My Baby Won't Sleep

 

Helping your Baby get to Sleep With A Baby Sleep Pillow

As the cranky crying of an overtired newborn will attest, teaching your baby good sleep habits is a high priority to the new parent. Having always been near his mother, it is a big transition to learn to sleep on his own. To make this difficult period easier, take your time to research a range of techniques to try with your child.

A key building block for successful sleep training is the use of a regular routine and getting your baby to associate sleep with items such as a baby sleep pillow. As the baby learns to associate bedtime with sleeping he will find it easier to drift off without extra help from his parents. Not only are day/night routines important, you will find that establishing a regular transitioning routine helpful in getting your baby to nod off.

If the baby’s father is available at bedtime he can become a part of the transitioning routine by cuddling the baby so that the baby’s head rests against his neck. By using a soft, soothing tone the father can speak to his baby calming him to sleep. Babies are often soothed by the deep tone of a man’s voice and will fall asleep readily when spoken to for a while.

Another idea is to get a sling or harness in which your baby can rest as you do work around the house. Because the motion of his mother walking around the house is familiar to the baby he will quickly be calmed and be ready for sleep. By doing this for half an hour before bedtime you increase the chances of getting you baby to sleep.

Of course, if neither of these methods work you can always fall back on the tried and true method of taking your little one for a drive. Although this can be inconvenient the white noise of the car and the vibration of its movement is very effective in getting your baby off to dreamland.

It will take a while for your baby to learn good sleep habits. This transition is very difficult and your baby has no coping strategies to help him with the move from wakefulness to sleep. He is used to being with his mother at all times and suddenly he is being asked to sleep on his own. There will be setbacks and it won’t always be easy, but with a consistent effort you will be able to teach him that there is no need to worry about sleeping alone with his baby sleep pillow. In the meantime don’t be afraid to listen to your instinct. A mother always knows her child and her instinct is often right.

In the long run you will find that you need these methods less and less often to get you baby to sleep. By gradually decreasing the duration of the transition time your baby will learn to prepare himself for sleep without your help. Eventually your baby will be ready for his baby sleep pillow without intervention and you will both get a good night’s rest.