What I wish I'd known about getting a baby to sleep
BabyCenter moms share their hard-won wisdom on getting babies to sleep:
"No one ever told me that many newborns get daytime and nighttime mixed up. They sleep well during the day but only in spurts at night."
"Sometimes in the middle of the night when the baby is crying and you are tired, it may take a few tries to wrap him back up. Relax, take a few deep breaths, and try again."
"I wish someone had told me you don't need all that expensive crib bedding. The baby doesn't even sleep in the crib for the first few months, and when he transitions to it, most of that stuff doesn't get used."
"I put my baby in her swing in the bathroom and take a shower. The sound of the water, the warmth, and the motion of the swing make her drop right off."
"I wish I had known that the sleeplessness is temporary. I thought my baby would wake up every few hours indefinitely!"
"Get your baby used to noise when she sleeps — that way you can vacuum and blow-dry your hair whenever you want (my babies can sleep through both)."
"There are safe ways to co-sleep. If co-sleeping is the only way to get the rest that you and your baby need, keep an open mind about it."
"Do things to help your child learn the schedule. Read a story or give him a bath and then put him to bed. After a while he'll know it's bedtime."
"If you rock your baby to sleep, when you try to lay him down, he'll wake up and you'll have to start all over. Instead, I recommend putting him down and patting his back, butt, or belly to get him to fall asleep. That way he falls asleep where he lies and will stay there."
"Don't let your baby get overtired. Once you reach that point, it's even harder to get him to fall sleep and stay asleep, and he's much more likely to fuss during it all."
"At night, if a diaper is not leaking and not poopy, don't change it. Limit your interactions to feeding. Don't play, coo, or anything else. My 3-month-old sleeps better at night than my 2-year-old because of this."
"Don't think your newborn baby dislikes swaddling just because he struggles when you're wrapping him. He doesn't even realize he has arms and legs, and the swaddling helps contain him so he can be more attentive to falling asleep."
"No matter what you read on the subject, your baby is going to be unique. Don't expect your baby to sleep like anyone else's or to act like anyone else's. And don't even think about a schedule in the first six weeks."
"No one ever told me that many newborns get daytime and nighttime mixed up. They sleep well during the day but only in spurts at night."
"Sometimes in the middle of the night when the baby is crying and you are tired, it may take a few tries to wrap him back up. Relax, take a few deep breaths, and try again."
"I wish someone had told me you don't need all that expensive crib bedding. The baby doesn't even sleep in the crib for the first few months, and when he transitions to it, most of that stuff doesn't get used."
"I put my baby in her swing in the bathroom and take a shower. The sound of the water, the warmth, and the motion of the swing make her drop right off."
"I wish I had known that the sleeplessness is temporary. I thought my baby would wake up every few hours indefinitely!"
"Get your baby used to noise when she sleeps — that way you can vacuum and blow-dry your hair whenever you want (my babies can sleep through both)."
"There are safe ways to co-sleep. If co-sleeping is the only way to get the rest that you and your baby need, keep an open mind about it."
"Do things to help your child learn the schedule. Read a story or give him a bath and then put him to bed. After a while he'll know it's bedtime."
"If you rock your baby to sleep, when you try to lay him down, he'll wake up and you'll have to start all over. Instead, I recommend putting him down and patting his back, butt, or belly to get him to fall asleep. That way he falls asleep where he lies and will stay there."
"Don't let your baby get overtired. Once you reach that point, it's even harder to get him to fall sleep and stay asleep, and he's much more likely to fuss during it all."
"At night, if a diaper is not leaking and not poopy, don't change it. Limit your interactions to feeding. Don't play, coo, or anything else. My 3-month-old sleeps better at night than my 2-year-old because of this."
"Don't think your newborn baby dislikes swaddling just because he struggles when you're wrapping him. He doesn't even realize he has arms and legs, and the swaddling helps contain him so he can be more attentive to falling asleep."
"No matter what you read on the subject, your baby is going to be unique. Don't expect your baby to sleep like anyone else's or to act like anyone else's. And don't even think about a schedule in the first six weeks."
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