10 Newborn Sleep Strategies to Help Everyone Sleep Through the Night
How many times have you typed “when will my baby sleep through the night” into the google search bar?
I honestly lost track of it. It was a common search topic for me when I first brought my daughter home from the hospital. This was also before I became educated and certified as a pediatric sleep consultant.
If you found my little corner here on the internet after searching for this yourself then WELCOME! I share with you 10 newborn sleep strategies to help everyone sleep through the night…kind of. Let me just be honest here. If you have a newborn then they will most likely not sleep through the night in the first few weeks and months. But you can set them up for sleep success by implementing some of the things mentioned below.
“Being a mom has made me so tired. And so happy.”
-Tina Fey
10 NEWBORN SLEEP STRATEGIES TO HELP EVERYONE SLEEP THROUGH THE NIGHT
HAVE A CONSISTENT NAP TIME AND BEDTIME ROUTINE:
Establishing a consistent nap time and bedtime routine has proven to help your newborn fall asleep faster and stay asleep longer. A nap routine can be as simple as a possible feed, diaper change, placed in a swaddle, and cuddling or rocking to sleep. Yes, okay to place your newborn down asleep but just wait till they are in deep sleep before transferring. A bedtime routine can be a little longer and includes a bath or wipe down, feeding, books, prayers, singing, cuddles, massage, rocking, and being put down drowsy or asleep. It does not matter what the routine contains as long as you have one and implement it consistently.
PREVENT OVER-TIREDNESS:
You will want to keep your awake windows short and sweet in order to prevent your baby from getting overtired. This is the time your baby is awake between naps or the time they sleep I should say since they sleep a lot in the first few months. Keep awake windows about 30-60 minutes long in the first month, 60-75 minutes during weeks 4-8, and 90-120 minutes during the 3rd and 4th months. After 4 months, awake windows should be at least 2 hours long with the exception of the first one…sometimes. Signs of over-tiredness include increased fussiness, arching back, and harder to calm down. Putting an overtired baby to sleep is one of the hardest things so be sure to follow those short and sweet awake windows for your baby throughout the day.
DO NOT MISS DAYTIME FEEDS:
You will want to feed your baby on a consistent schedule during the day. This may mean waking your baby up from their glamorous 2-hour nap. Feeding them every 1.5-2.5 hours in the first 3 months is recommended. As they get closer to 4 months you can feed them every 3 hours if that is what your baby needs. There may be times your baby is going through a growth spurt or during the witching hours when you may need to cluster feed and that is OKAY! Do the cluster feeding! If you want to feed on demand, that is A-OKAY as well as long as you make sure your baby snacking throughout the day isnt leading to multiple night wakings.
TRACK THEIR SLEEP AND FEEDS:
I recommend tracking everything for your baby in those first few months or if possible at least for the first year. Use a free app on your phone or the traditional pen and paper route. You will want to record everything that happens in the 24-hour period because you will forget (trust me).
ACTIVITY DURING AWAKE TIME:
Keep your little one active during their awake windows. The windows will be super short in the beginning but do what you can to keep them active by practicing tummy time or showing them things around your house. Tummy time can be done on your chest or on the floor. If you have a baby that spits up a lot then try doing tummy time for a few minutes before you offer them their feeding.
6. SOOTHE YOUR BABY AS NEEDED:
Swaddle your baby to keep snug, safe, and comfortable. This replicates the womb and helps soothe them. Use motions such as rocking, swaying, or swinging to help calm them down as needed. Use a pacifier if that is something you are okay with introducing and if your baby takes it well.
7. PLACE BABY DOWN ASLEEP, THEN DROWSY, AND THEN WORK UP TO AWAKE:
It is OKAY to place your baby down asleep. By the third month, you can start placing your baby down drowsy and work up to placing them down awake. The drowsy state does not work well for all babies so just be mindful of that. If your baby does not do well with being placed drowsy then go directly to placing them down awake.
8. EXPOSURE TO DAYLIGHT DURING AWAKE WINDOWS:
Newborns do not know the difference between daytime and nighttime. By exposing them to as much daylight will help signal when its time to be up and by creating a dark space at night will help them know they sleep during the night. By 2 months, their day-night confusion will get better their body will naturally start producing melatonin in the evening hours.
9. LIMIT STIMULATION BEFORE BEDTIME:
Limiting loud noises, bright screens and rooms, and large crowds is recommended to help keep your baby calm, cool, and collected.
10. CREATE A COMFORTABLE SLEEP SPACE:
Your little one will be sleeping in footed PJs and a swaddle. The swaddle acts like a blanket for them but it is important that their room is not too cold or too hot. Apply the goldilocks principle by making it “just right”. You will also want to keep it dark (for some naps before 2 months and most if not all naps after 2 months) and use a sound machine for naps and throughout the night. Try to keep a fan on as well if you have one in the room your baby sleeps in. In the first 2 months, your baby can sleep wherever you like them to as long as it is safe. Keep it safe by making sure they are sleeping on a flat surface with nothing else around them. After 2 months, I would recommend practicing more naps in the space where they sleep at night. By 3-4 months almost all of their naps should be in their sleep space in the dark with the sound machine on.
Still, confused about your baby’s sleep patterns?
Do not know what else you can do to improve their (and your) sleep?
Let me help. I have worked with hundreds of families to get them from being overwhelmed to thriving in parenthood and I can do this for you too.
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