 7 month old daughter who still needs to be swaddled to sleep. If she wiggles herself out of the swaddler she would cry needing to be swaddled again. In fact, she will not sleep until she is swaddled. I have two swaddlers on her to keep her from coming out. I was initially concern of her turning over but she cries when that happens and we will reposition her again. Sorry I don't have much advice on this matter.

My friend had a similar problem and the doc said to put the car seat in the crib and the baby in the car seat. Something about the pressure on the tummy being pushed up with the bent body.It worked.

My daughter is 7.5 months old and we have not yet been able to successfully transition her to a sleep sack, sleeping in just PJ's, or with a light blanket. She can fully roll over, sit up unassisted etc. I actually just talked to my Dr about the same thing. She said if she sleeps well and likes it keep doing it - some babies just like that tightness. My daughter started breaking free at 5.5 months in the night - same as your situation. Then we got the miracle blanket - she can not break out of it. We don't put her legs in the pouch as she is too long.

Thank you for posting this -I would also like to transition out of swaddling - but have had no luck so far. I think that once your child sleeps through the night it is very difficult to change the routine.

Hi, I had the same issue with one of my twin girls at 4 months. The problem was that she couldn't fall asleep without being swaddled but then always woke herself up several hours later trying to "break out" of her swaddle. It got exhausting swaddling and unswaddling her during the night, and she wasn't sleeping well either. I knew eventually we'd have to get out of this cycle so I decided to stop swaddling her and let her fuss / cry it out. She was able to adapt within a couple of days and the crying it out really didn't last long ... 20 - 30 minutes max. The plus side is that my little girl immediately started sleeping *much* better, more hours per day / night and woke up so much better rested and happier so it was definitely the right decision for us.

My six year old son liked to be swaddled until he was a year old. Now he is diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder. It's not unheard of. Just observe your child carefully. I am not saying that your daughter has ASD. I have just seen this. Now my second son did not like it after two months. He wanted to sleep on his belly. The Dr said if he rolls over, then just let him sleep. I have a beautiful three year old also.

Try a Sleep Sack. I've successfully transitioned two kids with these. https://www.halosleep.com/

I say, "Let her be swaddled!". :-)
Try the Miracle Blanket or woombie (www.woombie.com) she shouldn't be able to get out of these and should sleep like a baby. :-)

I say keep her swaddled, if it helps her sleep it is worth it. We used to add extra strength to our swaddle wrap by using diaper pins to keep it in place, that way our son couldn't get his arm out as easy. Our mommy support group teacher said that some babies just need the swaddling longer than others. She will eventually grow out of it.

Good luck!

My daughter was the same but as soon as she was able to roll over by herself I stopped swaddling her and she much preferred to sleep on her stomach. I was nervous about that at first but I read that once they can roll back and forth it is okay to let them sleep on their stomachs. Now she is one and as soon as I put her in the crib she immediately rolls to her stomach and sleeps that way all night. (Not that she sleeps through the night!) Good luck.

We swaddled our son until he was about that old, when he started coming out of it so often and he finally just didn't care. I say use it for as long at works for her! Have you tried the Miracle Blanket -- we found that to be the best swaddler.