An Honest Take: Our Baby Hated the Doona!

Everywhere you look on social media, you see moms out and about with their baby in the Doona. Before we even conceived, I knew I wanted the Doona! As soon as the Nordstrom sale hit, we snagged one on sale. (Which pro tip: if you register with Amazon, the Doona is eligible for their completion discount so you don’t have to be a Nordstrom card holder and wait for the sale.)

Within 3 weeks postpartum, we noticed our daughter HATED the Doona.  She would not settle down no matter what we did. It made for some interesting car rides! Our daughter is in the taller end of the spectrum, she was born in the 78th percentile and has remained around the 75 – 85th percentile at every weigh in.  At first we thought it was her height, and the need to keep the infant inserted because of her weight, causing her discomfort.  I was frantically Googling for reviews like this one, to see if other moms had experienced this discomfort in the Doona.  I found nothing!

Around 6 weeks, we were desperate for a solution. We noticed that she was getting HOT in the Doona.  Her back was constantly sweaty and causing her discomfort.  She was getting sweaty just in her sleeper pajamas with no blanket on, in a car set to 72 degrees! It became apparent that keeping her comfortable was nearly impossible. When we stepped out of the car to winter in Colorado, she needed a blanket on but as soon as we stepped back inside, we needed to remove it immediately and this cycle prevented any settling.  

At my postpartum group the following week (7 weeks postpartum), most of the moms had the Nuna Pipa or Uppababy Mesa.  I was looking at a baby in the Nuna Pipa and immediately noticed he had significantly more head room as their head insert is quite different than the Doona. What I never realized is that the Doona head insert is not meant to come out, ever.  Upon researching, the safety tests of the Doona have only been performed with the head insert installed and they recommend leaving it in after your baby hits 11 lbs and the infant insert is removed.  This is really misleading compared to what you see on social media.  Also, the infant in the Pipa looked far more reclined in his car seat, versus my daughter who looked very vertical.  Now I don’t have any idea how you’d measure the degree at which they’re sitting, but I strongly believe the Doona is at a different angle than other infant seats.  Maybe due to the stroller nature?  

Ultimately the final straw in deciding to buy a different infant seat was after the postpartum group, I had to trek through the parking lot which was covered in snow.  Because the Doona has no basket to carry your items, I was already a pack mule with all our gear.  Carrying the stroller / seat was a non-starter.  So I pushed it through the parking lot with wheels down.  The second I put the seat in the car, the snow started melting all over my seats.  I had never considered this design flaw.  However if you live somewhere with snow, I would highly encourage you to think about how you plan to use the Doona and if you have another option for snowy days.

We ended up biting the bullet and switching to the Nuna Pipa.  And it is a night and day difference for us.  She still doesn’t like being restrained, so she fusses for 5 minutes then calms down looking out the window or sleeping.  This NEVER happened in the Doona. 

Despite the sweaty baby and snow on the wheels, I overall found the Doona just did not fit our lifestyle.  I think it’s a great car seat if you’re headed to a friend’s house or going out to dinner.  If you don’t have to carry a water bottle, diaper bag, blanket, baby carrier, etc. it’s a great option.  If you’re shopping, the Doona just doesn’t work as there is nowhere to put items.  I went to Target and instantly felt regret as I was stacking sleepers on the handlebars and trying to push at a steady rhythm! 

Overall if you’re looking at the Doona, you might want to wait and see if your baby likes it first.  You can demo it in the store if you live near a Nordstrom.  I know this is complicated because you need your infant seat to leave the hospital, and not a realistic option for everyone.  But if you have the means to buy an Evenflo or Graco, or a Nuna or Uppababy on sale, you might want to start there and then evaluate if you want the Doona.  I personally LOVE having the Nuna Pipa and popping it on our Uppababy Cruz.  It’s really easy to do, takes no time, and for most situations is so nice to have.  The only time we’ve had issues with it is at restaurants – the stroller is too bulky (and we’re in the Cruz not even the Vista!) between tables whereas the Doona does fit nicely.  With our daughter, pushing her is less likely to wake her than carrying the seat, so wheels either with the Doona or the Uppababy Cruz add on are important.  

Your baby may love the Doona! It wouldn’t be such a popular option if babies didn’t like it.  I never expected our baby would hate it so much, at least at this stage.  But it happened to us! Hopefully this helps those of you in deciding which seat to purchase, or not feeling alone if your baby doesn’t like the Doona.