Newborn Wrapping

Ah! The newborn days! What a wonderful and special time in any parents life. Babywearing with your brand new little one can be an amazing way to bond, promote successful breastfeeding and soothe a fresh baby!

You may have heard someone say once before something about the “Fourth Trimester”, this time is the first three months of your baby’s life. During the newborn period, or fourth trimester, your baby is learning to adapt to life outside of the womb. He or she has just spent the last nine months tucked comfortably in your belly. Changing from being held close, to suddenly an independent being, can be tough on a new little one. Babywearing can make this transition so much easier. Your baby has a need to be held often during this time (and for a long time after as well!). Unfortunately, as parents, we don’t have the gift of having many arms! This means that holding baby and doing things like trying to eat a quick bite, send an email or just give those tired arms a break , can be tough. Wearing your newborn can accommodate you so that you still have lots and lots of special bonding time with your baby, and they are feeling confident and secure tucked up next to you- while you are still able to do the everyday little things.  Newborn wearing can promote a healthy breastfeeding relationship as well. Wearing your baby skin to skin helps to bring in and establish your milk supply. Frequent wearing also allows you to nurse hands free, which means that baby might have more opportunities to be at the breast, allowing you to maximize your supply.

We recommend that you wear your newborn in the following carriers: A woven wrap, a stretchy wrap or a Ring Sling. These carriers allow for optimal positioning of your newborn.

A woven wrap is one that has been woven and tested specifically for babywearing. I suggest to use the front wrap cross carry with your rails bunched. The reason for this, is that having your rails bunched will keep baby in a tighter hold. This is optimal during the early newborn period. After that a FWCC with passes spread will work just fine. Most stretchy wraps come with instructions for doing a “pocket cross carry”. This allows you to pre-tie your wrap and pop baby in the pocket. A ring sling is also a wonderful option for newborn wearing. A ring sling is easy to use, quick and comfortable. The suggested carry is a tummy-to-tummy carry.

Remember to be sure your baby is upright, and his chin isn’t pressed to his chest so that his airway is fully open. You should be able to kiss the top of your baby’s head while she’s on you. Baby needs to be in a seated squat position, with knees higher than bum, and should have his feet “out” so that he’s not sitting on them.

If you are wearing a preemie, it is suggested to not start wrapping until baby is weighing over 4.5lbs. Baby should be worn in a stretchy wrap, or woven wrap in a front-wrap-cross-carry with rails bunched to provide stability. Walking around a lot while wearing a preemie is not suggested until baby puts on more weight and is more stable. 

*This blog post was also contributed to the Fort Worth Babywearing Blog