Once many woman are pregnant they suffer
from restless nights and this is nature’s way to get them ready for late night feedings and diaper changes. Aside from babies that are colic you will see that a new baby sleeps most of the time. They are little eating sleeping pooping machines growing bigger every day.
I don’t feel every baby is able to be on a strict schedule before the age 6 weeks but you can work towards a schedule during this time. Be mindful how long your baby sleeps and what seems to be the time of day she/he sleeps the longest? Do they seem to wake at the same time every morning? And go down for bed time every night? Being aware of your child’s sleep habits can help you later when it is time to get them on a strict schedule. Your sleep schedule definitely affects your babies sleep schedule. If you sleep in until 11 and go to bed at 1 am your child will have that type of schedule. Try to keep that in mind in the long run. When it’s time for your child to get ready for school in four years will they do well with that type of schedule? No probably not. So lets get them geared towards a more suitable schedule. It takes time and patience and some children are harder than others especially children that have developmental issues.
When your child is 6 weeks old chances are they are ready to be enrolled in daycare. Most parents in this day and age do work and therefore bring their child to a licensed child care program. Most programs are required to have a schedule in place so ask your caregiver what the sleep schedule is. Two weeks before they begin start trying g to get your child on that same schedule. It will benefit your child and you in the long run. You then can try to keep that schedule through the week and your child will thank you.
Sleep is essential. It is not a choice and should not ever be given as a choice to your young child. You as the parent need to realize that naps are brain growing time. According to the sleep organization these are the best recommendations by age .
Newborns (0-3 months)
Recommended: 14-17 hours
May be appropriate:
11-13 hours (Not less than 11 hours)18-19 hours (Not more than 19 hours)
Infants (4-11 months)
Recommended: 12-15 hours
May be appropriate:
10-11 hours (Not less than 10 hours)16-18 hours (Not more than 18 hours)
Toddlers (1-2 years)
Recommended: 11-14 hours
May be appropriate:
9-10 hours (Not less than 9 hours)15-16 hours (Not more than 16 hours)
Preschoolers (3-5 years)
Recommended: 10-13 hours
May be appropriate:
8-9 hours (Not less than 8 hours)14 hours (Not more than 14 hours)
My best recommendation for a good schedule to follow is this:
6-7:00 am wake up
9-9:30 half an hour to a full hour nap
11:30-12 two to three hour nap
4-4:30 half hour to an hour nap
7-7:30 Bed time
Work toward this schedule and with each day you
will see your child’s schedule become there new sleep pattern. This enable your child to have a healthy sleep pattern that helps them become happy healthy individuals. Children that do not sleep well have trouble with behavior, diet, and health. a good sleep schedule can transform a child that is fussy. Sometimes a child doesn’t know their body needs sleep and many children do not want to nap. As I mentioned before it is necessary.
I also want to talk about how and where your baby sleeps and how they get to sleep. A baby should learn early on to soothe themselves to sleep. I don’t advise the rocking to sleep method because your child will never learn how to fall asleep in their own and yes this is a skill you need to help your child learn if they do not already have the skill. Some babies are just born with it. You feed them and they give a big yawn, you know they are tired so you swaddle them up and place them in bed to drift off . Perfect! Not every baby is so good to us. Some babies eat fall asleep and just when we think they are fast asleep we put them in bed and bam they wake up crying as soon as we put them down. Yikes what to do now? There are books about sleep training and you can read more about that on your own. I recommend avoiding constant motion like in swings when it is time for nap. You should never rely on a baby swing for nap time. They are great to have for entertainment and soothing the baby but not for sleep purposes. It simply is not safe. I also suggest never rely on your baby sleeping in car seats to keep baby asleep well. I have had parents tell me that they put their baby to bed in their infant car seat and place it in a crib . What?!?!? Yes they were desperate because chances are they found the baby wouldn’t sleep any other way. And I’m pretty certain the baby will want to sleep like this and later on you will need to get that baby adjusted to laying flat . Why should you put yourself and the baby through that? Just simply start training your baby now to sleep flat and in order to get ahead. Most babies want to be snugged tight because that is how their entire life has been. Snug!! My best advice is swaddling. I love the thin large swaddling blankets so start practicing on those baby dolls so you can be one an expert swaddler and you will thank me after you see how much your little love enjoys it.
There are many nights your baby will be fussy and many days they may not seem so tired for nap but I assure you that they meed the sleep and their brain needs the quiet time alone in bed even if they do not fall right asleep. Stay on schedule because building this habit with your child will help you so much in the long run. You are teaching your child behaviors they will carry through their lifetime.
Remember from the moment we bring them into this world they are learning so look at every moment as a teaching learning experience even for you as the parent .
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