Oh the joys of having a little baby: endless cuddles, adorable faces and cooing, and, oh yeah, the horrible night’s sleep. It’s one of the worst things about having a baby. I know first hand how exhausting it can be to have a baby that doesn’t sleep well. My son was the worst sleeper until he was about 7 months old. There were times that I would just sit and cry in the middle of the night as I nursed him or tried to get him to go back to sleep. I remember calling my mom one night and having a complete meltdown. I was so incredibly exhausted because I hardly had any sleep. I felt like a zombie. I got so desperate that I literally tried everything to help my son sleep. Some worked, and some didn’t, but even the ones that didn’t work for my son I have known to work for other babies. If you’re desperate just like I was, try some of these 10 different ways to help them sleep better without leaving them in their room to cry it out. You may find that some of these actually do work giving you a few extra zzz’s.
1. Create A Routine
Baby’s and children do the best when they have a routine that they know and are familiar with. When a baby has the same routine to go through before bed, they will begin to understand that after doing it every night, it’s time for bed. It could be anything from a bedtime book, to a gentle massage, or a soothing bath. You can combine more than one, as well. Just, do whatever your baby likes and responds best to.
2. Give Them Time To Wind Down
If you think about it, as adults we like to have time to wind down and relax a little before we go to bed. Would it seem very strange to think that our babies would want the same thing from them, as well? If they’re playing, giggling, crawling around a bunch before they go to bed, of course they’re going to have a hard time relaxing in order to fall asleep. You could sing soothing songs to them, read bedtime books, give them a bath, etc. Anything that will help them to wind down instead of get them more excited will work best.
3. Give Them A “Lovey”
As a child, when you sleep in a room all by yourself, in the dark, things can get a bit lonely and maybe even scary. That’s when a child needs some sort of “lovey” like a special blanket or stuffed animal that they sleep with. Up until my son was about 6 months old he was the worst sleeper. I decided to give him a special blanket to sleep with. For the first few days while he was getting used to it, I kept it close to him throughout the day. While he was nursing I put it near his face and my breasts, while in the car it was in his carseat with him, etc. That way, when I gave it to him at night he would be familiar with it and feel comfortable having it around. This really helped him to sleep better and thank goodness, because I needed my sleep!
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Mary Mulroney
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