https://boards.hellobee.com/ Pregnancy, Baby and Parenting blog, by Hellobee en Tue, 02 Jun 2026 05:06:35 +0000 https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/transitioning-out-of-swaddle-advice-tips-needed#post-2479074 Mon, 29 Feb 2016 19:24:44 +0000 Charm54 2479074@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>We also used the halo...For dd1 I did it gradually , loose swaddle, one arm out, then both...it was fine and there were no issues. Dd2 was much more attached to the swaddle but I decided to sleep train/swaddle&amp;soother wean at the same time so went cold turkey. Took one night of crying and then she was able to put herself to sleep without any props. I was amazed it went so well. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/transitioning-out-of-swaddle-advice-tips-needed#post-2479055 Mon, 29 Feb 2016 18:48:43 +0000 winniebee 2479055@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>We quit cold turkey and it sucked for a few nights / days but he got the hang of it and was back to his normal sleep habits after a few days. We put him in a true sleep sack (the kind that has arm holes and zips up) instead of the swaddle. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/transitioning-out-of-swaddle-advice-tips-needed#post-2479051 Mon, 29 Feb 2016 18:45:28 +0000 sooz 2479051@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I think we also did not provide water except for DS to sort of play with and get used to using a straw cup (we went from the bottle directly to a straw).</p> <p>As for the swaddle, I believe that we transitioned both of our sons out of the swaddle around 4 months and we just sucked it up and went cold turkey using a sleep sack. It was brutal for about a week and then they got used to it. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/transitioning-out-of-swaddle-advice-tips-needed#post-2479036 Mon, 29 Feb 2016 18:35:17 +0000 gingerbebe 2479036@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>DS hated swaddling so perhaps it helped but he always had one hand that would be peeking out of the swaddle here and there so we let that hand out first and when it didn't affect him after a few days, we freed the other one and wrapped the wings around his torso until we moved him to the next wingless size sack. </p> <p>We just offered DS a sippy cup of water to play with at meal times and guide a few sips here and there, mostly for novelty purposes. He thought it was quite fun. We didn't really care about water intake until he was closer to a year because he started weaning and cutting down his ounces. He went from 24 ounces at 6 months to 20-ish at 9 months and by 11, we were lucky to get 16oz by bottle. So that's when we left out straw cups of water everywhere. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/transitioning-out-of-swaddle-advice-tips-needed#post-2478883 Mon, 29 Feb 2016 16:34:27 +0000 BabyTsMom 2478883@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>another Merlin user here. Used it for about 2-3 months and loved it. it helped w the spastic arms and also prevented him from rolling over and getting stuck. I got rid of it and into a regular sleep sack once I was confident he could roll both ways easily.<br /> oh, and babies that young don't really need any water. they get plenty of liquids through formula or breast milk. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/transitioning-out-of-swaddle-advice-tips-needed#post-2478869 Mon, 29 Feb 2016 16:26:19 +0000 Rocker2014 2478869@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>We used the Magic Merlin Sleep Suit -- worked like a charm for about a month, then we transitioned to regular sleep sacks (no swaddle - just for warmth.) </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/transitioning-out-of-swaddle-advice-tips-needed#post-2478853 Mon, 29 Feb 2016 16:17:46 +0000 Raspberry 2478853@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>We also started with the non-dominant arm and only with the morning nap (when the sleep drive is greater) for a couple of days. We then added bedtime at night before the rest of the naps. We repeated this order with both arms out while swaddling only the chest before switching to a regular sleep sack. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/transitioning-out-of-swaddle-advice-tips-needed#post-2478819 Mon, 29 Feb 2016 16:06:47 +0000 AggieDaze 2478819@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>We did one arm out at a time. For us, LO had a dominant arm that he was better at controlling. We left that one out first for a week or so, and then did the second arm. Then, we wrapped the wings around his torso with both arms out for awhile and finally transitioned to a regular sleepsack.</p> <p>Re: water, I don't remember offering baby any water at that age. There was some water in the pureed foods I made though. I don't think we offered water until 9-12 months when we introduced a sippy cup. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/transitioning-out-of-swaddle-advice-tips-needed#post-2478766 Mon, 29 Feb 2016 15:35:49 +0000 Happygal 2478766@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@paigeface: Well, I'm not sure I agree with your pediatrician because he's going to be rolling very soon, and you definitely don't want a swaddled baby doing that! Some folks like the Zippadeezip for this stage, but my baby liked to have her hands free. Other people do a weaning process--one arm in, one arm out. I'm more into ripping the bandaid off, knowing it might be tough for a day or two, and moving on (that's how it went for us!) She stayed in a sleepsack, so that helped to feel like she was still cozy.</p> <p>My favorite sleep book talks about the importance of how your mood affects your baby. They're little sponges soaking up the vibes we're throwing off. I tried the "fake it till you make it" approach and pretended I was very confident. I do think it helped! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/transitioning-out-of-swaddle-advice-tips-needed#post-2478757 Mon, 29 Feb 2016 15:28:25 +0000 paigeface 2478757@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>So LO is 6 months today and we'd like to start to get him out of the swaddle (we have always used the halo sleep sack.) It's more a pain in the butt for use to keep putting it on for every nap/bedtime. Went to get his 6 month shots today and pediatrician said you can leave them in the swaddle as long as you want, but it'll be harder to get them out the longer you go creating the habit. I've tried several naps this week without it and it's a disaster! He will just keep pulling his pacifier out and fussing and flailing his arms around. He puts his hands all over his face and keeps making himself mad. Any tips/advice would be great!</p> <p>P.s. we started him on puréed food yesterday just to get him into the taste. How much water do you offer at 6 months for an exclusively formula fed babe? </p>