1. The age of your baby
While newborns can sleep between 16-18 hours per night, their sleeping patterns are not the same as adults. Young babies will have to wake up in the morning to eat. This is perfectly normal and healthy for their development! Smaller tummies require more frequent feedings. But, even though your baby will wake up, you can still lay the foundation for good sleep. You can also work towards longer sleep.
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Will I Ever Fall asleep Again? is a no-cry class for newborns. It contains tips and strategies that will help your baby (birth-12 months) learn healthy sleeping habits to ensure long, uninterrupted nights in the future. It’s still possible to help your baby if they are at the older end of this age range (10-12 week). This class can be a great way to get started on a healthy sleep foundation.
2. Get up and open your windows
Wake windows is the time that your child spends awake after a snooze.
The wake window begins when you get your baby out of her crib, and ends when she is back in her crib.
The quality and length of your baby’s sleep at night can be affected by how awake she is during the day. We will gradually increase the amount of awake time each month to help your baby have restorative naps, and successful nights.
3. Active awake time
What is your baby’s time spent awake? Babies are just like humans — moving our bodies and stimulating our brains helps us all sleep better.
You can fill your baby’s day with engaging and fun activities. You don’t need to make it complicated.
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4. Developmental Strides
Every age brings with it a new set of skills, abilities and knowledge. This is a time to be celebrated! Your baby’s brain may be learning new skills and her sleep could be affected. This is temporary sleep regression. Don’t panic. This is temporary if you have a plan.
Are you having trouble with a regression? If your baby is having trouble sleeping, don’t wait until this developmental leap or stride is over to start working with them. My classes meet your baby at her developmental stage. This means that you can begin a class right away to improve your little one’s sleep and nights. You will receive a plan that you can use if your sleep becomes disrupted by developmental steps or regressions.
5. Bedtime routine
A calming bedtime routine can help your baby fall asleep at night starting around 8 weeks old. It will signal your baby’s brain to go to sleep if it is done consistently.
It doesn’t have to be difficult! You can make it simple and efficient. It could include bath time, changing into jammies, feeding the baby, and reading stories. Find the best routine for you!
6. Comfort
Aren’t we all more comfortable when we sleep in our most comfy jammies? Your baby is no different! He also wants to be comfortable in his jammies.
Also, we need to ensure that your baby is at a comfortable temperature. Your thermostat should be set between 68 and 72 degrees according to guidelines, but these are only guidelines.
7. Sleep Environment
Baby sleep can be affected by the environment. You might not get a good night’s sleep if your environment is noisy and bright.
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8. Independently falling asleep
Let me ask you a simple question: Does your child fall asleep at night independently? It is important for your baby to fall asleep on their own at night.
Here’s the reason: As we go through our sleep cycles, we all wake up several times a night. We get up and check out our surroundings. If all is well, we go back into sleep. Imagine this: You fell asleep in your bed, and you wake up in the neighbor’s bed a few hours later. It’s alarming that you wake up in a completely different place from where you fell asleep. When we wake up in the morning, we expect that our surroundings will remain the same. The same goes for your baby.
9. Feedings
You want to go to sleep quickly and easily if your child wakes up in the middle of the night. Night feeding is the preferred method for many. For a while, a quick bottle or breastfeeding may suffice. Over time, however, a baby may become less hungry during the day due to more night feeds. This is known as “reverse cycling”. Babies learn to eat snacks during the day, and then rely on full meals for the night. Because these caloric requirements are not met during the day, your baby will continue to wake up throughout the night.
10. Consistency
Consistency is key! Consistency is key to a healthy night’s sleep. Inconsistency can also lead to a night of sleep deprivation.
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The 5–24 Month Collection is the perfect solution if your baby’s sleeping habits are erratic and you don’t know where to begin. It will provide a step-by-step, holistic plan that you can customize to help establish consistent sleep. This plan will address bedtime, night wakings and night weaning. It also covers naps. Sometimes all you need is a trusted expert to help you understand the basics.