Many parents suffer from long sleepless nights.
There are several categories of sleep problems: some babies do not fall asleep easily; others fall asleep but then wake up; then there are those who do not fall asleep, nor sleep as long as necessary.
In this article we want from Logos Nursery School, nursery school located in Las Rozas de Madridto give you some practical advice to face the problem of how to help your baby to sleep.
During the day, let your baby relax
Make sure that during the day you do not overstimulate your baby. Babies and children who have difficulty calming down at night need to be soothed during the day.
This is even more important for restless infants who have difficulty adjusting to life outside the womb.
Get ready to sleep
Massage, diaper, pajamas and baby food? The ritual before bedtime is essential. You can start with a nice warm bath, which helps baby relax.
Plan an evening bath
A warm bath before bedtime and a relaxing massage will easily soothe mother and baby.
They can bathe together, so that the skin-to-skin contact prepares the child to accept the rest of the nighttime ritual proposed by the parents.
But it is not always necessary to do this, the important thing is to follow the same steps, the same ritual, in the same order.
The second step in the sequence can be a relaxing massage: it is also an opportunity to apply a moisturizing cream.
Then he changes his diaper and puts on his pajamas. If he gets upset, let's give him a toy to calm him down. Then we move on to the last step before bedtime: help the baby relax.
Opt to go to bed at the same time of day
Bedtime rituals set the stage and convey the message that sleep will come soon. Children should learn that bed is for sleeping and not for playing.
So try to go to bed routinely. Normally rigid patterns do not help parents, but sometimes promote sleep.
Accompanying the child to bed
Few children fall asleep on their own. The transition from wakefulness to deep sleep does not always occur easily.
During REM sleep, the parent should stay close to the baby, because it is during this phase that the baby may wake up. If you wait for the baby to fall asleep completely in your arms, it will help him to fall asleep.
Hand contact
Immediately after being put to bed, some infants become fussy. In this case, the mother (or father) can place her hand on the baby's back or head, or one hand on the back and the other on the head.
The warmth of a safe hand can help baby fall asleep. In addition, stroking the baby's back rhythmically can add the finishing touch to the nighttime ritual. Then gradually remove your hands so as not to frighten the child.
As the child gets older, bedtime "rituals" help more and more, especially from the first year of age, because the child needs to learn good habits.
You can start by putting on your pajamas, brushing your teeth, then reading a story or a lullaby or a massage (for example on the back) and then holding your hand or caressing their head!
A general consideration of sleeping methods
The methods presented in this article are one of many approaches proposed by experts, mothers, nannies, etc. to "help" the baby to sleep.
The advice on this topic, undoubtedly one of the hottest for moms and dads, is practically endless, but it is worth making some general considerations.
To begin with, it should be considered that children's nighttime awakenings are physiological up to the age of 3-5 years.
Of course, there is someone who from an early age almost never wakes up during the night, but in fact it is completely "normal" for others to take longer to regularize their sleep.
Secondly, it must be said that these methods generally do not have a solid scientific basis, in the sense that they have not been subjected to rigorous studies that may or may not confirm their efficacy and safety.
What to do then? First of all, try to be more confident in your own abilities as a parent and, if you wish, lean on a method, not because a friend says so or because it is fashionable, but because given your child's characteristics, it could be a good attempt to improve the quality of his sleep.
