How To Teach Your Child To Sleep At Night

Want to know how to teach your child to sleep at night? First of all, it is unrealistic to expect your baby to sleep soundly all night. It is absolutely normal for the little one to wake up several times a night. In fact, even adults do not manage to sleep without interruption for a whole night.

The adult sleep cycle does not allow them to sleep through the night, but when they wake up, they may fall asleep again. A baby can sleep 17 hours a day, an interval that includes the periods in which he wakes up. You don’t have much to teach the little ones when it comes to sleep. In fact, they are even experts in this “field”!

What you need to know about babies’ sleep

Sleep is a natural process in all people. In babies’ brains, the sleep cycle lasts two to three hours. Thus, once awakened, they find it difficult to fall asleep again and start crying.

In the mother’s womb, the fetus spends most of the nine months sleeping. Sleep periods alternate with the times when it feeds through the umbilical cord. After waking up, the child hears the heartbeat and the mother’s voice and falls asleep again. When he is born, the little one literally wakes up.

Newborns wake up, cry, eat and then fall asleep again. That’s how they spend their whole day. If they are breastfed naturally, in about 20 minutes, the milk is digested. If they are fed powdered milk, it is digested in two hours. After this interval, the child wakes up again, resuming the cycle.

My baby was sleeping well, but now the situation has changed

In the first two months of life, the newborn’s sleep is quite peaceful, but after the third or fourth month, things change. The baby begins to wake up several times during the night. Many mothers blame themselves for not teaching their children to sleep. In reality, this pattern of sleep is natural in growing children.

At eight months, the baby’s sleep has already gone through all stages (the four phases of slow sleep and one phase of fast sleep). At 3 years, the child’s sleep is the same as that of an adult, but does not extend over such large intervals. Only at 5-6 years old, children overcome all the difficulties of sleeping throughout the night.

How do you teach your child to sleep all night without problems?

It is natural for parents to doubt the methods used and to wonder if it is normal for their little one to cry instead of sleep. But worries, anxiety and tension create the most inappropriate atmosphere to encourage the baby to sleep through the night  without waking up.

The Feber and Estivill methods support the idea of ​​letting the child cry until he calms down. As a result, after a healthy cry, the little one will fall asleep due to fatigue, because he waited so long to be paid attention. You will need to decide if this is the right approach for your child and the relationship between you.

According to Dr. Rosa Jove, the author of Sleep Without Tears,  when you let your baby cry, you cause him emotional shock. In this way, the hormones that regulate emotions change, and the little one learns that there is no point in agitating, because his mother will not intervene.

Pediatrician Carlos Gonzalez is the author of several works, including  Kiss Me. How to raise your children with love. He argues that when the baby wakes up and cries, he hopes his mother will come to him. If she does come, the little one learns that her requirements can be met.

At the same time, the specialist advises parents to limit contact with children and not feel compelled to comfort them every time, because they will pamper them. It is perfectly normal for babies to wake up at night and ask their mother for attention to fall back asleep.

How to teach your child to sleep peacefully

After waking up countless times during the night, you feel tired. So how do you teach your child to sleep peacefully to help him and you? We know it’s not easy to stay calm. But if you want to raise your child in accordance with moral norms, you know that letting him cry is not a solution.

The main recommendation is to be patient until the little one’s sleep cycle adjusts. Even if you hear about a certain effective method for other babies, it does not mean that it will work for your child. Living together will help you discover what can work for both of you.

However, adopting certain habits can ensure your baby a peaceful sleep. How do you teach your child to sleep? Taking into account the following tips:

• Take a bath before bed.
• Set aside toys and light devices from the crib or bed, as they can keep the baby awake.
• If your little one is already 2 years old and is watching TV or playing on the tablet, do not let him adopt these habits for more than an hour a day.
• When the baby is very tired, it can be harder to fall asleep. In this situation, a nap during the day may be welcome.

• If the little one does not like the darkness or is afraid, leave a diffused light on.
• Avoid getting upset or scolding him for falling asleep faster. It is not good for the baby to associate sleep with punishment.
• Establish a bedtime ritual. Sing a lullaby to the child, read a story or talk to him / her.

conclusions

The style and methods used by a mother to raise her child are her decision. However, it is important to respect each child’s sleep cycle and idiosyncrasies. At the same time, you need to understand that the method that works for one child will not necessarily work for another. Thus, if you want to know how to teach your child to sleep, it is possible to give you the answer yourself.

Your baby will not stay small for long. The tiring nights of the parents are part of the process of growing and developing their little one. Be patient. Soon, your baby will no longer be a baby. Today’s problems will disappear overnight. Soon, you will have more time to rest.