Lucy our expert from NEST Children shared some advice on the topic of sleep.
Sleep is one of the most talked about topics for parents. Parenting is exhausting and when you have a little one frequently waking in the early weeks it’s hard and incredibly testing!
Our advice is; to ask for help-don’t be afraid to do this, take each day as it comes, and don’t put pressure on yourself to get your little one sleeping through the night straight away (this will come!), please don’t be afraid to cuddle your little one- you cannot over love a baby and this will not have a negative impact on their sleep, and not every moment will be perfect, but enjoy it as much as you can, your little one will change so much and so quickly too!
Our top tips on sleep:
- It is recommended you start a gentle bedtime routine for your little one from around 12 weeks. This could include bath, book and then a feed before bed. This will help them to differentiate the difference between day and night time
- Ensure your little ones knows the difference between day and night time sleep- the house will naturally be quieter during the night so don’t worry about the noise levels during the day, putting your baby in a sleepsuit for the night time and safely covering under a blanket (firmly tucking in all the sides) for naps during the day, having a bath and story before going to bed at night but gentle cuddle before nap time
- Disturbed sleep is normal for little ones (adults often don’t sleep through!) and something which will get better with age. Some signs which may suggest it is worth getting some support: as parents you are struggling with you emotional health, your relationship is struggling due to you both having a lack of sleep, you feel that things need to change, your little one is struggling during the day and becoming increasingly irritable
- Accept that there are going to be ups and downs to your little ones sleep- that is ok!
- Use the time that your little one is sleeping to rest- easier said than done..but if you keep yourself really busy throughout the day, and are not having time to rest and recover at night, you are likely to burn yourself out. Rest is SO important and if you are offered help from family and friends..take it! Please don’t feel this makes you a bad parent