When your baby is born his nervous system is still very immature, and swaddling helps your baby settle and relax and sleep better. The moro reflex (also known as the startle reflex) is present in infants and newborns for up to 4-5 months. So when your baby moves his arms in a sudden jerking motion, this is the moro reflex and this will constantly wake your baby from the sleep cycle and so the baby doesn’t get the rest that is needed. A newborn needs to sleep anywhere from 15-18hrs per day. If your baby is constantly waking itself like this you will end up with a very tired and fussy baby. This is what swaddling helps to eliminate.

It keeps your baby’s arms beside their bodies and gives the baby a chance to get deep restful sleep. Even if it appears that your baby will fight the swaddle initially, it is still the best thing. It also becomes part of the important routine with teaching your baby to sleep, they associate the swaddling with sleeping time and it helps them to relax in anticipation of sleep. Some babies on waking will wiggle and get their arms free of the swaddle, (obviously the tighter the swaddle the less likely this will happen) but even though your baby get his arms out this doesn’t mean he doesn’t like the swaddle. It simply means you have an active baby, who probably needs the swaddle more to get the right amount of necessary sleep needed.

As the moro reflex subsides around 4-5 months this is the right time to transition your baby out of their swaddle. They are able now to sleep without constantly startling themselves awake. The best way to transition your baby is to start by swaddling your baby with one arm out for 3-4 nights then swaddle with both arms out for 3-4 nights. At this point you may want to transiton your baby into a sleep sack as this is the best way to keep your baby warm without having blankets in the crib that they could get tangled up in.

Happy swaddling!