What is a Babywearing Consultation?

Babywearing Consultations are sessions with trained sling professionals. They are a fantastic opportunity for those getting started with wrapping to get personalised support, and for those looking to develop their skills to try different carries and techniques in a supportive environment. With the help of a Babywearing Consultant (also known as a Carrying Consultant), you will quickly be able to develop your confidence and address any areas you may have been struggling with.

I had a consultation with baby and dad at 5 months and it helped me get to know different options.
- Lola

Are Ring Slings not working for you? Your Consultant will help you master the tweaks you need to make it comfortable. Want to get to grips with the many carrying options of a long woven wrap? This is the perfect opportunity to try it out!

A consultation can also be a great option if you are pregnant and looking for advice on which carrier might work for you and your family.

In addition to providing feedback on fit and comfort, a consultation can be a great place to get tailored advice if you have additional or more complex needs. For example, parents with twins or those with premature babies, or parents with restricted movement may benefit from visiting a consultant.

An in-depth session with a trained Consultant is a great opportunity to hone your skills and build your confidence. A dedicated session will offer you the opportunity to ask questions, practice with support and find out what suits you. Each carrying experience is unique and a Consultant will be able to help you find the little tweaks and tricks to make your carrier the perfect fit for you and your little one.

I found it extremely useful to go over the options when pregnant as I had no idea about the vastness of what was available. It gave me time to research babywearing, watch videos and connect with the community.
- Hayley

Who are Consultants?

Professional Babywearing Consultants are trained to provide one to one advice and support centred around your babywearing needs. They are trained and insured in the art and science of baby carrying and are experts in how to use, fit and tailor slings to your family's specific needs.

Experienced Babywearing Consultant Jess, from Close and Calm, says, After years of experience fitting carriers, and helping people with wraps, a consultant can often spot a tweak or two, just by seeing you using your sling, which will make your carrying journey so much more comfortable. While virtual consultations were new to a lot of us, and we so miss seeing you in person - We have found that we can still see these tweaks over video, and most importantly, we get to spend time with you and your little one, often reassuring you that you're already doing a wonderful job.

Consultants have a passion for babywearing which, combined with their in-depth knowledge, means they have the skills and experience to guide you through your babywearing journey.

Consultants offer support through a range of sessions, consults can be held in one-to-one settings or with a group, and many consultants will offer virtual sessions via video call.

Learn more about the types of appointments consultants offer here.

We had several consultations along our wrapping way. The first one was a class that my husband took shortly before our daughter was born - we both found that essential to take our bearings in the vast world of babywearing - especially because it answered questions we didn't even know we should ask.
- Magdalene

We asked members of Clan Oscha, our online parenting community, how consultants helped them on their babywearing journey!

I attended a drop in whilst pregnant and then booked for an in-person consultation when my little one was around 3 weeks old.

I found it extremely useful to go over the options when pregnant as I had no idea about the vastness of what was available. It gave me time to research babywearing, watch videos and connect with the community.

The in-person consultation was useful to try out some different options to see what was most comfortable and practical for our family. It was nice to have someone to hold your hand a little and explain more about why carrying is beneficial and show you how to carry safely. I think that's vital for a new parent, to be taught best practice. Being informed and able to make a choice around how I was going to babywear felt really powerful. I'm not sure that I'd have had any confidence to babywear without consultation and I definitely wouldn't have continued if I felt uncomfortable, so the opportunity to learn how to tighten and adjust so it was comfy was really useful.

I think that a virtual consult would be beneficial as you still get that 1 on 1 interaction which is the key part of the consultation I feel.

I continued seeing consultants throughout our journey to help me to grow and keep wearing as he was growing, it's always been very positive.

Hayley

I had an online sling consultation a day before we had to go to the hospital for some tests. Due to COVID only one parent was allowed on the ward so I wanted to be able to use the stretchy wrap from the baby box to be able to comfort my baby as he does not take a dummy and had to fast (so boobie magic wasn't a solution). It helped tremendously as I did not understand the instructions that came with the stretchy wrap well. I was able to see how tight I might need to pull my pouch and could ask all questions I had. It was great and I would definitely recommend consultations if you struggle with the ways of wrapping.

Lisa

I found it extremely helpful for losing my fear of wrapping a newborn and later carrying on the back.

We had our first consultation when Noah was 3 weeks old because I bought a Cairis and was super anxious to hurt him or to suffocate him when he buried his face into my boobs. She showed us how to wrap when baby has only a few kilos, how his back and legs should be and then how to adjust when he'd reach 7 or 9 kilos. My husband liked the wrap more so she showed him how to wrap our newborn correctly.

Later I booked another consultation at 4 months so that she could show us how to transfer Noah to our backs in the Cairis and in a wrap (which totally stresses me out...of fear of letting him fall down) and how to wear him in a ring sling. I gained confidence. Although Noah still hates being on our backs, I will book another consultation when my very own Oscha Wrap arrives so I can loose my fear of feeling it wrapping being too complicated and stressful for me.

Tia

We had several consultations along our wrapping way. The first one was a class that my husband took shortly before our daughter was born - we both found that essential to take our bearings in the vast world of babywearing - especially because it answered questions we didn't even know we should ask.

We kept in touch with our consultant through emails, drop-ins and one-on-one consultations as our squish grew into the "I won't be carried facing inward" phase (learning hip carries was really a godsend then) and finally as she grew into toddlerhood and I needed to switch her to back carries. All in all, I am really grateful to have someone knowledgeable showing me the ropes and answering questions that pop up in my head as I go.

Magdalene

I had a consultation with baby and dad at 5 months and it helped me get to know different options: I got to try the ring sling which I found very handy. We could also bring our carriers and wraps and talk them through. It's so important to carry baby the right way, so I wanted to check if we did all right.

Lola

Oscha's Babywearing Consultants

Here at Oscha we have a number of babywearing consultants who are on hand to help you with your choice of carrier and to advise you on getting the best fit from your sling.

We are available Monday-Friday, 9am-5pm (GMT/BST) via email or by using the chat button in the corner of the screen.

We will be able to guide you through some aspects of starting out with your sling via email/messenger, but nothing can compare to the in-depth support a consultant can provide in a proper consultation.

How to find a Consultant?

We work with a number of Sling Libraries and Consultants who are set up to help you in person or via video call to get the best out of your carrying experience.

Find a Consultant to help you

Virtual consultations are a great option, especially with social distancing in place, as they allow you to get the personalised advice from a trained consultant from the comfort of your own home. There is a lot you can gain through a video session with a consultant, and being in your home environment will be calming for both you and your little one.

We encourage you to search to find one in your local area using the directories above, however, if you are struggling to find someone near to you then try popping a request in Clan Oscha and one of our community of international parents may be able to suggest someone in your region.