Q&A Forum

6/7/23

Kaitlyn

Hi, our 7 week old wriggles during her sleep so much that she ends up diagonal in her bassinet, sometimes with her face extremely close to the mesh on the side of her bassinet. Do we need to move her into a cot? She's sleeping in a LTD swaddle and we find it really calms her. Thank you

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Posted a response on 10/7/23

Red Nose Education

Most babies will be rolling over by 4-5 months…....some earlier, some later.
​*Often, they will start wriggling to side of bassinet prior to rolling.
Some babies like to have their arms free to touch their face &/or suck their fingers.
You could try settling her without any swaddle, or wrap with her arms out. (as for 3 mth old)
Red Nose recommends wrapping/swaddling by using a light cotton or muslin wrap.
This may reduce her wriggling to side of bassinet.
https://rednose.org.au/article/wrapping-babies

If she continues to roll/wriggle around bassinet, it would be preferable to manage her as if she were rolling.

Rolling is very normal as babies grow & become stronger many babies then prefer to sleep on their tummy &/or side.
Once rolling or attempting to roll the following is important:
*Time to stop swaddling/wrapping.
*It is important that you move her from bassinet to her cot once rolling.
*Baby needs arms free & the space of the cot to roll safely.

Once she is rolling it is important to make the environment as safe as possible for this to occur.
Continue to place baby on the back to sleep.
Ensure cot mattress is firm, well-fitting & flat.
Ensure there is nothing loose or soft in the cot.
Use a sleeping bag when rolling that has appropriate size neck & arm holes, rather than swaddle.

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

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