Get your baby to sleep through the night

Here are some tips to help you achieve the holy grail of getting your new-born to sleep through the night.

Create a consistent routine

Try to get yourself into a stable routine and stick too it. Putting your baby down at the same time each night (perhaps after a feed) and getting them up at the same time each morning will go a long way towards promoting a good night time sleep. A good routine might consist of;

• A bath
• A play
• Some time in a rocking chair
• A feed
• A cuddle to help them relax
• Bed

Have Realistic Expectations

Your child is unlikely to sleep through what we would consider to be the night until they are at least 6 months old. New-borns can sleep for up to 19 hours a day but they will do it in 3-4 hour stints. Their stomachs are small and they will become hungry during the night. You can however use your routine to your advantage. Say for example that you go through the routine above so that you get your baby into bed by about 7pm. It is likely that they will then wake up and want another feed at around 10pm. You could do this and then go to bed yourself. If you are lucky you may then only have to get up once (at most twice) during the 7-8 hour period which you will be in bed yourself. OK, so you will probably be up at 5 or 6 feeding again but, as your baby’s stomach grows this time will extend.

Make sure you give plenty of feeds during the day.

The more you can get your baby to feed during the day, the less they will want to feed during the night. This is especially true if your baby’s day time feeds are usually short.

Make sure they relax before bedtime.

Your night-time routine should allow for your baby to relax and unwind before you put them down for the night. If they have been passed around doting visitors for a few hours prior to bed they are unlikely to settle when you put them down. Before bedtime keep noise and activity down to a minimum and try to develop some comforting rituals such as reading, or singing quietly.

Don’t rush

The first 15-20 minutes of a babies sleep are quite light so if you put them down as soon as they “drop off” in your arms they are likely to wake up. If they fall asleep in your arms give them some time to make sure they are soundly asleep before putting them to bed.

Be aware of variations in your baby’s sleeping pattern.

There will be times when your baby wakes up during the night more often. It might be a “growth spurt” where they have a need for additional feeding or it could be the first signs of an oncoming illness.

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