One of the biggest challenges in Mom World is bringing home a newborn baby. The only thing harder than bringing home a newborn is bringing home a newborn when you already have other kids. Everyone’s schedule is shuffled around, and the routine you have worked so hard to establish is completely ruined. No matter what you try, there are a few months there at the beginning of a newborn’s life that are just hard. They are growing really fast, and so they need to eat and eat often. You (and maybe some other members of your family) are going to be up multiple times per night taking care of the little stinker. After a few weeks, you can begin to sleep train your infant. If you stay on track with these tips and instructions, your baby could be sleeping up to 6 hours in one night as a tiny little newborn! These tips can work for toddlers as well (for those of you who still have a toddler who wakes up during the night)!
When you sleep train, you are basically teaching your child to self soothe. Children who know how to self soothe know that it’s not time to eat or time to get up every time they wake up during the night. Self soothing helps your child learn to deal with their frustrations and stress. Not stress from lack of comfort or food, but baby stresses like a dropped pacifier or not being able to go to sleep.
- Establish a routine. A bath, reading books, and even a bedtime bottle or snack are all good ideas to add to your routine. Children are comfortable with predictability and repetition. When you complete your routine, your baby/toddler will know that its time for sleep.
- Don’t respond right away. If you child does cry out during nap time or during the night- don’t run into their room like the house is on fire. Give them some time to work out whatever the problem is on their own.
- Swaddling. Swaddling is a great way to help your baby sleep longer. One piece of advice on swaddling is to leave the arms outside the swaddle. Babies number one way to comfort themselves is to suck and they will suck on their own finger, hand, or a knuckle.
- Lay your child down awake. Make sure they are sleepy, but lay them down awake so that they know that they don’t have to be with you in order to sleep. A crib or pack n play is their sleep place, not always your arms.
- Give your child/baby a lovey. A comfort item can help your baby fall asleep. The most important thing to remember is to make sure your baby is old enough to sleep with the item. If they aren’t, just let them hold it while they fall asleep and then take it away.
Raising kids is hard work, and its even harder to do it on a lack of sleep. Mom’s all have different methods for survival, and they are all right!! There isn’t just one way to adjust to a newborn. Some mothers are really against certain methods- and others are pretty open about trying anything. For example, crying it out. A lot of mothers are uncomfortable with that. I was one of them. I had tried every other method and tip I read online with my son. Eventually I became brave enough to give it a try. My son cried himself to sleep for two nights- and he has been the best sleeper ever since that day. So find what works for you and your kids- and do it! Don’t let anyone tell you its wrong. Nobody is better for your kids than you!
About Brittany:
Brittany was born and raised in Alabama. She is a Wife and Mama of two sweet babies- her son John is two years old and her daughter Annie is ten months old. She is pursuing her degree in Home and Family Studies with an emphasis on Child Development from BYU. She is looking forward to writing for Birmingham Mommy in preparation for graduation in the Fall of 2016.
