Sleep is a paramount factor for children’s growth and mental development. New parents always find it is a herculean task to put their baby off to sleep. You need to have immense patience and skill to put your child sleep, especially when your child is a toddler. The early days of a newborn are a new experience for parents. Sleep techniques will not yield any result in the first six months. You do not expect anything during this period, and nothing will work out even if you put to practice some smart sleep techniques. After six months time, your child will gradually start showing signs of acceptance, and you might be able to teach your child to sleep at night easily.
In the early stage of a child, they have an unpredictable behavior pattern, and you will find it difficult to manage. Teaching your infant how to sleep will be tough, but you can develop a pattern of the sleeping method, which can give a signal to your child, it is time to sleep. In this article, we will find out the systematic way, how you can develop right sleeping patterns for your baby.
Here are some of the best tips to help your child sleep.
As discussed earlier, for a baby everything will be a new world and new experience since birth. It might take a few days time to adjust to the new situation. While in the womb, they fed through the umbilicus cord. Outside it is an entirely different thing. When that happens, they cannot differentiate between day and night. They sleep as they like and wake up at their choice, not realizing that they are giving a tough time for their parents.
Start the sleep technique session tomorrow itself. To start with, keep the cradle or crib near the window so that the morning light can wake up your child. When it becomes dark, dim the lights in the room and put your baby to sleep. As you do that a few days, the baby will realize that when it is light, it is time to get up. When it is dark, it is time to go to sleep.
It is the most important step. Unless the start is good, the ending will not be sweet.
It is vital that you practice what you started regularly. It is unfortunate that many parents tend to neglect or not follow the routines by citing excuses. If you want your baby to sleep well and get used to the proper sleeping patterns, then it is essential that you keep continuing with the steps. During the mornings, play some music or let your baby hear the chirping of the birds and the hustle and bustle of the road.
In the evenings, try to go gentle on the music, close the shades, and put on some mild music. Music is a very powerful mode of communication. Generally, it helps the baby to sleep. However, you can play medium to a quiet music of baby songs to wake up your child.
Putting your child to sleep when your baby is awake in the evening or night is the toughest part of the session. You need to prepare to hear the little one crying for some time. Babies generally do not like force sleeping. When they like to enjoy the fruits of nature, they stay awake. However, as a parent, you need to have your goal of putting your baby to sleep ready before it is too late to sleep.
Put the baby on the shoulder and talk smoothly. Gently start communicating with your child that you are doing it for their benefit. Your child may resist and through all tantrums. Babies tend to cry for 10-15 minutes. If it continues unabated, brace yourself. Use a pacifier when needed and make sure that you keep an eye on the child until he/she fall to sleep.
Keeping the rhythm is imperative. You can certainly find some improvement on the 4th day of training. Your baby will now realize that crying out is not helpful, and they will not whine or complain much. They may try to act tough initially, but when you put your child on the shoulders, your baby can understand it is time to sleep.
By the 5th day, you can find visible changes, and it is an indication that your child is settling for the changes. It is fine that you check on your baby every 20 minutes. Checking upon your child is a good thing. It is not necessary that you have to do it each time, perhaps your partner or parents can be of helpful here. During the first three months, a baby needs feeding every two hours.
Once that period gets over, there is no requirement for frequent feeding unless they are underweight. When putting your child to sleep, it is not necessary to hymn, but you must keep the lights dim and keep your baby on the shoulder and do light patting. If you are sure that the baby is about to sleep, then keep the child in the crib and eventually on the bed.
You are inching close to the final stage of sleep practice. You can see that the baby adapts your techniques and respond positively by having a sound sleep. Though you may want to keep a check on your child once in while the need to keep visiting the room is not necessary. Have confidence and turn down the monitor to hear when your baby needs you. You might not want to rush in and ruin your efforts by visiting the child now and then.
Not to mention, you also need some well-deserved rest.
It is time to relax. You have finally succeeded in putting your child to sleep; you might as well go to sleep after those critical 6 days. Reward yourself or spend quality time with your partner over a cup of coffee or ice cream.
However, do not keep high hopes on these tips. These pointers may not work in 7 days with all children, as each child is unique and their own way. Even though, there is no need to panic. Some might cooperate with you, and if they cooperate well, that is certainly good. Nevertheless, there are remote chances that your little one might not want to go your way, in that case, accommodate their behavior. However, you should never lose your hope.
Whatever be the odd situation, never give up hope and continue practicing the method. Eventually with time, the child will follow your way. Keep on practicing is imperative and it is not necessary that you and your infant can master the art in a few days time. Sometimes it might even take less than 7 days, you never know. Bringing up a child in this world is not an easy task, welcome to the first step by teaching your baby to sleep. Persistent efforts can produce satisfactory results. So be patient, tactful and continue your efforts.