I just loveloveLOVE this picture. Been there, done that.
If your baby is Pulitzer prize-winning sleeper who falls asleep easily, takes 1-2 hour naps every few hours throughout the day, and has been sleeping 4-5 hours at a shot at night since he was 4 weeks old, then huzzah! You won the big prize – a baby who sleeps well. Congratulations!
However I’m guessing that is NOT your baby. In fact YOUR baby probably takes naps so short you wonder if they’re really just LONG blinks. YOUR baby is up so often at night you no longer bother putting on pajamas. YOUR baby has never SEEN the inside of his crib except for that one time you tried to put him in the crib only to have him scream so loudly you thought he needed immediate medical attention. And you’re starting to wonder when things are going to get better because you’re so tired you would willingly give up a kidney for 8 hours of uninterrupted sleep.
Sleep is like oxygen. You don’t really give it much thought until you can’t get enough of it. Then it’s ALL you can think about.
If you haven’t already done so you might want to swing back around to visit How to Get Baby to Sleep Better – Part 1. If you’re using these techniques and your baby is STILL not sleeping well, it’s time to pull out the big guns. Or shall I say, THE big gun.
Baby Swings Help Babies Sleep Better
Babies fall asleep more easily and sleep longer when they sleep in baby swings.
How do you know the baby swing is for you? Your baby should be sleeping in a swing, 24-hours a day, if she is less than 6 months* old and you answer YES to any of the following:
- Is it difficult to get your baby to fall asleep at naps and/or bedtime?
- Does your baby consistently take really short naps (<30 minutes)?
- Does your baby wake up too often at night?
- Is your baby older than 3 months AND only falls asleep nursing/rocking/being patted to sleep?
- Does your baby wake up at night and then STAY awake? (i.e. You and your baby are up from 2:00 – 4:00 am every night?)
- Is your baby in your bed (and you would like to get him out)?
- Does your baby sleep like a champ in the car, stroller, or when carried (but nowhere else)?
- Are you concerned that your baby might have reflux?
* There are some instances where babies OLDER than 6 months do really well in the swing. Babies with reflux or food allergies often need the soothing motion of the swing past 6 months
Why the Baby Swing?
Sleeping Baby = Sleeping Family
Baby swings provide two key elements to help babies sleep. The first is that baby swings simulate a consistent rocking motion which is almost identical to the motion your baby experienced when she was still inside the womb. Before she was born, your baby slept when you were out and about (during the day) because the natural motion soothed her to sleep. It wasn’t until the motion stopped, usually when you lie down to try to sleep, that she woke up and started to party in there. The swing simply provides the soothing motion that (from baby’s perspective) is a perfectly natural condition for sleep.
Secondly the swing provides a really effective way to gradually help baby learn to fall asleep on her own. This is really important so let me repeat that: baby swings are fantastic tools to gently help baby learn to fall asleep on her own. Helping your baby learn how to fall asleep on her own solves/prevents ALL SORTS of challenges down the road (especially if your baby is a troublesome tot). If you’re struggling to get your baby to fall asleep on her own, the swing is the answer.
Also, even fully reclined the swing keeps baby slightly upright. Almost all babies have an undeveloped valve at the top of their stomach, which enables stomach contents (milk, formula, stomach acid, etc.) to get pushed up into the esophagus. Sleeping with the head slightly elevated enables gravity to keep their food IN their stomach. And unlike wedges you put in the crib (which don’t work – babies end up rolling off of them almost immediately) baby swings have straps that keep your baby safely in the upright position.
My Baby Won’t Sleep in a Swing
When I work with families in person they almost always resist the idea of the swing.
- The babies in the diaper commercials are all sleeping in their crib so obviously I should be able to get MY baby in the crib too!
- If I put get my baby used to sleeping in the swing what do I do when she outgrows it? Won’t she go to college sleeping in a swing?
- If my ultimate goal is to have my child sleeping in HER crib in HER room then let’s work on that and forget all this swing ridiculousness!
- But MY baby HATES the swing!
And of course the classic…
Then we work on HOW to help baby sleep in the swing, WHEN to transition your (now) happily sleeping baby to their crib, and then HOW to make that transition happen. And it works. And every family I’ve ever worked with now loves the swing. And every baby has happily made their way into their own crib. When they were ready.
Your Baby Swing Homework
Sign Up!
I’ll be writing more about how to get your baby swings (how to use, how to get out of, etc.) over the next month or so. Don’t miss out – use the form to the right to subscribe to TroublesomeTots or become a fan on Facebook to make sure you get those posts sent to you as soon as they are available!
Ask Your Pediatrician
I’ve never had a pediatrician raise any concerns about the use of a swing. And certainly noted pediatrician Dr. Karp is a huge proponent of the use of baby swings. Still I don’t know the medical history of your baby so just to be safe, a brief conversation with your pediatrician should put any concerns you have to rest.
Get A Swing
There are two primary options for baby swings – Graco and Fisher Price. If money is tight you may be able to get your hands on a recent model & good condition swing on Craigslist. Although generally I recommend getting a new swing if you can. Especially if your baby is a newborn you’ll be using it A LOT.
{Photo Credits: Lisa Stout and Caleb Zahnd.}
12 Comments
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- Baby Swings Work and I Can Prove It | Troublesome Tots
- The Ultimate Baby Swing Sleep Guide For Swing Hating Babies | Troublesome Tots
Linda on 
Laura on 
Hi, thanks for this great website! My daughter has been sleeping in her swing for naps and nighttime since I borrowed a friend’s swing in desperation when she was 6 weeks old. Within 2 weeks, she was sleeping through the night (9pm-6ish)! But the night before we were going out of town and leaving her with the grandparents, the motor broke! So while she was with my parents, they had her sleeping in the bassinet of the pack-n-play successfully. Now that we’re home with a new swing, I’ve been putting her in the crib rather than go back to the swing. But now, her naps are shorter (about 4 naps lasting 40 minutes) and she’s back to at least one night waking and an earlier start to the day than before. Should I go back to the swing or stick with the crib and be glad that she only wakes once to nurse? She is almost 16 weeks old. Should I be working on putting her to bed awake but drowsy too?
Hi Elaine,
Aaaaag! I get an email asking this question almost every day. “Baby sleep great in the swing! So should I put her in the swing to sleep?”
It’s up to you. But if it were me, no doubt, I would have that kid in a swing so fast it would make your head spin. Given that she’s 4 months she’ll probably be done with it by ~6 months. So you can take advantage of the swing for ~8 more weeks. Or wake up early and deal with short crappy naps all day
And yes – awake but drowsy is a good thing to nail down now. Also? Swing is a great tool to get that ball rolling. Check out the post below for more info.
Good luck!
Alexis recently posted..The Ultimate Baby Swing Sleep Guide For Swing Hating Babies
Hi Alexis,
Thanks for the reply! I figured I should put her back in th swing, but I didn’t want to have to deal with transitioning her back into the crib in 2 months. But I guess since it was relatively painless this time, next time should be as well (fingers crossed).
Check back in and let me know how it goes (I suspect it won’t be a huge deal and am hoping you’ll confirm that
.
Alexis recently posted..Your Nemesis, The Short Nap
What about Mom’s transitioning back to work and daycare? Babies can only sleep in cribs there. I am finding this site helpful but I am worrying like crazy about the transition or how much worse going back to work will be when we rock her world when she can’t sleep even upright.
Irene,
Everybody I know panics about starting daycare/going back to work. This is a huge anxiety inducing transition – leaving your baby with strangers, getting out of Mommy mode and going to work, fears that the tenuous consistency you’ve created will blow up, wondering how you’ll function at work, etc.
Amazingly babies figure out daycare really well. These people know how to get babies to sleep and are really motivated to do so (trust me, they don’t want your baby up all day anymore than you do). If it’s a huge concern you could talk to them about the possibility of them getting a swing to use (most daycare places around me DO have a swing or two floating around for such purposes). Or you could let them work with your baby for a week or so and see how it goes first.
I understand your concerns. I really do. But I think your baby will surprise you. In a good way
Alexis recently posted..Your Nemesis, The Short Nap
Thank you so much for putting me at ease with this subject, I wish I didn’t have to go back. It seems just as babies and parents become more comfortable, some of us have to get back to work.
Hi Alexis!
What a great site with many truths about baby sleep, I especially love the info on swings. I’ve tried to transition my 3 month old from his swing to his crib with little success…LOTS of crying and a chronically overtired baby. I read that your child was 13 months old before sleeping out of the swing, so I think I’m OK there, but my question is this: HOW do you get them out? Is it just something that eventually happens as their nervous systems mature, or is there something I actually have to do? Thanks in advance!!!
Well my little guy had severe reflux and was in a non-moving swing to basically hold him at the angle. So I’m in NO WAY holding up my 13 months as a suggestion to others
But 3 months is really young. Generally kids are out of the swing for bedtime before naps. You start dialing down the volume – they still sleep great? Awesome – keep going. They wake up or don’t fall asleep easily? They’re not done – crank the volume back up.
A 3 month old is still itty bitty – they need LOTS of soothing so I’m not surprised that she still needs the swing. Wait a month and try again, I think you’ll find things change DRAMATICALLY at this age. Start with night sleep. Once that is going well then try swapping out for naps. OK?
Alexis recently posted..The Ferber vs. Weissbluth CIO Smackdown
Thanks for the reply, I will come back and let you know how the transition goes. For now, he’s getting great sleep in the swing, nice long chunky naps and only one or 2 brief wakings at night to eat. Thanks so much for your site
Hi Alexis,
Great site and I find a lot of truth in the things you discuss. I have a question for you. My baby is just about 12 weeks old. She has been sleeping pretty well (not many complaints). We put her down in her crib around 7 pm, then she wakes up for her feeding anywhere from 12 am to 1 am. She goes back to sleep easily, and then anytime from 4:30 am to 5:30 am she starts to wake up again. I, like most parents, who want their sleep, get her out of her crib, and put her directly into the swing. Without fail she sleeps in the swing so easily, and she is swaddled in the swing, which I think makes it even better for her. I will usually have to wake her up for her feeding (around 7 am).
I am nervous that I have created a bad habit by taking her from the crib and putting her in the swing. Is this something I should be stopping now? Should I be weaning her from the swing? She only naps in the swing, and they are not usually long naps, but can range in the chart that you put on your website.
I try to take every “parenting advice” with a grain of salt, considering that my pediatrician recommended sleep training at 2 months of age…which I was and am clearly not comfortable with.
The swing has been my godsend, but I dont want it to be the downfall either!
At this age I wouldn’t sweat the swing. Lots of babies wake up at 4:00-5:00 AM in the morning and then will ONLY go back to sleep if given a VERY soothing alternative. For some parents this means popping baby on the boob and bringing the into Mom’s bed for another hour or two of sleep. For others like yourself it may mean swapping her into the swing for some additional swing. While you could TRY to skip the swing and just soothe her back to sleep in her crib chances are good that she would simply start the day at 5:00 AM. So which is the lesser evil to you – a few hours of sleep in the swing or starting your day at 5:00 AM? (Hint: the answer is the former).
Napping in the swing and sleeping in the crib is really common and I’m not concerned about anything you’re doing. 1) She’s only 3 months and 2) getting out of the swing is far easier than getting out of other sleep associations. You can read up here for more hints on how to do this gently.
http://www.troublesometots.com/the-ultimate-baby-swing-sleep-guide-for-swing-hating-babies/