Babywearing and the PI Baby Part 2, personal account shared by Jackie

Last week, a fellow board member recounted the usefulness of babywearing in her infant's early months. It made me stop and think about what a saving grace babywearing has been to me and my youngest. I wish I had been less intimidated by it when my other children were younger!

As a single, work at home mother of 2 older children... I knew that this baby would be more difficult for me all around. I had no idea HOW much more difficult everything would be on me until I came home with him and needed to do housework, work, or pay attention to my older children. At first, I figured I would just take it a day at a time... slow and steady wins the race. Right from the beginning, however, Jaxson proved to be much different than my other children. I noticed the signs of reflux and PI within his first few weeks of life (I have since learned about even more issues). He exhibited many signs of Sandifer's syndrome; always arching his body, wiggling and never could lay contently. He would not be put down in the bassinet. He would not sit in a swing, which had been my savior for the other two. He vomited and choked with every bottle and needed to be held constantly.

I tried a ring sling that I had from my other children. But when it came down to it, it made me nervous. He looked squished. And I am a small person, so it was uncomfortable, and I couldn't ever actually leave him hands free. Enter my first savior... The maya wrap. The very first time I put him in it, he snuggled up to me, content, calm... and slept. I thought, there is NO way that this is happening. So, with the next fit, I tried it again. And had the same results. I was hooked.

Upon doing some research I learned that there were many other types of wraps, so I invested in them as well. And they were more sturdy, more comfortable, more safe. I really enjoyed carrying him and became very active in the babywearing communities online. But it was hot. VERY hot. And very hard to wrap him while trying to get a 1st grader ready for school, just to take him out, and put him back in when we arrived to the school. So, I found myself getting lazy and not using it as often. Despite his love of the carrier, it was proving to take too much time out of my schedule for 15 minutes of peace here and there.

With the research I did... I found the mei tai options and SSCs (soft structured carriers) online. I was slightly intimidated, again, but I thought why not! So, I began my making my own mei tai. WHAT a difference! It was so much easier to get on and off without having to remember the steps. The more I used it though, the more I realized that I wanted the buckles. Set your size and be done. Snap in, snap out.

Enter my absolute favorite baby carrier; the Beco Butterfly. Jaxson absolutely loved being carried in this carrier. And it didn't matter if I was home or on the go, I could throw it on in just a couple of minutes and be moving. We took walks to the grocery store, the school, the front office, everywhere. He was always happy and upright and I had my hands free; without having to worry if he was too loose or if the fabric was too hot. Even with a bad back, I could carry him on the front or the back without a lot of uncomfortableness. Recently, Beco released a carrier called the Gemini and we have now moved on to that carrier. It allows us to do safe forward facing carries as well as hip carries, making it the absolute most versatile SSC carrier I have seen. So far, he loves it. And he wants to be on the move. These days, it is not as much to prevent vomiting and reflux attacks, but it is as just as useful to me. I would highly recommend for anyone that has more than one child to look into an SSC. The easiness with which it goes on and off is worth it!