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Happy Baby |
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Safety Rules |
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Use Common Sense. Take good care of your baby.
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| When stopping to tie the cloth, be sure you are standing in a safe place. Use the same common sense about choosing a place to tie the cloth as you would about choosing a place to stop to tie your shoes. For example, you would not stop in the middle of a busy walkway or parking lot to bend over and tie your shoes. Do not tie your baby wrap there, either. |
Continue to pay attention to baby's movements and breathing. Do not
wear head phones while wearing baby. You need to be able to hear her if
she needs you. If baby fusses, she's probably mad that you stopped
moving. Try walking, singing, talking to her, doing fast tiny
bounces up and down. If that doesn't settle her, she may be hot,
uncomfortable or hungry. Take her down and attend to her. You can do
the laundry later. |
Avoid the temptation to "Show Off" your babywearing skills. You'll be distracted and much more likely to drop your baby. That's a terrible way to impress someone. Demonstrate, teach, share with others? Yes! Show how cool is this new thing you can do? "Ta da!" No.
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Be sure the ends of the cloth do not go lower than your upper thighs. If the cloth is extra long, wrap it around you again. Tuck it in. Loose ends can cause you to trip. Dangling cloth, whether from a baby wrap or from a blouse, could catch on fire while you cook. So use common sense and don't let your blouse or your baby wrap dangle near open flame. |
| Be careful not to bump baby's head on anything. It is possible to bump baby's head whether using a sling or carrying baby in your arms. Be especially careful of doorways when carrying baby on your hip. |
Trust your instincts. If you feel that the baby is not wrapped
securely, try again. Read the instructions again. If you can't figure
out what you are doing wrong, find other babywearers and ask for help. Get help from an experienced babywearer. |
| Have another adult help you when learning a new carry position or using a new wrap cloth. Have your helper double check your work to be sure you followed the instructions correctly. Have your helper inspect the finished wrap to see if there is any way for the baby to slip. |
If you're going to have a friend help you get baby down, be absolutely
CERTAIN that the friend has a good hold of the baby before you loosen
the carrier. The Diffusion of Responsibility is a dangerous thing, especially when combined with a baby and the force of gravity. |
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Practice each new carry with a doll or teddy bear until you are really good at it. Only then should you try it with baby. And even then, if it's a back carry, go ahead and kneel on a soft surface. And check your work when you're done. And have another adult help you the first few times. There is no shame or silliness in being a good, cautious, responsible mother.
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| Do not cover the baby's head with any cloth that shouldn't be used to cover a baby's head. |
Do not leave a swaddled baby unattended unless you have become an expert in swaddling and you are absolutely certain that the baby won't wiggle loose and get the ribbon around his neck or the blanket over his face. When in doubt, keep baby with you. |
| Use Common Sense. This list does not, and cannot possibly, include
warnings about all the possible silly things a person might
absent-mindedly do. Be a responsible adult and think for yourself. |
Feel free to link to this page, but do not copy any part of it to another website. |
~ Tracy Dower
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As Dangerous As... |
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Why the Safety Agreement? Is babywearing dangerous? Is brushing your teeth dangerous? Think about it! Brushing your teeth IS dangerous. That's why mamas teach their children how to do it safely.
Mama teaches:
- Don't swallow lots of tooth paste. (Read the label, it's actually poisonous.)
- Don't run around the house with the toothbrush in your mouth. (If you trip and fall, and it pokes you in the back of the throat, you can bleed to death before the ambulance arrives.)
- Don't poke yourself in the eye with your toothbrush.
- Don't use your toothbrush to clean the toilet and then reuse it in your mouth. ("Eeew", you say? Do you HAVE a 2 year old? They DO things like that.)
- Don't hit your sister upside her head with the toothbrush.
- Don't throw the toothbrush across the room just because you don't like the new toothpaste flavor.
So, yeah brushing your teeth is dangerous until you learn how to do it safely. So is crossing the street, riding an escalator, tying your shoes. Babywearing is, ordinarily, a skill imparted from mother to daughter over a period of many years of close supervision. If you are learning alone, you'll have to be your own mother -- and be cautious and exercise good judgement.
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Got $5 & 5 mins?
Make a Carrier! |
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Shop |
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More Help |
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Ancient Art |
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The carrying positions shown here are ancient and have been used by mothers throughout history. People in the family or village teach the young people how to wear a baby. Typically, a person learns babywearing long before that person is an adult. Because you are learning on your own, without the benefit of one-on-one assistance from an experienced babywearer, you must use caution. You should have another adult help you until you feel completely confident.
~ Tracy Dower
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Report a Problem |
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Broken link? Missing image? Misspelled word? Inadequate instructions? Please email maintenance@wearyourbaby.org. I cannot respond to every email, but I do appreciate your help. I will email you back if I can. Thanks, Tracy Dower
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You are a Master Babywearer |
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In China, it is said that "A master is anyone who knows more than you do." So, you are all master babywearers compared with most of the moms in the world. You do NOT need to know everything there is to know about babywearing -- if you know even ONE carry with even ONE type of carrier, you are in possession of knowledge other moms desperately want -- even if they do not yet know they want it. ;-D Therefore, you should all feel confident enough to teach others! So, pick a public place, pick a day of the week, and start sharing your skills with other families! Then, list yourself here.
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