Baby Sleep Secrets You May Not Have Heard About

Have you brought home a little nocturnal critter from the hospital? Following a few simple and surprising tricks can help to keep everyone rested, rational and sleeping through the night as soon as possible.

TOO TIRED TO SLEEP
For the first 6 months of life, babies need and average of 13 hours of sleep each night. Don’t be fooled into thinking that skipping a nap will mean a longer and better night’s sleep. It could mean just the opposite. An over-tired baby can have a difficult time settling down at night. What’s worse, an exhausted infant often suffers from a more fitful sleep, with more waking throughout the night, causing a pattern that’s hard to break and pretty unpleasant to manage. So keep to those daily naps-you’ll all be happier for it.

STAY ON TRACK
By engaging with baby in the middle of the night, you are actually telling him that it’s playtime, not sleep time. Instead, let your actions speak the language of sleep during those wee hours. Keep the lights low, avoid eye contact, say little, keep him warm on the changing table with a blanket, and make sure it’s all business. This way, everyone gets back to bed as soon as possible and your baby learns the difference between night and day.

DADDY GETS A TURN
When you are weaning your baby off of late night breastfeeding, send daddy in for a turn at diaper changes. This way, your baby won’t see or smell mommy and think it’s time to eat. It won’t happen right off, but eventually your baby will realize that his dad isn’t equipped for feeding and won’t bother to wake in the night. Having a turn with the night time visits will give dad a chance to step into your slippers.

MAKE SOME NOISE!
As new mommies we often try to keep the household as quiet as possible. What we forget is that baby is already used to plenty of noise from being inside your belly for 40 weeks. All that heart beating, tummy rumbling and water squishing makes for a pretty noisy ride! So don’t shy away from the regular household activities when baby arrives. Plus, if your little one becomes accustomed to sleeping in a perfectly quiet house, you’ll be tiptoeing around until she turns 18!

WAKE A SLEEPING BABY?
Once your baby develops a regular sleep pattern and you‘re ready to try to lengthen your nighttime snooze, introduce a top-off feeding. Gently wake your baby before you go to bed, around 10 or 11 pm. This last feeding is likely to keep him satisfied during your actual sleeping hours.

COOLER IS BETTER
No matter what you think, don’t overdress your baby for bedtime and don’t turn up the heat either. The ideal sleeping temperature for a sleeping baby is between 65 and 69 degrees. If you overheat the room, you risk unnecessary waking and potential danger of SIDS. If covers are necessary, try a sleeping sack.

Don’t get attached to any one method of getting your baby to sleep. It’s inevitable that just as soon as everyone finds a happy pattern, he will begin teething or catch a cold, and then it’s try, try again!