How Do You Improve Your Baby’s Sleeping Habits?

Parents often worry about whether their children are getting enough rest. While it’s normal for newborns to wake up frequently during the night, they should get used to a more regular sleep pattern over time. During the first weeks of life, babies are only awake for about 5 to 6 hours a day. It is normal for them to wake up a few times during the night and not go back to sleep right away.

As the days and weeks go by, the number of hours your baby is awake will gradually increase.

When your child is one year old, they will be awake for about 14 to 15 hours a day.

However, as a parent, your baby’s sleeping habits can lead to a lot of sleep deprivation.

When this lasts for a longer period of time, or if it comes up later in childhood, it is important to tackle this problem right away.

Otherwise, it may affect the well-being of the child or the entire family.

The importance of rest for babies

The fact that getting enough rest is an important factor for a person ‘s health  is not a recent discovery. This is an absolute truth when it comes to babies.

There are three basic reasons why rest is extremely important during the early years of a child’s life. 

• First of all, rest stimulates the appetite.
• Next, the time a child spends asleep gives the mind time to store and process the knowledge of the day.
• Finally, the body produces hormones that are responsible for growth when the baby is asleep.

Of course  , it is very important that you provide the right conditions that ensure that your baby gets enough sleep.

This includes maternal love, developing your baby’s good sleep habits, and other factors that we’ll explain now.

How do you improve your baby’s sleeping habits?

When your baby sleeps during the day and is awake at night, you have a serious problem. 

This can have very negative consequences for your health and it is also not good for your baby’s.

First of all, because this rhythm is of no benefit to you and your baby.

Second, because the sounds and light of daytime can easily affect your baby’s rest. Therefore, the hours of rest your baby gets during the day offer fewer benefits.

Therefore, it is better to get ahead of this problem and improve your baby’s sleeping habits from an early age. 

These are some tips to achieve your goal.

Keep the light on during the day

Make sure the room is brighter during the day than at night, even if your child is just napping.

That way  , your child’s body won’t mix up day and night and will produce less melatonin during the day. Melatonin is the hormone responsible for the sleep cycles and thus your baby’s sleeping habits.

At the same time, try to dim the light during the night and create a calm and calm environment. This will signal to your baby that it is time to rest.

Feed your baby an evening meal

Make sure your baby gets another feed in the evening to prevent your baby from waking up hungry at night.

When your child is sleeping, wake him up patiently and gently, stimulate him and play with him.

Of course, you should never force your child to eat. But given that newborn babies normally eat about every two to three hours, your baby will probably eat whenever he gets the chance.

This will cause your breasts to produce more milk. This in turn ensures that the child is fed more calmly. This has advantages, as babies are more prone to colic and gas when fed a little tense.

Do not allow your child to sleep during the day

As your baby gets a little older, your child will be more and more awake without affecting his appetite. This is something you can use to your own advantage.

This means that you can decide whether you allow your child to sleep or not. 

So make sure that your child sleeps as little as possible in the afternoon.

If your kids are still napping, don’t give them more than two to three hours to do so. This depends on the previous night.

When children sleep too much during the afternoon, you often have a difficult night.

The difference between day and night

It is important to teach your child the difference between day and night. Especially when you are working on improving your baby’s sleeping habits. 

To achieve this, you can get your baby used to certain activities at set times during the day. For example, you can take your child outside every afternoon for some fresh air and sunlight.

In the evening it  is better to opt for relaxing things such as:

• taking a bath
• reading a book
• cuddle 

When you are patient and consistent, you will find that your baby’s sleeping habits develop into better sleep patterns.

When you maintain an appropriate rhythm with your family, your baby will adapt to this.

This will not only improve your baby’s biological clock, but you will also get more rest as a parent.  

Your increased energy and improved mood will have a positive effect on all aspects of your baby’s life.

Now you know it. With the help of positive habits, sufficient sunlight and regular feeding, you can help your baby adjust your sleeping habits to your own rhythm.

Put our advice into practice. We are sure that you will have less stress about your baby’s sleeping habits.