Parenting Tips for Helping Baby Sleep Through the Night
If there is one thing that all new parents have in common, it is sleep deprivation. Some babies get up every two hours, some every four, and for those really lucky parents, some babies stay up all night long. Whatever the case is, parents don’t get much sleep when a baby comes into the household. But when baby starts reaching about three months of age, they should settle down and start to sleep through the night. There are a few things that parents can do to help speed this process along.
The first is to start a sleep routine. This should start about half an hour before baby’s bedtime and end with them in their crib or bassinet, about to drift off to sleep but not actually sleeping. There are generally four “B’s” involved in a baby’s sleep routine. These are: bath, bottle, book, and bed.
Start by giving baby a nice relaxing bath, perhaps with one of the many calming lavender baby soaps that are on the market today. Once they are all snuggly, give them a bottle. This can help soothe any crankiness that resulted from the bath and it will also give them a full tummy. Then sit quietly together and read a short book. Even at this young age, babies love being read to and the sound of your voice will reassure and relax them. Then place them down in bed while they are starting to fall asleep. Placing them in bed before they fall asleep will allow them to learn how to fall asleep on their own so should they wake during the night, they have a better chance of falling back asleep on their own.
Make sure the room they are laid down in is dark and quiet. This will tell baby that it’s time to sleep. A little bit of noise is okay. If the house is kept completely silent because baby’s sleeping, it will not only be a huge inconvenience for the parents but it will also make him become an extremely light sleeper well into his adult years.
Written By: Kate Beswick
Technorati Tags: baby_soaps, new_parents, lucky_parents, light_sleeper, snuggly, sleep, bedtime, lavender, babies, household, baby
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