In early parenthood, one of the major milestone events is sleep training the baby. However, it’s probably also one of the most stressful times being a parent.
Restless nights, unpredictable naps and a constant worry over whether you are doing it right are not uncommon for many parents to feel this way. And then comes the good news: the battle over sleep training doesn’t have to be won.
With the proper approach, you can help your baby develop healthy sleep habits without causing stress levels to increase for either of you. Here are ten key tips to make sleep training a much smoother, positive experience.
1. Understand Your Baby’s Sleep Needs
Knowing how much your baby really sleeps before you start sleep training is important. Newborns sleep 16-18 hours a day, and by six months, the baby needs around 14 hours.
Knowing what’s appropriate for your child’s age will help you create a realistic routine and avoid frustration.
2. Pick a Sleep Training Method That Will Work for Your Family
There is no technique for sleep training. These are a few commonly used techniques.
- Cry It Out (CIO): The baby learns self-soothing while being left to cry.
- Ferber Method: Increased time intervals for visiting the baby for reassurance.
- Chair Method: Gradually sit in a chair further and further away from the crib day by day or week by week
- Pick Up/Put Down: Comfort the baby again then lay them back to sleep. Decide on a method that works best for your style and ease of handling.
3. Set up a Bedtime Routine
An accustomed routine allows your baby to recognize when it is time for sleep. A soothing bedtime routine might be:
- Bath
- Massage
- Story
- Lights dimmed
- Soften music. It would be repeated, of course, in learning the bedtime cues.
4. Prepare Sleep Environment
In optimizing their sleep environment, babies can sleep more soundly and for longer periods. Their room is:
- Dark: Blackout drapes block out the light
- Quiet: White noise machines expel outside noise
- Cool: Keep the rooms at 68-72°F
- Comfortable: Firm crib mattress and breathable bedding
5. Honor Wake Windows and Sleep Cues
A sleep-deprived baby can’t sleep. A wake window, or the appropriate amount of time that your baby is permitted to be awake between naps, can help to avoid this. Most sleep cues are:
- Eye rubbing
- Yawning
- Irritability
- Blank staring Putting your baby down on time makes it easier for him or her to fall asleep.
6. Support for self-soothing
Babies need to learn to fall asleep independently. Instead of running to lift them at the first wail, give them several minutes to settle. When crying persists, use a gentle reassuring technique, such as patting their back, or soft talking.
7. Dealing with sleep associations
Things that put your baby to sleep, such as rocking, feeding, or the use of a pacifier, become the things your baby associates with sleep.
Not necessarily bad things in and of themselves, these become the problem when your baby is dependent upon them. Gradually eliminate associations that make it impossible for your baby to sleep alone.
8. Be consistent during sleep regressions
In most cases, the baby undergoes a sleep regression when 4 months, 6 months, and 9 months.
These periods are the periods where the baby’s sleep would be affected either negatively or positively but the constancy of your training will ensure the baby gets back to a steadier condition.
9. Be Patient and Flexible
Some babies require more time to adjust than others to sleep training. If a method does not seem to produce results in a week or two, it is time to change your approach.
Gentle persistence will yield the best long-term results.
10. Take Care of Yourself Too
Parental exhaustion is real, so be sure to take your rest, appeal for help from your partner, your family, or your friends whenever possible, and take off when possible. A better-rested parent will be in a position to be able to help the baby develop good habits of sleeping.
It doesn’t have to be a stressful event in sleep training. Knowing the sleep needs of your baby, consistency, and a method that works for your family is a great start in creating a positive and restful bedtime routine.
Every baby is unique, so patience and persistence would go a long way in helping your little one become a great sleeper.
All hope may not be lost, but in order to find a custom-made solution to be worked on with you, it may help to have a pediatric sleep consultant on board. With the proper professional assistance, then you and your baby will be able to catch some shut-eye together at last.
