8 Newborn Sleep Tips to Get Your Baby Napping Easily
Our sleep expert Laura from Peacey Sleep has prepared these tips on how to get your newest arrival into good napping habits. Read the article below for her top advice.
Number 8: Learn a good winding technique! There’s no point popping a gassy bub down for a bassinet sleep if they’ve still got those bubbles sloshing around in there. Help them burp.
Number 7: Warm the bassinet with a wheatie or hottie, or a breastmates gel pad. Then take it out and make sure it’s not too hot in there before putting bub in. A cool bed can startle a sleeping baby awake after being in your warm arms or car seat.
Number 6: Perfect the swaddle to hold down bub’s arms. Loose arms can make settling to sleep more difficult. Your baby is used to a tight womb so the apparent freedom of their arms earth-side can be unsettling. Swaddle safely: firm around arms, loose at hips, fabric clear from little faces, place on their backs on firm flat mattress.
Number 5: Let baby’s feet hit the mattress first! Instead of lowering flat or slightly head down. This causes them to startle as it mimics the sensation of falling. Feet, then rest of body, onto side if needed to resettle, then roll onto back once asleep again. BACK TO SLEEP is so important when aiming to reduce the risk of SIDS!
Number 4: White noise up loud. Between 50 and 60dB is good at triggering bubs calming reflex which helps them resettle. Download a decibel reader app on your phone and pop that in the cot to read the white noise level from 1-2metres away.
Number 3: Darkness is your friend. After about 3 weeks old a baby will often sleep better in a darkened space as they are less distracted by the fascinating world around them. Get some blackout blinds.
Number 2: Use a dummy to help soothe. Lots of new babies seek the sensation of sucking to calm down and regulate enough for sleep to come. If you know they are well feed it can help to offer a dummy. I always encourage newborn parents to use dummies if bub will take them.
Last but not least… Number 1: Contact nap! Let bub sleep on you. Either relax back and watch a show or get yourself a comfy baby carrier and crack on with the day. There are no bad habits. Just what you are comfortable with. The “4th trimester” is a real thing. Give baby time to adjust to this new stimulating world.
I’m a big fan of newborn sleep support and i’s my favourite age to work with. There’s often a lot going on in the early weeks and there is so much to consider when looking to gently improve your newborn’s sleep. I hope these tips have made sleep in your home just a touch easier.
Head to www.peaceysleep.co.nz/membership if you’re ready to take the guesswork out of your baby’s sleep from newborn to 4 years old.
Peacey Sleep Club: Super affordable, ongoing sleep support providing the right advice at just the right time.
Laura Peacey – infant and child sleep consultant
