This varies from family to family. Sometimes people hire a hammock after sleep difficulties and diagnosis of reflux/colic. Others pre-book during pregnancy as an alternative to a bassinet. For all pre-natal bookings I will have the hammock ready and available from your 38 week date and you can pick up and commence hire when you like - some will do this post hospital discharge and others will be nesting like mad and want to have it ready and assembled in the nursery with time to spare!

Basically the older a baby is the less likely he/she will respond to the hammock and break difficult sleep cycles (or no sleep cycles!). The exception to this is babies with reflux who can experience immediate results even post 12 weeks of age as they are more comfortable.

Ultimately, if you feel your baby needs the environment the hammock provides then it is worth a go. Especially if you have tried to implement the feed/play/sleep cycle without success. These are the “magic” words and the formula for all babies and parents. For newborns “play” is really just looking at someones face and trying to focus, rather than being over stimulated by play gyms and a group of clucking adults for more than a few minutes. Bathtime is the other beautiful playtime of the day, and also looking at leaves moving on trees while out on a walk. Babies need to sleep. Its often hard for adoring adults to allow them to do this properly in their first few weeks, which can lead to unhelpful patterns and a cranky and overstimulated baby. Adoring adults also love to cuddle a baby to sleep, there are few nicer things in life than having a newborn doze off in your arms. Doing this every sleep cycle though does not teach them to settle themselves.