Baby Merlin's Magic Sleepsuit



I really don't like to hear my kids cry. And when they are sleeping (or suppose to be sleeping!) I really don't like to hear them cry. I'm a bit of a softy, and I also get really anxious when I hear their tears from afar, especially when they are babies. So while this doesn't mean I don't have any crying at all from my babies, I certainly try to reduce it as much as I can.

When it's time for my kids to make some sort of sleep transition, like out of the swaddle or out of the rock 'n play, I get a little nervous. They've all done pretty well with these transitions ('well', not 'perfect') but I'm always working on ways to make the transition even more easy-peasy-lemon-squeezy. I know, I know. I'm often telling each of you that sleep isn't ever going to be perfect and that there are no magical sleep fixes, but apparently I'm still dreaming of that for myself.

Over the last several months I've heard from many of you about Baby Merlin's Magic Sleep Suit. My sister Sharon even sent me a link to it wondering if I'd used it because apparently it was all the rave in her online twin group. When Stella was ready to be weaned from her swaddle and rock 'n play sleeper I thought I'd give the Magic Sleepsuit a try. I hadn't initially planned to wean from both things at once, but I decided to do a little experiment with the suit just to see how magic it really was.

When I put Stella in it the first time I couldn't help but snicker. She looked like a marshmallow and a bit like Randy from the Christmas story, worried look and all.


I put her in my arms to do our normal pre-sleep routine and I was really surprised at what happened. She settled down way quicker than she normally does before sleep (even in the swaddle). And then I was surprised again when I set her down in her crib. She fell asleep and stayed asleep pretty much like she did in the swaddle and rock 'n play. WHAT?! I was not expecting that.

I used the sleep suit for a while then transited Stella out of it. She slept good in it, not perfect, but good. I wish I had kept her in the suit longer. I rushed things along too quickly (which I have a bad habit of doing when it comes to swaddling--I don't always follow my own advice!). Since then I have put her back in the suit a few different days/nights when she was having issues sleeping from illness and wonder weeks and it really helped her sleep better.

With some people, Merlin's Magic Sleepsuit is pretty much a life saver. Their baby literally goes from waking every hour at night to sleeping a 10 hour stretch. No joke. Seems kind of hard to believe, but I've talked to enough people about it to know that it really does happen. Fingers crossed that Baby Merlin's Magic Sleepsuit will be life changing for you too!


What's so magic about this suit? 
  • Helps baby feel cozy and secure.
  • Muffles the startle reflex and other baby ninja moves.
  • Helps keep baby on his back longer (which may be helpful in reducing SIDS).
  • Keeps baby warm without extra blankets in the crib. It's like an extra secure sleep sack.
  • Helps prevent baby from pushing out the pacifier. Baby may still be able to reach her mouth (like to suck her thumb), but it's a bit more tricky for some babies. My Stella is pretty mellow and, well, somewhat weak as far as babies go, so she never was able to reach her mouth very well.
  • Helps baby transition out of the rock 'n play (or carseat, or swing etc) and the swaddle. It is especially helpful when you need a sudden, quick transition out of the swaddle due to something like rolling.
  • It's easy to clean although it does take a while to dry. I would wash and dry it inside out so it'll dry quicker.
  • The neck scoops down to keep material out of babies face.
  • It's super easy to put on with the two zippers.

Some extra suit stuff
  • Don't size up. It will be too big and won't work!
  • Once your baby can roll in the sleep suit, it is time to move on to a sleep sack (or whatever you use). If your baby just started to roll in the swaddle, she'll probably not be able to roll in the sleepsuit for some time yet.
  • The Sleepsuit may help your little one sleep better, but it won't solve all of the world's problems, like baby gas and severe sleep props.
  • While the suit is pretty plush, it doesn't seem to make baby very hot (although it will certainly make them warm). Stella probably got hotter when she was in her miracle blanket swaddle.

You can check out the Baby Merlin's Magic Sleepsuit website here and their Facebook page here. You can buy it on their website and on good old amazon here.

18 comments :

  1. Never heard of this. Maybe it will magically help our little one extend nights as well...with a lot less effort than we are putting in now!

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    1. Ruth,
      The swaddle will be more helpful for him right now :) You'll get there with what you are doing. In a couple weeks you'll look back and be shocked at the change!

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  2. Thank you for this! (And your whole site!) Our daughter is a total escape artist out of the swaddle, but we have to keep her swaddled because she has crazy sleep jolts and ends up punching herself in the face or kicking too high and waking herself up. Haha! It's pretty sad and funny at the same time.

    She's almost 10 weeks now and to manage her startle reflexes she has been sleeping really well (8 hours a night) with a Miracle Blanket in a Rock n Play, but I have felt less and less comfortable with the whole setup. She could only sleep for under an hour in a crib though, even with the Miracle Blanket. The Miracle Blanket seemed meaner the older she got since she loves to stretch out and has been finding her hand to suck on lately. And while the Rock N Play has been a lifesaver, it's been bad for her torticollis and she slouches in it strangely which makes her breathing weird. Just made me uneasy all around the older she was getting.

    We used Merlin's Sleepsuit yesterday for the first time, and she slept for 8.5 hours in her crib! IN HER CRIB! She looked so peaceful, and all the concerns I'd had about the Rock N Play were gone! She was able to stretch out in her sleep, her breathing was so quiet and peaceful that I couldn't even tell if she was still alive, and her neck wasn't kinked since she was flat in the crib.

    I kept telling my husband, "I don't know what we would have done if we hadn't found My Baby Sleep Guide and heard about this sleep suit!" Thank you so much for this site!

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    1. I hope things keep going amazing for you overall Audrey. Yeah for a huge success. I definitely would be moving to the crib too if my child had slumping and breathing issues at a slant. Best of luck with everything!

      Rachel

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  3. Hi Rachel,

    Thanks so much for all the great information in your blog. I was wondering if your daughter ever slept in the sleepsuit in her rock and play? My daughter is currently 10 weeks old, and I have purchased a sleepsuit for her. We currently swaddle her for all naps and bedtime, and she sleeps mostly in her rock and play. I'm hoping to transition her out of the swaddle soon, but I'm worried about transitioning from the swaddle and the rock and play both at the same time. I read that you get antsy about transitioning out of the swaddle; I can totally relate! I have two older kiddos (12 and almost 10), and we never needed to swaddle to get them to sleep. So, as the weeks tick by, I'm getting more and more anxious about getting this LO out of the swaddle (and out of the rock and play, too).

    Anyway, just wondering if you had tried it or if you would have any recommendations for or against using it in the rock and play.

    Again, thanks for your blog and all the wonderful resources here!

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    1. Stephanie Post,
      The recommended use for the magic sleep suit is flat on the back. That said, I did have my daughter sleep in the rock and play a little with the sleep suit. the last picture shown above she is in the rock and play. The position moves the neck part of the suit closer to the mouth/nose area. I had her in it with a snuza breathing monitor and I watched her in her nap sleeping like that and decided I was ok with it. It is something you'll have to think about and decide about to see what you feel comfortable doing as it isn't the recommended way to use it.

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    2. Rachel,

      Thanks for the fast reply! I thought it looked like your daughter was sleeping in a rock and play in that last picture. :) I may try her in it and see. We still have a little over 2 weeks before we hit the 3 month mark. So, it is entirely possible I'm rushing things with getting her into it in the first place.

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  4. My daughter is 11 weeks old and has been rolling onto her side in her crib while swaddled (in the woombie). I don't know if the Merlin Suit would work for her if she can already roll to her side?

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    1. Birgitte,
      The suit will mostly likely still work because it helps keep baby on her back. At 11 weeks, I'd be surprised if it didn't work, but you never know :)

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  5. You mention the sleep suit won't cure gas. Don't I know it! My 14 week old has had insanely bad sleep-stealing gas since 1 week in. Around 13 weeks it went from bad to worse and we now routinely have more than 8 wake-ups a night. Some, I'm sure, are overtiredness from too-fragmented sleep. 2 are to eat. But the rest seem to be from gas, as she wakes up screaming, has bubbles in her tummy, and can only be settled when I help her relieve the pressure. We've tried everything. Any suggestions? I feel like I can't get her sleep on track until we fix the gas. In fact the Sleepsuit makes gas worse I think because she can't lift her legs up to let any gas out. Oh, and I can't put her back in the swaddle (she busts out of the Miracle Blanket) or in a sleep sack (she won't settle), so even though the Sleepsuit makes things worse for her I don't know of a good alternative. We tried the Zip-a-dee-zip and it was almost as bad as a sleep sack.

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    1. katie,
      the best thing I know to help with gas is time, probiotics, adequate burping and bicycling legs and a change in diet if that is an issue (not likely). If you can't do any sort of swaddle and you feel like the sleep suit is making things worse, you really only have the choice to just drop the swaddle and use a sleep sack and have a tough transition time. I am hesitant to think that all the wakes ups are from gas. Many babies do wake up screaming very upset several times a night because they are overtired and/or don't know how to settle on their own and it could be misinterpreted as gas. Yes, it could be gas, I just wanted to throw this possibility out since most of the time is a sleep issue rather than gas issue, even if it appears to be that at first. Best of luck with things. You must be so exhausted from all those wake ups. I hope things settle soon!

      rachel

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  6. Hi Rachel,
    Thanks for the great website full of helpful information! My little guy (turning 4 months this week) is ready to be out of the swaddle (and I am ready for this transition to be done), but his arms still have a mind of their own. I'm hopeful the Merlin suit may be our answer (I have tried it for a few naps here and there when he was a little younger and have had mixed results), but I had a quick question. If we go the Merlin suit route, won't we ultimately have to transition him out of this as well, and have you found it to be difficult transition? If the suit works for him, do you have a suggested time frame we keep him in it before moving on towards using only a sleep sac (our ultimate goal). Thanks in advance, Amanda

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  7. Hi Rachel,
    Thank you for putting together such a great website! I wish I had found it with my first child. But now we are onto baby #2 and she is 12 weeks old. My question to you is a two parter. The first one is when and how do I transition her out of her Rock N Play by our bed and into her crib in her own room? We are going out of town next week for 4 nights and I was thinking of transitioning her once we get back. My fear is that in 2 weeks we are getting dangerously close to the 4 month regression (which snowballed us with our son and lasted for over a month until we did the cry it out). So should we do the transition now, or wait to see if she regresses? And how do we transition? RNP in her room for a couple nights? I also bought the Merlin's Magic Suit, so I can use it at any time now if you think that will help. She is swaddled and we use white noise when she sleeps.

    My second question pertains to night wakings. So she is a petty decent sleeper. She goes down mostly around 8:30-9 and then is up around 5 to feed and then up again for the day at 7:30. She has been doing her long sleep stretch from 9-5 since around 9 weeks old. But there are nights, probably 2-3 per week, when she'll wake up around 3:30 and I have been putting the pacifier in to help her go back to sleep until 5. I'm getting tired of doing this lately and am wondering what will help to eliminate this 3:30 waking. Should I let her cry it out for a bit? When we put her down to sleep for the night we let her cry and fuss for a couple of minutes before she puts herself to sleep. I'm just not ready to transition her to the crib only to be having to go in to resettle her multiple times during the night with the pacifier. It easier to just reach down and pop the paci in during the night when shes right next to me in the RNP. So I would love to hear your thoughts and suggestions. Thanks a bunch!

    Lindsay

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  8. Hi, I'm just curious if you could share how you transitioned your babe out of the sleep suit. My LO is 5 months and he's growing out of the Large size really quickyly. Any insight on how to do that?

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  9. Hi, I'm just curious if you could share how you transitioned your babe out of the sleep suit. My LO is 5 months and he's growing out of the Large size really quickyly. Any insight on how to do that?

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    1. Ashley,
      I just stopped using the sleep suit and moved to a wearable blanket. I didn't have much of a problem doing this with my daughter, al though every baby will vary. Some babies may take a few days for the transition. Just be sure to not introduce a sleep prop that will cause sleep issues in attemp to make the transition better. Hopefully there won't be any sleep struggles, though.

      Best, Rachel

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  10. I just bought one of these and it does have little cloth flaps over the zippers now. :)

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