Are you struggling with your baby’s sleep?

Chances are, this may have been a little issue at one time or another!

I have heard so many people say things like “Oh wave goodbye to your sleep” to expecting parents.

But do you know what? It doesn’t have to be this way!

You can absolutely have more sleep as a parent, it just takes a few magic little tricks here and there to make your parenting life a little easier than it was before.

Read below if you are ready for some much-needed rest!

Understand how your baby sleeps!

Before I really get into it, I wanted to share with you just how vital it is to block out that white noise when you are deciding how your baby will sleep. Each little one is entirely unique so it’s important to note that what works for one baby, may not work for another.

Just like when you are beginning to see your kiddos personality, you will most likely want to wait and see what she is like. This is no different from sleeping! Your little one will give you signs of what is working and what is not. Trust your special bond!

This is nothing to worry over! Especially at the start, you may feel rather unsure of yourself and this is perfectly normal, everybody feels this way! Play the field a little with my tips and tricks and I guarantee you, at least one of them will work for you!

It’s all in the routine

I have had so many parents ask me “Why does my baby even need a routine when they are so little”?

This is a very fair point and I think it’s best to stay clear of rigid routines with no wiggle room because every now and then life just happens!

With this said, a routine can be an incredible way of making your life easier, not to mention your baby’s!

With no understanding just yet of night and day, doing certain things at certain times can be a lovely way of teaching your baby what we are going to do and when!

Babys absolutely thrive when they feel they are in a comfortable environment. They enjoy knowing what’s going to happen now feeling safe about it.

With that said, sleeping will be easier when some of the baby’s day is planned a little ahead of time.

Make sure you do a few things with your baby at certain times of the day, linked to that time and you will be off to a wonderful start!

Dream feed

Very often after babies have been asleep for a while, Mothers come through for their own sleep and bam! Baby is awake!

Think of dream feeding as an extra bit of protection to make sure baby stays down at night.

A little soothing feed just before you drift off can save your night’s sleep!

Babywearing

At the end of the day wearing a baby while they sleep is entirely your choice!

I find its a lovely bonding experience which is best done with babies who are between the ages of 3 months and 7. It’s the best to trickle out babywearing after a certain age as you will want them to be able to sleep by themselves also!

I wouldn’t suggest wearing a newborn as their bodies aren’t developed enough just yet for it to be safe!

Personally, baby wearing can be so lovely and a chance for you to do the things you have to do while still having her close and safe!

Below, I have listed the most effective and foolproof carrier which even I have used throughout my job.

I loved this one as it is so easy to wear and even comes with a soft patch of material at the top to block out sunlight.

Find it here!

 

Bedtime routine

Try to stick to a routine which is consistent each night with a gradual wind down for your little one.

Before bedtime, when you spot the classic sleepy signs such as rubbing eyes/yawing and becoming generally less active don’t wait too long to put your little one down. This means then lead to your little one getting overtired and trust me it’ll be much harder to go to sleep then!

Try nights involving lovely routines such as bath, feed and sleep!

Keep the energy in the room as light and as comforting as you can.

Night time toys

Something I love to do for slightly older children is to decorate the bedroom ceiling with stars. I don’t usually encourage this with younger children as it may excite them a little too much for bedtime!

Stars are a wonderful alternative to nightlights and they come with the added educational bonus! Plus they are not plug in so they save money and lower your eco-footprint! Click here to see them!

 

 

Have you noticed lots of day time play toys are usually hard and often play songs and music? Just like your routine, nighttime toys should be the opposite to day time to give your babe a clear feeling that it is sleep time and not play time.

Toys which are soft and comforting work wonderfully and anything extra you can use to comfort is going to be all worth it!

I bought this beautiful Elephant pillow/ toy for a Nanny family years back and the little one can’t go down without it!

Beautiful soft Elephant pillow

 

 

Leaving your baby to sleep at night is made much more comforting when you know they are left in a beautiful, calming environment.

I have to give so much credit to this mobile, I absolutely love how it plays baby nature sounds, lullabies and even projects stars and the moon on the walls! You can use it as a night light when your kiddos get older too so you’ll be using it for years!

Check it out here

Napping by age

Napping is essential for your little one to develop in all milestones. It can be confusing to know roughly how much napping time babes should get so check out below where I have listed just that!

Birth to 6 weeks

It’s highly likely your baby will nap a lot of the day. The more the merrier at this stage and this is essential for growth and development. During this time your baby will be awake max 1 hour between a nap and then fall asleep and this process will continue. 

6 weeks to 3 months

Babies need roughly a 1.5/2 hour gap in between each nap. Say your kiddo woke up in the morning at 6 am they would then go back down around 9 am depending on when they wake up you continue with the same routine (still adding this time before bed)

3 months to 6 months

Your babe’s naps may now be getting a little shorter. They will now have roughly a 2-hour gap in-between naps!

6 months to 12 months

At this stage, babies need 2/3 hour gaps in between naps!

From 12 months and onwards, babies are beginning to need only 1 nap a day although if you notice your baby still needing 2 then follow her lead!

To help naps be even more wonderful, I often use this sleep sack to help baby’s in my care to feel safe and comfortable. Find it here

Hypnotherapy

Now, if I knew how to put a baby to sleep just by looking at them I think I’d be a millionaire by now!

Fortunately, there are a few very soft hypnotherapy tricks you can introduce to your little one’s bedtime routine which you can use to get more sleep yourself!

1- Eye fatigue technique 

It’s only natural when we are getting tired, our eyes get fatigued. Before a sleep, your baby’s eyes won’t be as wide and excited as they are during the day.  Use this trick to slowly lull and encourage your baby’s eyes to close and for them to drift off to sleep.

While cradling your baby, wait till their eyes focus on one thing and slowly tip your baby down a little into roughly 15 degrees. This is so simple but it works like magic!

By doing this motion, you are encouraging your baby’s eyes to come down and close!

2- Enchanting hand pass 

Once your baby’s eyes are closed, slowly pass your hand down their face without touching or if you do make sure its incredibly light.

This is another amazing trick that simply lulls and helps the eyes to stay closed!

3-Frequency following effect

With any movement you are doing to shush your baby to sleep it should always start off faster than it ends.

Whether you are bouncing, swaying or cradling make movements are the start a little faster and get slower and slower with them until stopping and your little one will be sound asleep.

This tip is almost like you are tapping your feet to some music until the song ends!

4- Equilibrium disorientation

Once their participants are under, many hypnotists lightly shake their heads which makes them go deeper.

Although under no circumstance am I suggesting to shake baby’s head!

Now, we can use the same sort of technique only baby friendly to help your little one have a better and deeper sleep!

Imagine rocking a ship or a cradle, that’s exactly what we want to do in this step.

All you have to do once your kiddo is out is just very lightly wiggle their butt. The movement from this ever so slightly shakes baby’s head and lulls them into a gorgeous and much more profound sleep!

 

As always I would just love to hear how you found this post and what worked for you!

If any of you do purchase an item that I have listed, I should let you know I will get a very small commission of this. This is always so much appreciated as it helps my small business grow and enables me to continue to provide amazing content that you’ll love!

Thank you so much for reading and I so look forward to connecting with you!

Love,

Nanny M x