Babywearing around the World – Germany

Today’s interview partner is Sarah Kaschel from Graben, near Augsburg in Bavaria/Germany. She has a 3 years old girl.

Nestwärme: How popular is babywearing in your country?
Sarah Kaschel: In Germany babywearing is well known, but it depends on the area, how good people are informed about babywearing and how they think about it.

Why did you want to become a babywearing consultant and which school did you visit?
I became a babywearing consultant because there was noone in my area. I’v been visiting Kangatraining lessons and asked my teacher (who owns a store) if she knows a babywearing consultant in my neighborhood. She said, why don´t you become a babywearing consultant yourself, we could need some help in the store. That’s how I came to participate in the basic class of the Trageschule Dresden.

How important is it for you and/or your clients to wear babys ergonomically?
Basically I´m allways interested in wearing babys ergonomically, and that´s one of the most reasons, why my clients contact me. But if they do already own a carrier, I first try optimizing it to everybodys satisfaction (ergonomic position for baby and parents).

How many parents are you „teaching“ per month?
I´m teaching around 10 parents per month.

What’s the thing, most parents ask or have trouble with concerning babywearing ?
Most of them are not sure, if it´s good for their baby to be carried, they are afraid if it’s ergonomic for the baby. And they think it´s too hard to learn how to use the wrap correctly.

How big is your « consultancy stash » ?
I´ve got about 18 different carriers (some in different sizes) and 19 wraps for the consultancies at the moment.

What’s your favourite wrap and/or carrier and what’s the favourite product chosen by your clients ?
My personally favourite wrap is Baie Slings “Ice” and my favourite carrier with my toddler girl is the Oscha Cairis. The most chosen carrier from my clients is the Limas Babycarrier.

Thank you for your insights, dear Sarah! 🙂

Have a look at her website!
picture: Sarah Kaschel, featured wrap by Kindsknopf

Natalie Clauss lives in “the wonderful city of Oldenburg, Germany. Her son Noah is 3 years old while she’s pregnant with her second child she’s expecting in July.

Nestwärme: How popular is babywearing in your country?
Natalie Clauss: Babywearing is getting more and more popular in Germany, especially in Oldenburg this trend is increasingly witnessed. Despite the fact that many people still deal with prejudices concerning babywearing we see a behavorial turnaround, society and mainly young mothers show a big interest in different ways of carrying their children.

Why did you want to become a babywearing consultant and which school did you visit?
From the very beginning of my thoughts as mother I considered babywearing as the main tool to transport my child. I was influenced by a wrap which I received a few years ago, a family tradition which brought me to the attitude I have today. Moreover my aunt already showed me the mutliple advantages of babywearing with her son. After getting my first child I observed the possibilities of babywearing by myself. Especially in context of living in a flat on the top floor a typical baby carriage never became a real option. After that I bought many different baby carriers because I wanted to carry my child close to my body. I tried a few of them but I saw that I had a lack of knowledge which I wanted to improve. So I started a basis apprenticeship at „Trageschule Hamburg“ but it became obvious that I needed further education skills. I accomplished many advanced training sessions and read some articels in journals simultaneously.

How important is it for you and/or your clients to wear babys ergonomically?
An ergonomic way of carrying children is very important for me. With the basic knowledge of my apprenticeship as occupational therapist I learned very much about early development of children and their anatomical conditions. Because of this fact I always explain how to carry children ergonomically and how essential I consider this. However, there are a few situations where this kind of carrying is not possible, for that reason I want to help finding individual solutions.

How many parents are you „teaching“ per month?
Generally spoken the quantity of my teaching lessons is very variable. I assume that I hold between 1-4 lessons per week. But I have to say that I also do cloth diapers consultations so it’s difficult to say a number of teaching lessons with babywearing per month.

What’s the thing, most parents ask or have trouble with concerning babywearing?
Many people want to experience and try different forms of baby carrying or want to learn how to tie a wrap. Baby carriers are getting more and more popular so the part of carrier consultations grows compared to sling consultations.

How big is your «consultancy stash»?
Presently I own more than 30 baby carriers and about 15 baby wraps and some ring-slings as well. I think that I have a big and diversified equipment to find quality solutions with every individual. Most likely I will also buy new types until the birth of my second child to broaden my horizon constantly.

What’s your favourite wrap and/or carrier and what’s the favourite product chosen by your clients?
I do not have a clear favorite wrap or carrier. Usually my preference is changing considering the individual and present situation I and my child have to deal with. At the very moment I like the „LueMai“ from Tragebaby and a wrap from Solnce. The parents in the consultations mostly choose a half-buckle carrier or a wrap. I always see that it is difficult to say before a consultation
that this special carrier will fit to this mother (or not). It’s exciting which one they will choose in the end after trying some different carriers or wraps.

Thank you, dear Natalie, for this in-depth interview!
Feel free to follow Natalie on her website or on Facebook.

“Hi, my name ist Elena. I’m a mother of a ten year old boy and two girls (5 years and 20 months old). With my husband and children I live in Oldenburg, a city quite close to the North Sea in Germany.”

Nestwärme: How popular is babywearing in your country?
Elena: I started babywearing ten years ago. At that time, I didn’t see any other parents doing it. That’s different today. At fairs or IKEA, I see many parents wearing their babies in slings or carriers. The diversity of babywearing products in this country is also getting bigger. This shows that the customers interest is growing enormously. But still, strollers are more common.

Why did you want to become a babywearing consultant and which school did you visit?
When I was expecting my third baby, my sister was also pregnant with her first child. I advised her to carry her baby, so she got herself a baby carrier. But then she could not cope with it. So I showed her how to wrap a front wrap cross carry. Suddenly her everyday life with her newborn was so much easier for her. It felt so good to enable her to bond with her son this way. Since then I knew: That’s what I want to do! Shortly thereafter I went to „Trageschule Hamburg“. After maternal leave I quit my job (early childhood educator), to teach as many parents as possible how to wrap their babies.

How important is it for you and/or your clients to wear babys ergonomically?
Some parents already carry their babies when they contact me. But they are unsure whether they are doing it “right“. At the beginning and during each consultation I explain the optimal hip postion in a carrier and the physical development of the baby. However, it is also important to me to tell the parents that their child benefits from their closeness, that their bond is strengthened … Babywearing has countless advantages. Their child won’t be damaged by not wearing it „properly“ sometimes. Young parents need appreciation, not uncertainty!

How many parents are you „teaching“ per month?
On average, I visit four families a month at their homes. In addition there are workshop customers or group consultations.

What’s the thing, most parents ask or have trouble with concerning babywearing?
The mostly asked question is how long you can carry your child in a row. Also up to which age this is possible. They are usually very reliefed when I tell them that it only depends on their child’s and their own well-being. There is no such thing as spoiling a baby!

How big is your « consultancy stash » ?
I have about thirty items in my consultancy stash. There are wraps of different lengths, ring slings and three to five of each type of carrier (for example, wrap conversions, onbuhimos and fullbuckles). The stash is constantly growing, but nowadays it’s hard to decide which carrier to buy. And of course it is a question of money. I let parents only test a few of them so as not to overwhelm them.

What’s your favourite wrap and/or carrier and what’s the favourite product chosen by your clients ?
As I said, I carried my two big children in a wrap, simply because I did not know anything else. That’s why it’s still my favorite, especially for long distances. I love the comfort of a neat wrap job. In the meantime, I also appreciate the advantages of fullbuckles with my almost two-year-old daughter in many situations. Customers often choose a halfbuckle carrier, because luckily many fathers want to babywear as well. Halfbuckles can easily be used by two people of different sizes.

On www.wickelakrack.de I post reviews of wraps and baby carriers. You can also find me, of course, on Facebook and Instagram, with many baby- or toddlerwearing pictures.

Tamara Beck