Are you feeling tired mama? We get it, setting up healthy sleep habits is HARD and that’s why we are here to provide you with research proven tips that successfully prime your baby for sleep & help you both get the rest you need. Hang tight mama & papa bear, one of these tips could change your week!
Set a comfortable sleep temperature
An ideal room temperature for babies is 20-22 °C. The most common cause of early morning wakes is bubs feeling chill during the coldest part of the night. By controlling the drop in room temp, or ensuring your baby is dressed for the coolest part of the night, your chances of early morning wakes are much lower.
Likewise, if your baby's room gets hot and stuffy in the afternoon right before bedtime, this could be a leading cause of why your baby is fighting sleep.
The solution?
- Make use of a room thermometer to learn if your room is primed for sleep (a lot of baby monitors include this!)
- Use the weather app to forecast where the hottest and coldest parts of the day & night are so you can set their bedroom just right in the lead up to sleep.
- Dress your baby in light layers to accommodate the varying room temperature & avoid overheating.
Darken the room
By darkening the room, you help your baby produce melatonin (an important hormone that signals it’s time for rest). A common misconception is that babies should be able to sleep in all light conditions, and sure, they totally can when tired enough, but they will surrender to sleep much easier and have a longer, more restful sleep in an environment that resembles nighttime.
Likewise, you can eliminate early rises by ensuring the sun does not start shining in their room at the crack of dawn.
The solution?
- Introduce a pre-bedtime ritual where you shut the blinds and encourage quiet play in dim lighting. This will signal that bedtime is on the way, and help your baby feel calm and wind down.
- Invest in black out blinds (there are many temporary solutions on the market, or secondhand market too!) so that you can eliminate stimulating light sources.
Muffle disruptive noise
Sudden loud noises can be quite disruptive to babies' sleep and result in higher likelihood of cat naps or false starts. It doesn’t mean your household needs to be completely silent, you just need to focus on providing bubs a continuous source of sound without sudden variances that may wake them.
The solution?
- Play white noise to drown out household disturbances or sounds incoming from the street. Riff Raff Sleep Toys bundles the benefits of white noise with a soft & snuggly comforter. Find out how 1000s of parents and babies are benefiting from introducing a Riff Raff to bedtime routines. SHOP NOW
Establish strong sleep cues
Our babies are so much more clever than we often give them credit for. They pick up on all the steps that take place before they happily fall asleep (just like counting sheep!). This is why being intentional with what they associate with the lead up to sleep is so important. It is also why expecting them to fall asleep straight after active play or exposure to a lot of stimuli does not often play in your favour.
The solution?
- Introduce a bedtime book. The familiar friendly faces in the book and the soothing sound of you reading to them is an impactful way to signal your baby that they are safe, and it’s time to relax and rest. By including the Riff Raff Bedtime Book at every naptime and bedtime, they will soon start to form a familiar sleep cue. SHOP NOW
Build up the right amount of sleep pressure
We hate to say it, but your baby is comparable to Goldilocks when it comes to finding the right balance of “I’m tired and ready for bed” vs “I’m overtired” or “I’m undertired” and going to fight nap time.
The solution:
- Understand age appropriate wake windows and do your best to follow them. Understanding wake windows is not about creating a rigid schedule that takes over your life, but rather a tool to empower you in understanding when the next best time for sleep will be. Combine this with your baby's tired signs and you’ll become a pro at choosing the easiest naps times where your baby is most ready for sleep.
- As your baby gets older, you’ll notice their wake windows begin to consolidate and establish as a more regular routine.
Go easy on yourself (and bubs!)
It’s important to remind yourself that every baby has a different temperament and sleep needs. There is no one size fits all approach. Your gut instinct is often right. If something isn’t working for you and your family, there is a world of help available to find the right fit for you. Be sure to check in with yourself and prioritise your family's well being always.