Things that make sense for baby sleep, in my experience
We all have some kind of sleep-aid when we need to sleep, whether it’s peaceful silence or a fan blowing, some sort of dim light or no light at all. Whatever helps you get to sleep and stay asleep, the same applies to your baby, and believe me, I’m SO THANKFUL I researched these things when I had Isabella.
I wish I knew these things 6 years ago when I had Jackson, I would have set him up for the best success and he probably would have slept better! The second time around I made sure I researched the heck out of baby sleep because I didn’t want to all over the place with sleep habits and be miserable. From day 1 with Isabella, I implemented some sort of routine at bedtime so that she would quickly catch on that it’s sleep time. Cueing your baby’s brain that it’s time to sleep is important for helping them fall asleep easier. For newborn sleep routines, I will have a separate blog entry soon.
So here are the things I’ve learned when my newest baby came along to ensure the best opportunity for sleep:
Blackout curtains
Babies sleep best with an absolute blacked-out room. Any bit of light can be too stimulating for their brain and keep them awake, or wake them during the night. If you have a little night light on your wipe warmer or humidifier, just cover it up with electrical tape (yes that’s right!) OR unplug the machine you don’t really need at nighttime. So for my baby, I just unplug the wipe warmer over night. When I had Jackson, I had no clue about this rule. In fact, I had a nightlight in his room because I thought he needed it? But the truth is, babies are NOT afraid of the dark. They don’t have the mental ability to fear the dark. That comes closer to age 2 years old due to an imagination.
White noise machine
Did you know that inside your womb, it’s actually extremely loud? It’s said that inside the womb, the decibels are equivalent to a vacuum. Yes! It’s loud in there! From the day your baby is born, complete silence is not familiar to them and can even be counteractive for sleep. Especially when you are trying to keep it quiet and you drop something, or the floor creaks, that will just startle your baby awake. The white noise in the room can drown out any outside sounds and also create the perfect environment for any baby to sleep. Once Isabella is asleep in her crib, we can all carry on like normal in the house without disturbing her, thanks to her little sound machine. And we live in a bungalow. When I had Jackson (you can guess I didn’t know about this rule either) I had a mobile over his head with lullabies playing, they stopped after 30 minutes and then deafening silence. This probably contributed to the frequent wakings, also he was unable to fall back asleep independently because (surprise) I also didn’t know much about sleep training, which would have helped him big time. He was 15 months old when I finally figured out the FERBER METHOD. If you’re unfamiliar with this term, you should absolutely research if you decide to sleep train. But anyways, there are a few great options for sound machines.
Sleep sack
If your baby is no longer being swaddled, keep them in a sleep sack. This keeps them feeling secure and comfy around their bodies for sleep while still having their arms free to flip over and sit up if needed, once they are at that appropriate age. I tried to keep Isabella swaddled as long as possible (5.5 months) but this turned into a mistake, because as she was still sleeping in my bed, she was already able to flip over and woke up easily from needing her arms freed. Not to mention, how safe was she in my bed while able to roll? I had the intentions of sleep training once I tossed the swaddle, so that she was safe in her crib and not disrupting all of our sleep anymore. So back to the sleep sack, there are so many on the market that are great, I will have a link for the one we use at the bottom of this post! But to be honest, any sack that’s soft and comfy will be perfect.
Cooler temperature
No one sleeps well when they are too hot. The same applies for your baby. Especially if you know you’re going to layer them for nighttime, you don’t want them getting overheated. The house temperature tends to drop at nighttime naturally, but as long as your baby is in one extra layer more than you, it should be enough. I dress Isabella in a diaper shirt, sleeper, and sleep sack while her room is between 74-76 degrees F. It’s not super cool in there and not hot, it’s just comfortable and she sleeps well.
Multiple soothers in the crib
If your baby takes a soother, thank your lucky stars. Isabella loves them, Jackson never did. If your baby finds comfort in a soother, it’s worth having a whole bunch of the preferred soother and keep 2-3 in the crib for sleep time. Your baby will learn to put the soother in their own mouth and if it happens to become out of reach in the pitch dark room, there is more of a chance your baby will find the other one close by. I lay Isabella down, awake, with a soother in her mouth, and another one near her head so she feels it when she turns over. I’ve noticed she even likes to suck one while holding the other in her hand. Whatever works! Soothers have always helped calm Isabella, especially since breastfeeding didn’t work for her, she needed something to suck for comfort. Jackson never liked soothers no matter how hard I tried, but he breastfed like a champ!
So those are the things that make sense for baby sleep, with my own experience, and what I’ve learned from sleep experts. If you are doing all of these things and your baby still isn’t sleeping, I can tell you with my experience that sleep training is worth looking into, No Cry Methods are available, and it doesn’t have to be rough. Also, for newborns especially, “crying it out” isn’t even necessary. If you are completely against sleep training, do your best to implement all of these baby sleep methods and it will give the best opportunity possible for sleep. There will always be reasons for a baby waking at night: unable to fall back to sleep on their own, illness, teething, hunger.
In case you’re wondering, sleep training does help with all of these problems. Check out @takingcarababies on Instagram.
Link to blackout curtains:https://amzn.to/3uMth7y
Link to white noise machine:https://amzn.to/3JfSGdI
Link to soothers:
https://amzn.to/3GFXxTK
Link to sleep sack:
https://amzn.to/33hVze