How to Help Your Baby Sleep Longer Stretches at Night
Many parents struggle to get their infant to sleep longer at night, or to stay asleep once they’ve drifted off. Short naps may mean a lack of sleep for the whole family. With consistent routines and tips, however, you can help your baby sleep longer stretches at night.
How to help a baby sleep is something that’s been debated by parents and experts alike. Research indicates that there are various strategies and techniques that can help baby sleep more peacefully.
First and foremost, establishing a consistent routine around bedtime can lead to a better night’s sleep for baby. That means, for instance, putting your baby to sleep at roughly the same time every night, and following a nightly routine leading up to the bedtime.
Consistent Bed Time Helps Baby Sleep
When establishing a bedtime routine, it’s important to choose activities that are calming for your baby. Good ideas are a warm bath, reading a book, lullabies and a quiet feeding. Trying to create a dark, quiet environment also helps the baby enter into a comfortable sleep state.
Since newborns tend to sleep more during the day, if needed the parents can wake them up in the evening so that the baby is less likely to stay awake late. For older babies, limiting stimulation a few hours before bed can help them fall asleep faster and sleep more deeply.
Regulate Naps During The Day
Getting the right amount of daytime naps is important, too. Too little or too much naps during may mean shorter night times sleep. Estimating the right balance of day and night sleep is important to develop a beneficial sleep cycle.
Naps should be shorter than thirty minutes, and babies should be awake for a minimum of two hours before the next nap. Introducing a quiet and peaceful environment around the house can help your baby relax, while avoiding stimulating activities during nap time.
If your baby is especially fussy during the evening hours, it may be helpful to adjust the sleeping cycle ahead of time. Parents should experiment with the nap schedules, so the baby will be sleepier during the evening.
Ways to Naturally Soothe Baby to Sleep
There are natural methods to help your baby sleep more peacefully. Natural remedies such as essential oils, massage, and white noise generators help soothe baby, and create a ritual or routine to the bedtime process.
- Essential Oils – lavender, chamomile, and cedarwood smell pleasant and act as natural sedatives, helping your baby sleep more deeply.
- Massage – a light massage to the baby’s skin or pressure points can help the baby relax and fall asleep more quickly.
- White Noise Generators – a soft sound like a fan, a vacuum cleaner or a white noise machine can help drown out environmental noise and encourage baby to sleep.
Conclusion
Proper routine and relaxation methods can help your baby sleep longer, so both baby and parents can get the rest they need. With a consistent approach and natural methods, it’s possible to help your baby drift off to a peaceful sleep.