Comments:

1. We swaddled for quite a long time... using regular blankets and then a swaddling type blanket (similar to miracle blanket but not that brand). It totally worked for us. Torin would be wailing, we would swaddle him pretty tight, and he would calm down. I would say when they are little bitty I didn't find any need for a *special* blanket because the blankets I had were big enough to wrap him tight but once he got bigger the special blanket worked better. I know not all babies love being swaddles but it does seem so many of them do.      by bjlong1
   
2. G was swaddled for the first 6ish weeks of his life around the clock. He hated being free to flop around, and he was never happy unless he was tightly wrapped. By 7 weeks, something had changed and he hated being swaddled, so we didn't really need anything other than the receiving blankets. However, we had a waffle-knit blanket that was awesome for swaddling. It always seemed to keep him much more snug. If the next baby does well with swaddling, we may have to try the miracle blanket (or something similar).      by KeelyKay
   
3. oh my gosh the video made me laugh. It looked like a straight jacket. My older son loved to be swaddled. My DH was the best at it. He even showed my sister the proper way to swaddle her daughter.      by heather6773
   
4. The first night in the hospital, my cousin who was my nurse swaddled DS up so tight we could have tossed him like a foot ball. After 10 minutes he screamed so much he started choking!! I let him out of the swaddle and he stopped. He has never liked it and even panics now when we are playing around in bed and he gets caught in the blanket!! On the other hand my girlfriend swaddled her daughter until she was 18 months.      by queensara
   
5. Quote:

   Originally Posted by bjlong1 I would say when they are little bitty I didn't find any need for a *special* blanket because the blankets I had were big enough to wrap him tight but once he got bigger the special blanket worked better.

   That was our experience, too. Regular blankets were fine at first, but once he started outgrowing them, the Miracle Blanket was the only one that fit. I also used larger squares of light cotton flannel, and they worked well, too.
   
   Additionally, while my ds was perfectly average-sized at birth, the blanket was WAY too big to be used properly. It took a number of weeks for him to grow into the blanket without lots of folding, so we really found regular blankets easier at the beginning.      by jana
   
6. I swaddled both of my girls - for N, it seemed to be the magic trick that calmed her (she was colicky). Ella started sleeping in longer stretches at night (3hrs, as opposed to 1h45min) once I started swaddling her very snug.
   
   I LOVED the Gerber cotton waffle-weave. They seemed to have some stretch or something (even though they are 100% cotton) and were large enough to swaddle Nicole up to about 14-15 weeks. For us, it was just a good snug & secure swaddle that worked - we used the swaddling technique from Happiest Baby On The Block by Dr Karp.      by Deana
   
7. Jana- We also used cut squares of light flannel. Nice cause you can cut to any size you want and cheap.
   
   Deana- I pretty much loved all of the Happiest Baby on the Block techniques. Definitely great for those first 12 weeks or so! I'll never forget my adorable 11 year old nieces holding him and mimicking the "shhshhshh" sound that I made when holding him. So cute!      by bjlong1
   
8. I loved the waffle weave for swaddling too. It's almost like the waffles made the blanket grip to itself to you could get and keep it tight.      by CC21
   
9. Another vote for the waffle weave blankets. Those were my favorites for swaddling.      by jana
   
10. Quote:

    Originally Posted by jana Another vote for the waffle weave blankets. Those were my favorites for swaddling.

    
    I think my boys had these too. They stretch easier than the flannel recieving blankets.      by heather6773
    
11. Ditto on the waffle weave blankets. We were able to use them until C was much older. We swaddled him until around 2 months old, and then we stopped at some point, thinking he was indifferent about it. Then, when he was approx 4 months, the woman who babysat for him while I worked for a few months discovered he loved to be swaddled for naps still. I started doing it, and she was SO right. He started taking extremely long naps once being swaddled again. So funny how they love it so much; they must just feel so secure once swaddled. We used waffled weave and swaddled (although somewhat losely) until he was around 7-8months (naps). He didn't seem to want to be swaddled at night, and he still slept through, so we didn't bother. But naps, yes. We swaddled forever.
    
    
    ETA: I think once he was older, the swaddling mainly aided in helping him FALL asleep and STAY asleep. The problem we were having at that time (prior to swaddling) was that his hands were out of control, and he would upset himself, not being able to fall asleep or stay asleep. Once he was swaddled, I swayed, and he would fall asleep like a dream, and stay asleep for hours in the daytime.      by IUgrad02
    
12. After two weeks K hated being swaddled. I just couldn't get her to do it. I even had a miracle blanket, so I just gave up. I am hoping the next one won't mind being swaddled because I still have all the swaddling blankets I bought.      by shan
    
13. We found the easiest way to swaddle our little one, was with one of those Kiddopotamus swaddle sacks. They are so easy to do, and you do not have to be scared that you don't do it right. They are a true lifesaver when you suck at swaddling.      by duckster