Swaddling a baby can sometimes seem like a secret art! It’s one of those things that looks so much easier than it actually is and many moms have passed on this simple hack for swaddling your baby. This way you are less likely to screw up a swaddle, but you still might. Done right, you can avoid those internal screaming moments when little one keeps waking themselves up by hitting their own face doing ‘windmill arms’ when the swaddle wasn’t done right.
Foolproof method:
Swaddling is so easy to screw up and can cause a tremendous amount of stress for both you and baby when sleep is scarce. The Diamond Swaddle is a tried and true method and is probably the easiest, and least soul-destroying when not quite right;
1. Lay a blanket down in a diamond shape, with the top corner folded down a few inches for baby’s head
2. Lay baby down on their back in the center with their neck on the folded corner
3. Pull the left side over and snugly tuck under baby, making sure to keep baby’s hips loose. Tuck under their shoulder and behind their back instead of behind their hips
4. Pull the bottom corner up and over the baby's left shoulder and wrap the last corner all the way around baby and tuck into the little pocket you’ve created at the front
Your baby swaddle might not be perfect but eventually, with practice, you’ll get it. Also, if the diamond swaddle isn’t for you, don’t worry, there are other ways! If it helps, practice swaddling baby-sized items like dolls or large toys. While these items don’t wiggle like babies, you can at least know what it should look like. If you want more of a challenge, you can always try to swaddle your family pet, but I can’t promise that they are going to be very cooperative, or very happy about it.
