How to help an Infant sleep
Most babies, when they are newly born, they always have bad sleeping habits. It is still stressful for the mum, especially if the mum went through the caesarean section or had a stitched after birth. Having sleepless nights for this mom is such a nightmare.
Most children between the age of 1-3 months tend to have colic (colic is an abdominal pain). People tend to believe that colic is caused by breastmilk, though it is not scientifically proven. Babies with colic always have a specific trend. More about colic to be found in this site ().
Helping the baby sleep at night is always a dream to any mother. Some does and don’ts that can improve the baby sleeping time, and also maintain a good sleeping habit. Usually, a kid should sleep a minimum of 14hours and a maximum of 18hours a day. We don’t expect the baby to sleep all night but at least have longer sleeping hours at night.
- Use the 5s
The 5s method is a standard and primary method used by most mums. Most of the paediatrician around the world recommend this 5s method as the best to help babies sleep.
The first ‘s’ stands for swaddling. Swaddling is where you rap the baby’s hands tight, and the legs lose. It will help the baby feel safe and comfortable.
The second ‘s’ symbolizes side-line position. Hold the onside position, put some small pressure on your baby’s tummy make sure not to harm the kid.
The third ‘s’ is whispering the “shush” sound. Shush sound is familiar to the babies. The noise is believed to be the first heard in the stomach before they were born. The tone should be louder than you think.
The fourth ‘s’ symbolizes sucking. Sucking soothes the baby. By the help of a pacifier, the baby will slowly sleep.
Lastly, the final ‘s’ represents stay. Just move around this will help the baby come down and sleep. Don't use plagiarised sources.Get your custom essay just from $11/page
- Feed the baby well
Food is essential to every human being; nobody can sleep well when they are hungry. Breastfed is done for the first six months. For the baby to sleep well, he /she need to feed after every 3 hours or for the better, any time the baby wants to feed. Regular breastfeeding will help the baby have a peacefully night and longer naps. Note that you should only give breastmilk or nun for kids at this age; other kinds of food can make the baby have discomfort or even experience stomach aches.
- Create a good sleeping pattern for the baby
The parent is always the first teacher for the infant. As babies come to the world, they are still new to everything, and they learn from their parents. Mostly we soothe the baby too much such that we spoil the kid. Train them time to sleep and time to play. For example, you can let them relax after every 2hours this will make the baby have a pattern sleep. As a mum, you can always take advantage of his sleep time and rest.
- Let the baby get used to one place of sleeping
It’s human nature to adapt to a thing or situations. Babies should have their own space to sleep. It is not advisable to sleep on the same bed with the baby. Always make sure the baby sleeps at his/her spot. By doing this, it will help the baby sleep comfortably or even get them self-back to sleep after waking up at night.
- Wet diapers
Babies are always disturbed by wet diapers. By regularly checking your baby diapers, it helps you know when the baby is wet; hence you can change the kid and help them him/her have a peaceful sleep. Also, by changing your baby diapers frequently it helps to avoid diaper rash. You should also choose a quality diaper for your kid.
- Tiredness
With my first kid, I could let him play a lot of hours. Long play hours could make him very tried such that it was hard even to make him sleep. It is always best to try to master your baby sleeping time. Always make sure the baby sleeps on time. Also learn how your baby behaves when sleepy, for example, rubbing his/her eyes or ears.
- Noise in the house
Sounds is another factor that can make a baby not to sleep. Its funny babies don’t need total silence. Some background noise will soothe your baby. Make sure the sounds are not too much to disturb your baby’s sleep.
- High room temperature
When babies are young, we all fear the high risk of pneumonia in kids. We cover the baby due to the low immunity. As we try to protect them, we end hurting them by overdressing and covering the young one. To avoid this, we should always make sure we only cover the baby at room temperature.
- Place a baby when on drowsy mood.
Always make sure you do not hold the baby until he/she is asleep. Sooth the baby until he/she is drowsy then place the baby on his/her crib. By doing this, you always help the baby learn to sleep on his/her own. It is still advisable to avoid holding the baby when sleeping as long as you can. Always remember anything you train the baby it is hard for the baby to let go of the habit.
- Wash the baby before sleeping.
Cleanliness is always essential to every human being. Cleaning is a way of relaxing the baby. Most babies still sleep after cleaning. Always massage the baby after birth to help relax and sleep well. Make sure the water is not too hot for the baby, consider bathing the baby In a room-temperature environment.
Conclusion
In conclusion, different babies react differently to a different method of making them sleep always try all the above way a and know which method works best for your baby. Use a safe way of baby soothing, note that others method can be harmful to the baby.