29/06/2021
To swaddle or not...
On my last yr as a resident, I proudly swaddled a newborn in front of a consultant. Then she asked: “Carla, what do you think about swaddling?”. As a senior, I was quite confident that I could answer any newborn question thrown at me. But THAT was a question I didn’t expect.
𝘋𝘪𝘥 𝘐 𝘫𝘶𝘴𝘵 𝘴𝘸𝘢𝘥𝘥𝘭𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘣𝘢𝘣𝘺 𝘸𝘳𝘰𝘯𝘨𝘭𝘺 𝘪𝘯 𝘧𝘳𝘰𝘯𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘢 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘴𝘶𝘭𝘵𝘢𝘯𝘵?! 𝘖𝘳 𝘪𝘴 𝘴𝘸𝘢𝘥𝘥𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢𝘤𝘵𝘶𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘺 𝘣𝘢𝘥?!😱
After some silence, I blurted: “I think it’s comforting to him ma’am.” She replied, “Yes. It can make babies feel like they’re in their mother’s womb. Comforting. But should it be done?”
I thought her questions were trivial. But as I read more about swaddling that day, I realized how important the answers were! (Thank God for moments that push us to learn learn learn!😅)
Swaddling can help calm a crying infant & promote sleep, BUT it can be harmful if not done right. Here are some things to remember:
𝑵𝒐𝒕 𝒂𝒍𝒍 𝒃𝒂𝒃𝒊𝒆𝒔 𝒍𝒊𝒌𝒆 𝒃𝒆𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒔𝒘𝒂𝒅𝒅𝒍𝒆𝒅
I tell moms to try it out with their child first before expecting too much from the idea or splurging on expensive swaddles.
𝑰𝒎𝒑𝒓𝒐𝒑𝒆𝒓 𝒔𝒘𝒂𝒅𝒅𝒍𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒄𝒂𝒏 𝒄𝒂𝒖𝒔𝒆 𝒉𝒊𝒑 𝒅𝒚𝒔𝒑𝒍𝒂𝒔𝒊𝒂
The newborn has a very sensitive hip that can be harmed by too much pressure or stress from abnormal hip positions or restricted motion. Tight swaddling can stress the infant’s hips, leading to instability, dysplasia (abnormal formation and/or looseness of the hip) and even dislocation.
𝑰𝒎𝒑𝒓𝒐𝒑𝒆𝒓 𝒔𝒘𝒂𝒅𝒅𝒍𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒎𝒂𝒚 𝒍𝒆𝒂𝒅 𝒕𝒐 𝒔𝒖𝒇𝒇𝒐𝒄𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏
If a baby rolls over while swaddled,this may lead to suffocation. Swaddling can also decrease a baby’s arousal, which is good if you want your baby to sleep comfortably, but also makes him less likely to react in uncomfortable situations like when a pillow accidentally falls on his face.
A doctor-in-training, like I was,can do things routinely without questioning. Us moms do that a lot too. But if we ignore questions or refuse to ask them,we may be missing out on best practices for our children. Sharing some tips here on how to swaddle safely(because you asked!)🤓
*Shoutout to NICU staff and residents reading this. You are heroes! 💕
