Should baby swing all night?

September 27, 2007 1:27 AM

Our 6 week old seams to only like sleeping in his swing. Is this ok? Are there any ill effects to swinging that much vs sleeping in his crib? Also, assuming this is no big issue, is this normal, and do they eventually get over it and have no issues in the crib?
posted by brent_h to health (14 comments total)

When my daughter was a newborn, she could only be comforted by swinging in her swing. She had tummy issues and felt better being in an upright position. If your baby is sleeping, then great! Be grateful and grab as much rest as you can! Your little one will eventually transition into sleeping in his crib.
posted by amyms at 2:16 AM on September 27, 2007

Mine loved the swing (I worried about the vibrating chair). It's normal and OK. He has no issues in the crib now at 15 months.
posted by distrakted at 3:10 AM on September 27, 2007

Totally ok. At some point you can try stopping it after he's asleep and see if he stays asleep. I read that that would help transition to crib naps eventually. I don't think it was until around 12 wks that I started doing that, though. One of my friends remarked she felt like she should start paying the swing some babysitting money, it took so much care of her daughter.
posted by cocoagirl at 3:21 AM on September 27, 2007

In my experience it only takes them 3 days to attain normality in most "normal" situations (this has been the consistent case with the 2 children I've experimented on - as a parent - so far).

3 days may feel like a lifetime, but transitioning them to other situations for the sake of posture, and mitigating SIDS (although extreme) may be worth the while.

If your child can sleep in any particular situation, then they're quite capable of sleeping in any other particular situation.

I reckon that should be the main criterion for where they ultimately spend the most time.
posted by strawberryviagra at 4:46 AM on September 27, 2007

At 6 weeks, you pretty much go with what works. Swaddling (a.k.a. baby straitjacket) worked wonderfully for us.
posted by pmbuko at 5:25 AM on September 27, 2007

The swing we had for my daughter had a timer, and she fell asleep before it ran out, then we tiptoed around her.
posted by thilmony at 5:33 AM on September 27, 2007

Is it possible that what she likes is having her head elevated, and the swinging is just a bonus?

You might want to look into the Amby Baby Hammock; I have a friend whose son would only sleep in the swing, but he transitioned to the Hammock easily.
posted by anastasiav at 6:34 AM on September 27, 2007

Ditto – here…my boy loved the swing too! Live it up, that will eventually change. I also felt bad having the baby in the swing but he loved it and you really need to stick with what works.

I forgot how old my son was but there was a time when he would wake up in the middle of the night just for a diaper change and he would fall back asleep for the rest of the night in the swing. You are a bit off from the baby waking up not hungry but it may also work for you.

Congrats on the baby. Mine is going to be 1 next week!

ohh yeah - the swing worked great during dinner time. we would time his dinner bottle before our dinner and we would then eat with him in the swing next to us.
posted by doorsfan at 7:19 AM on September 27, 2007

Our kids loved the swing and grew out of it.
posted by craniac at 7:21 AM on September 27, 2007

If he doesn't grow out of it, you could just get him a hammock later.
posted by BobbyDigital at 8:23 AM on September 27, 2007

Don't worry about it. For the first 3 months, our philosophy was "Sleep by any means necessary." For us and our son.

You won't "ruin" him in any way by letting him sleep in the swing. You won't ruin his posture, and you won't ruin his ability to sleep in a crib in the future.

We had a huge swing addict on our hands, and I felt oddly like an enabler. I felt selfish, and like I was going to regret it later.

I don't think it's anything we did, but he is now an excellent sleeper. He's 21 months, and he asks for the crib for naps and nighttime. He has an early bedtime, sleeps through the night, takes 2 hour naps, and signs "sleep" and points to the crib when he's ready.
posted by peep at 9:47 AM on September 27, 2007

nthing everyone else - don't worry about it. Our kids absolutely loved the swings too - they were a lifesaver. Especially in our case, since our twins were premature and had pretty bad acid reflux. So the semi-upright position was just fabulous for them.

My only (very slight) hesitation is that it did make our kids want to be rocked to sleep later - it took them a while to learn to fall asleep on a flat, stationary surface (crib). But really, it was still worth it.
posted by widdershins at 10:00 AM on September 27, 2007

WRT strawberryviagra's comment - I'm not sure if this was intended but I know of no indication of a connection between swing/bounce chairs and SIDS. The only thing that PDF says about it is that prolonged time in strollers and chairs can contribute to flattening of the back of the head (a condition that is common with babies slept consistently on their backs, and almost always resolves itself) - though it is a document well worth reading for general info on SIDS and sleep.

For what it's worth, my son spent his first 40 days in a first class NICU and they routinely slept especially restless infants in rocker seats. We used one of those vibro-chairs (honestly I think the idea that that itty bitty little vibro-motors could do any harm is absurd) and sometimes it was an honest-to-God sanity saver. But I did keep pushing for regular sleep in the crib.
posted by nanojath at 12:30 PM on September 27, 2007

Both of my kids loved sleeping in the swing when they were babies. It was the only way my son would sleep. Anywhere. At some point, he transitioned to a crib (sorry, don't remember when; he's ten now) with no problems. My daughter liked the swing for naps and would not sleep in her crib during the early weeks: she slept in her carry-around carseat. She, too, transitioned to a crib without any problems.

They're both champion sleepers now, and can sleep in any bed (and cars and plane seats and couches...you get the idea).
posted by cooker girl at 12:56 PM on September 27, 2007