I believe in the wisdom of tradition.
Tried and tested and approved by time and countless mothers before us.
I had to share it with you.
As an older lady once advised me, as a young mother,
"They don't grow in a hospice, so you might as well cradle them".
And swaddle them, like everyone was doing up until my mom's generation
(yes, I have been swaddled, and I swaddled my babies. I used this traditional method
As Joanna writes,
"...babies love to be swaddled. Wrapping them up tightly makes them feel safe and helps them sleep longer. We swaddled Toby as a newborn, and now we swaddle Anton. And it works like a charm. He sleeps much, much better when swaddled, since his wriggly arms don't startle him as a newborn".
Why swaddle?
The practice of swaddling a baby has been used for centuries by many different cultures due to its various benefits.
- Swaddling mimics the structure of the womb and helps ease a baby’s transition into the world.
- Newborns need extensive nurturing during the first 3 months of life, which swaddling can provide; this time is commonly referred to as the fourth trimester.
- Swaddling helps babies spend more time in rapid eye movement (REM) sleep, which is thought to be necessary for the extraordinary development happening in their brain. Since REM sleep is lighter than non-REM sleep, and more easily disrupted, swaddling helps prevent baby from waking during this valuable sleep time.
- Research demonstrates that when swaddled correctly, babies are safer since they are more likely to stay asleep on their backs and less likely to get caught in loose blankets.
- Swaddling produces a calming effect that soothes a baby.
- Swaddling helps regulate baby's body temperature.
- Swaddling helps prevent scratching.
- Sourced from the 2002 Medical Journal of Pediatrics
God Bless.
P.S. There is a giveaway going on,
here, if you are a young mom or grandma to be!
