Swaddling is an age-old technique for keeping a making a baby feel secure. Although it’s fallen out of favour in the Western world, many Eastern cultures and tribal people still use it.
To swaddle your baby, spread a cotton cot sheet out flat, with one corner folded over a little. Lay your baby face up on the sheet with his neck resting against the fold. Wrap the left corner of the sheet over his body and tuck it beneath him. Bring the bottom corner over his feet, and then wrap the right corner around him, leaving only his head and neck exposed. Don’t cover your baby’s face with the sheet, since that could cause him to overheat or suffocate.Beware of overheating your baby; the aim is to make him feel secure rather than keep him warm. Avoid using a blanket for this,and make sure you don’t wrap your baby too tightly, or his circulation could be cut off.
Swaddling creates a slight pressure around your baby’s body that gives most newborns a sense of security because it mirrors the pressure they would have felt in utero. For some babies it becomes the trigger for sleep, but others don’t enjoy it.