Motion, crying and swings

[Mildly]

We never bought a swing originally as we preferred the look of a bouncer and didn't want to buy both. Having discovered that Oscar enjoys and is soothed by swinging motions we have decided to buy one. In fact our decision is based on the fact that if he is crying in his car seat (before we get him into the car) if we swing the car seat back and forth, he stops almost instantly. Unfortunately it is very heavy and I can't sustain it for too long.

Do they really help? Do your LOs like their swings? Is there anything to consider when buying one? I know that they are weight dependant but as he is young we should be alright for a while. I have seen reviews which mention swings help relieve colicky crying, anyone found this to be true?

This swing is reduced and has two speeds which looks to be ok. I can't really justify buying one of the £100 swings however lovely they look

 

[Gem & Leland]

i couldnt not have done without a swing through the colic stages !!! it was my life line , he grew out of it at 6 months and went into a grown up swing that still settles him lol well worth it spending £30 on one , or even cheaper on ebay 2nd hand !

 

[Mildly]

Thanks G3m, it's good to know that it helped you and Leland I think I shall send OH to Babies R Us tomorrow, just so we can get it quickly

 

[Sherlock]

For colic we managed with Infacol, baths and a dummy.

I never used a swing seat. It may have settled our LO but tbh he got the hang of settling himself by 4 weeks and off to sleep on his own from 6 weeks, so it was never an issue with regards to sleeping.

The one you linked to looks decent

I'd not leave LO in it for extended periods of time if it were me. I'd treat them the same as an infant carrier and have regular breaks.

 

[Gem & Leland]

thats ok sherlock but infacol etc all made lelands reflux worse and he threw it all up , and he had poor suction and never had a dummy for long and hasnt even had one at all since 3 months ! and having tendonitus means i couldnt hold him and rock him in my arms , so for us , the swing was the best buy of 0-6 months by a long shot ! we got one that laid virtually flat but because it was also slighty raised up it helped with reflux too , 2 stones one bird !!!! leland never spent hour after hour in it tho of cause but enough to settle him .

 

[CoreysMummy]

Corey loves his... sits there playign with toys etc. Gave my arms a well needed rest when he was screaming from Reflux pain.

Going to swap it for one of those things like a walker, but they dont move anywhere, just the seat and toys all around. I bought mine when he was abotu 6 weeks old, and will use it till hes 6months atleast!

We got the Fisherprice rainforest one, theres not much hanging off it, but thats never seemed to bother him, then he got old enuff to play with other toys on his lap, chew stuff etc.

 

[Sherlock]

thats ok sherlock but infacol etc all made lelands reflux worse and he threw it all up , and he had poor suction and never had a dummy for long and hasnt even had one at all since 3 months ! and having tendonitus means i couldnt hold him and rock him in my arms , so for us , the swing was the best buy of 0-6 months by a long shot ! we got one that laid virtually flat but because it was also slighty raised up it helped with reflux too , 2 stones one bird !!!! leland never spent hour after hour in it tho of cause but enough to settle him .

Mildly asked about colicky crying so I was saying what we used for colic, not anything to do with reflux as that is a whole other problem and not something Galen suffered from so cannot comment on things to soothe/ease. Glad a swing worked for you though I often wonder how we got through the colic weeks using just the things we did, but we did. Perhaps a swing chair would have helped, perhaps not. Just we never bought one. We did other things also, but got by without a swing or using a bouncer (he hated it in the early weeks and it was a waste of money till he was about 14 weeks old and colic passed )

Swings have their usefulness for some babies for sure. The down side for some is that until you buy one and use it you really don't know if your LO is going to like it or take to it. £40 for one is a bargin so Mildy can't really go wrong at that price. Mildy I just would check how far it reclines so LO isn't sat for too long when so small is all. That sort of thing is always something to check so babies spending time in them can have their position changed at least if need be.

 

[lisa282]

I have one for Eden, got it from ebay for £10 and its been worth every penny. She absolutely loves it, and gives me a little break during the day to get a few jobs done. It gets her to relax or sleep almost instantly and I would highly recommend it!! TBH though, i would never pay full price for one, i think they are wildly over-priced, which is why i headed for ebay!

this is the one we have http://www.mothercare.com/gp/product/B0 ... 1&mcb=core

 

[Redshoes]

I co-sleep with Ophelia so her not 100% able to settle herself doesn't bother me whatsoever, but I've just put her in Isaac's old swing this weekend and she loves it, it sends her off if she's tired, so I'd say go for it, buy 2nd hand even as not all babies like them and the bigger swing will see your LO to 6months so better value for money

 

[Mildly]

Thanks for all the replies

I'm hoping he will be soothed to sleep pretty quickly by the swing as some of you have reported, so long as I catch him during deep sleep, I can move him anywhere so that he won't be sitting in it for long periods of time

Sherlock, Oscar is loving the infacol at the moment but as yet it hasn't started to take effect, hopefully it will soon. I will get OH to demand a demonstration in the shop tomorrow when he picks it up. It would be really nice not to eat dinner in shifts so would be great if Oscar was kept busy in his new swing )Hope I haven't jinxed it and that he hates it now ).

I'm glad you got good use out of it CoreysMummy I know Oscar is pretty big but am hoping he'll make it worth our while

Lisa and Redshoes, normally I am an ebay girl through and through - most of Oscar's things are courtesy of ebay I've been bidding on a few over the last week or so but the ones within picking up distance from me seem to be going for high prices That's why we are contemplating brand new

Ohh and Sherlock, just out of interest, how did you manage to get Galen to settle himself by four weeks? I'm not really sure how to go about teaching Oscar to do that!

 

[CoreysMummy]

You'll be fine, Coreys above the 98th centile for length... so oscar shud fit in it for a good while too