You got to move it, move it!
I’ve talked to many moms who have said that babywearing hasn’t worked for them, for one reason or another. I always kind of want to point out that, like anything else, babywearing is a tool. It’s meant to help make life easier for you, but you may have to explore ways to make it work. Babywearing is not necessarily a magic bullet (although for some babies it may be), it requires a little tweaking to figure out what works for you and your baby.
Babywearing has literally saved my life, so I’m a bit of an evangelist on the subject, and I know I am, and try to watch it. Still, I’m just so enthusiastic about it, and while I don’t judge someone for giving up on it, I always find myself wanting to troubleshoot and figure out how to make things better for them. Because it is a *tool*, meant to make your life *easier*! I’m all about making everyones lives easier.
The number one thing that I think people don’t know when they first start babywearing, is that babies being worn want to MOVE. I was able to wear Bella a few times while doing dishes or cooking, but mostly, that was too static for her. I needed to move. So while I was able to get some things done, ie: get her to sleep without losing my sanity as much, it wasn’t like I was Miss Chore-Accomplisher while she was on my back. Mostly I was usually focused on getting her to sleep. Sleep, baby, sleep!
That’s how I started vacuuming. I probably also read this tip on The Babywearer (which is an excellent, amazing resource for moms interested in wearing their babes!), about vacuuming. Vacuuming while the baby is on your back does a couple of things. It makes you move, it provides rhythmic movement, it provides sound, and the babe is “swaddled” (held tightly with fabric) to your body. It reminds me in many ways of Dr. Karp’s method of the 5 S’s, for soothing colicky babes. Suck, Swaddle, Side, Sway, and SHHHH. Well, they don’t get suck or side, but they do get swaddle, sway, and shhhhh, plus your heartbeat, your closeness, your calm.
Some other ideas for moving: walking the dog, walking up and down stairs (especially if they are squiggling, wiggling, seem uncomfy), walking back and forth in a long hallway (I’ve done this successfully in hotels), and a simple sway, especially with music. I’ve also done this in hotels, where I’d just darken the room completely, put her on my back, and then stand in the darkest part of the room and sway back and forth.
It’s *saved* me. I really really mean that. So if you are a mom at your wits end with a child who won’t sleep, I really recommend giving it another shot even if it hasn’t worked out for you before. Some things take a little practice, and take some effort, but it is so worth it in the long run.
Edited: September 10th, 2009
It’s still a revelation to me that other children do NOT need to be worn/vacuumed to sleep just about every time. My daughter is 2.5 years old, 42 lbs, and 38″ tall; and has spent about 90 minutes on my back today. Today was a “heavy use” (haha!) day as I kept her on my back to shorten the duration of her afternoon nap… but still, she is usually on my back for at least 20 minutes a day.
