Babywearing Safety

I can not stress enough how important safe babywearing is. It is by far the most important thing we teach as educators.

 

Here are the guidelines Babywearing International teaches. Its a nice and simple acronym and easy to remember ABC.

 

Airway
Making sure your baby can breathe is the #1 thing we teach. Make sure your baby does not fall chin to chest. If a baby's chin falls to their chest it can cut off their airway causing them to suffocate. Another way to make sure the airway is not restricted is by making sure that there is not any type of fabric covering their face. This is especially important when you're wrapping your baby in a stretchy wrap or woven wrap.

 

Body Support
You want to make sure that your baby is properly supported. You don't want them slouching down in the carrier (which can cause problems with airway) as this can cause the weight to be wrongly distributed. You want your baby to be supported knee to knee. This should make their bottom look like an M position. This will cause the weight to be placed on their bottom and not their feet. Your baby should always be high enough that you can kiss the top of their head.

 

Comfort
Babywearing isn't fun or helpful if it isn't comfortable for wearer and baby. Making sure that your carrier is properly put on and adjusted can help correct that. If you're having a difficult time using your carrier or learning a new carry use a spotter or check out your local group for help.

 

Wrapping Tips

• Babies should be arms in until they get proper head control 
• Never never NEVER using a stretchy for a back carry.
• The tighter you are able to get the wrap while you are wrapping, the comfier its going to be for every one. Take your time wrapping and get a nice and tight wrap job. 
• If baby is on your back you should be able to lean your head back and touch the top of their head. (this has exceptions) 
• To get wrap more comfy on the shoulders you can always spread the rails and make them wider. 
• Back wrapping can be very intimidating. It is best to master front carries before you attempt a back carry. The first time you try a back carry have a spotter to help you and do it away from hard surfaces. 
• Use a mirror

 

SSC Tips

• Babies should be arms in until they get proper head control
• Make sure you do not have a counterfeit carrier.
• Always check carrier for signs of wear and tear.
• Master front carriers before you attempt back carries.

Ringsling Tips

• Make sure your sling has weight tested rings. Rings from a craft store are not safe. Slingrings.com is a great place for rings.
• Always check sling for signs of wear and tear.
•  Make sure you're not using a recalled sling. Bag style slings should never be used for risk of suffocation.
• Master from carries before you attempt back carries.

 

 

You should only wear your baby while doing activities you would do when holding your baby.

1. Don't cook while wearing
2. Don't jump around, go jogging, ride horses, etc.
3. Watch to make sure baby wont grab anything dangerous
4. Never wearing your baby in the car

 

 

ATTENTION

Narrow based carriers (Bjorn, Snugglie, Infantino, etc.) are NOT considered dangerous. They are weight and safety tested to the same standards as carriers like Ergo, Boba, Beco, etc. There is information being spread that these carriers cause Hip dysplasia. This is not true, there are no studies out there to confirm this. There are a few studies out there showing that it can cause issues for babies who are already susceptible but they do not cause it. Narrow based carriers are not dangerous and they were a stepping stone for many of us.

 

 

 

Intro to Ringslings

A ringsling is a carrier that has a piece of fabric with 2 rings attached to one end. The fabric is threaded through the rings (like a belt) to make a pocket for the baby to sit in. The tail (extra fabric) can be adjusted to fit the wearer.

Ringsling Shoulders

There isn't really a 'type' of ringsling. They're all pretty much the same thing- a piece of fabric sewn to rings. HOWEVER there are different ways to sew that fabric to the rings. We call these different shoulders. They all fit into three basic categories but there can be sling differences between each category.

Gathered

Gathered shoulders are all very basic. The fabric is just pulled through the rings and sewn flat. There are no pleats (folded fabric) involved. This makes for a nice wide adjustable shoulder.

Photo thanks to http://accordingtojenny.com/

Pleated

A pleated shoulder has a bunch of pleats (folds) of fabric going around the sling. Before the fabric is sewn it is folded in different ways, the rings are pulled through, and then it is sewn to itself. This shoulder type is the most narrow and most parents tend to think it stays in place a little better than the other styles.

Photo thanks to Whitney Scott from BWI of Wichita

Hybrid

This shoulder is a mix between the two. It normally has a few pleated areas and a few gathered areas. Its a little more adjustable than pleated and a little more contained than gathered. 

Why They're So Great

Great Daddy Carriers

The AMAZING thing about ringslings is they're very easy to learn how to use and simple. In my experience dads don't tend to be wrappers. They want something they can throw on real quick and not have to fumble around. This also makes them great for grandparents, moms who don't like wrapping, and toddlers. Toddlers want up one second and down the next. Thats frustrating when you spent 5 minutes getting them up in a wrap just for them to want down 2 minutes later. With a ringslings taking them in and out isn't as big of a burden. 

Step-Daddy Babywearing

Daddy Babywearing

Nursing

You an nurse in any carrier but sense ringslings are so easily adjustable they tend to be a go-to for nursing. If your baby wants to nurse you simply pull on the bottom ring -with other hand on baby- just enough to lower them to your breast. (Quick tip- tails make a great nursing cover if you wish to cover up.) When your'e finished nursing you just pull on the tail to tighten back up

Extra Uses of the Tail

The tail of a ringsling is just the leftover fabric you're not using while wearing the sling. There are other things you can do with it though besides letting it hang down your legs. One is using the extra tail to tuck into the top rail of the ringsling. This creates extra padding to support a newborns head. Another is to wrap the extra tail around the rings if they start digging into your chest. I also love using my tail as a nursing cover.

Wearing my premie second cousin and using the tail for extra head support

Tail wrapped around rings

Using tail as a nursing cover

Extra Photos

Ringslings are my FAVORITE so I can't help myself and am going to show off some more photos of them. Everyone should have a ringsling in their 'stash' of carriers. They work from newborn-toddler and are easy enough for all the care providers to learn to use.