How to help babies sleep.
By the time your baby gets to 5 months and beyond, she should be ready to start sleeping through the night. Of course if you are still spending sleepless nights dealing with your baby or your toddler, there are some things that you can do to help your baby go to sleep on her own and stay asleep through the night.
You see, many times babies just don’t actually know how to go to sleep on their own and stay asleep through the night, so it may take a bit of work on your part to get them to go to sleep on your own. So, here are a few things that you may want to try that have been proven successful with helping babies and toddlers to fall asleep on their own.
Try Singing to Your Baby
Singing to your baby is one thing that you may want to try if you want your baby to fall asleep on her own. Babies love the sound of their parents’ voice, and before you put her to bed, consider singing a few quiet tunes to your baby. The soothing tones of your voice will more than likely relax your baby enough so that she goes to sleep when you put her down to sleep on her own.
Put Something Familiar in the Crib
Of course the singing may not work for every baby, so another option to try that works for many babies and toddlers is to put something familiar in the crib. You can used a stuffed animal or a soft doll that is baby safe into your baby’s crib or bed when it is time for her to go to sleep. This way she will begin to connect the doll or toy with going to sleep.
Warm Baths are Soothing
A warm bath before bed can be very soothing to your baby or toddler as well. Consider trying a warm bath about an hour or so before bed each night. This gives your baby some time to relax, during and after the bath, which often will help her to go to sleep on her own.
Rocking or Massaging Your Baby
More than likely you’ve heard of rocking your baby at bedtime, but you may not be aware that massaging your baby works as well. The rocking motion often is soothing to young toddlers and babies, and rocking before bedtime is an excellent way that may get your child ready for bed. However, another less explored method that really can work is baby massage. Baby massage includes gently using your hands to rub, soothe, and massage your baby, and it is relaxing to both the baby and the parent. This is an excellent way to prepare your baby for bed so she’ll go to sleep on her own as well.
Don’t Be Afraid to Let Her Cry a Few Minutes
When it comes to putting your baby to bed on her own, it’s important that you are not afraid to let her cry for a few minutes. Crying is okay, and if you instantly go in and sooth her, she’ll get used to it and use it against you. Allowing her to cry for a few minutes is okay, and more than likely she’ll go to sleep within a few minutes once she realizes you’re not coming in to pick her up.
Make Sure Your Baby is Full
Making sure that your baby is full before bed is important as well. If your baby or toddler is hungry, more than likely she is not going to go to sleep on her own very well. Making sure that she is well fed can definitely help you make sure that she is satisfied and ready to go to sleep. So, make sure she has something to eat before you put her down to go to sleep at night.
Establish a Routine (eating, playing, snack, bath, rocking, bedtime)
Establishing a routine is important if you are going to help your toddler or baby fall asleep on her own each night. Your even should have a routine to it. Having feeding time, then a bit of playtime, bath time, perhaps a light snack, a bit of rocking or singing, and then bedtime. Having a routine like this would help you make sure that your baby gets into the routine of going to sleep each night at a certain time on her own.
Play Some Relaxing Music Quietly in Her Bedroom
Music is extremely relaxing to many people, and it can be relaxing to babies and toddlers as well. So, you may want to consider playing some relaxing music quietly in her bedroom at night when you put her down to sleep. Of course you’ll want to avoid playing it too loud and make sure that it is something quiet and relaxing as well. Most babies love music and when you put her in her crib and turn on the music, she’ll soon realize it’s time to go to sleep and start going to sleep on her own.
As you can see, there are a variety of different things that you can try to help your baby or toddler to go to sleep on her own. However, it’s important to note that not every method works for every baby, so you may have to do a bit of trial and error to figure out what works for your baby. No doubt you’ll eventually figure out which method works for your baby and you’ll finally get her to go to sleep on her own and more than likely she’ll sleep through the night as well. So, with these simple methods, hopefully both of you will be getting more sleep in no time at all.
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