Anonymous
Hello, When sleeping, my 9 week old baby will wriggle himself from the middle of the bassinet to end up laying diagonally with his face against the bassinet wall. When I put him in the bassinet I place him in the centre but within 5 minutes he wriggles and is unsettled until he puts his forehead and tip of his nose against the bassinet wall. No matter how many times I move him back to the centre he just keeps on finding the wall again. I have a SnuzPod 4 bassinet. What can I do to stop this as it makes me worry?
Red Nose Education
Many babies will wriggle & change position (like you describe) at a young age.
Often this can mean that baby is soon going to be rolling.
Some babies just do not respond well to wrapping & like their arms free.
Are you still wrapping/swaddling him?..... might be preferable to no longer wrap.
Maybe it’s also time to consider moving to his cot.
How does he go with tummy time when awake?
Most babies will be rolling over by 4-6 months…....some earlier, some later.
This is very normal as babies grow & become stronger many babies then prefer to sleep on their tummy.
It is important that you move him from bassinet to his cot & cease wrapping once he is rolling or attempting to roll.
Baby needs arms free & the space of the cot to roll safely.
Red Nose also recommends modifying any wrap at 3 months to allow for arms to be free, in preparation for rolling
Modify the wrap to meet the baby’s developmental changes, e.g. arms free once ‘startle’ reflex begins to disappear which is usually around 3 months
https://rednose.org.au/article/wrapping-babies
Once he is rolling it is important to make the environment as safe as possible for this to occur.
Continue to place baby on their back to sleep.
Ensure cot mattress is firm, well-fitting & flat.
Ensure there is nothing loose or soft in the cot.
Preferable to use a sleeping bag when rolling that has appropriate size neck & arm holes.
Red Nose has the following information when baby is rolling.
Give baby extra tummy time to play when awake and supervised as this helps baby to develop stronger neck and upper body muscles which in turn enables them to roll back over.
Make sure that baby is on a firm and well-fitting mattress that is flat (not tilted or elevated).
Make sure that baby’s face and head remains uncovered (do not use lambswool, doonas, pillows, cot bumpers or soft toys)
As babies grow and develop they become very active and learn to roll around the cot.
At this time, continue to put them on the back at the start of sleep time, but let them find their own position of comfort.
By this stage it is not necessary to wake during the night to turn baby over to the back position
Do not use any devices designed to keep baby in a particular sleep position.
https://rednose.com.au/article/what-do-we-do-now-that-a-baby-has-started-to-roll-over
Red Nose Education
“At this stage I am still wrapping him but he seems to wriggle out of his wrap after an hour or so.”
It is not uncommon for babies to get out of their wrap when they are close to rolling.
For this reason it would now be preferable to not wrap - you could try modifying the muslin wrap by wrapping him with his arms out as per 3-6 month old method, even tho he is only 2 months of age.
Principles of safe wrapping - modifying for 3-6mth
Examples of techniques that can be used to wrap a baby based on their developmental age. Reduce the effects of the Moro or startle reflex for a younger baby by including arms in wrap. Help an older baby stay on their back by wrapping their lower body, but leaving their hands and arms free to self soothe. Most babies eventually resist being wrapped.
https://rednose.org.au/article/wrapping-babies
It is important, once baby is rolling to discontinue wrapping & move baby to a cot.
Babies need their arms free & the space of a cot to roll safely.