Putting your baby to sleep can sometimes be challenging for first-time parents. Introducing your babies to sleeping routines can help in aiding them to be calm and relaxed.
Here are some tips on how to put your baby to sleep:
1. Avoid Eye Contact
Bedtime is not the right time to excite your baby. Extended playtime just before their sleeping time can only do more harm than good.
2. Co-Sleep with Your Baby
Studies show that co-sleeping with your baby improves their self-esteem when they grow up. They are also less likely to suffer from anxiety. The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends placing a bassinet next to your bed when co-sleeping with your baby.
3. Empty the Crib
Clear your baby's sleeping space to avoid the possibility of choking or suffocation from toys. Use sleep sack instead of blanket to keep your baby warm.
4. Keeping the Room Cool
Right temperature is advisable in making your baby sleep better. Even the American Academy of Pediatrics suggests keeping the room temperature between 65 and 70 degrees Fahrenheit to prevent SIDS.
5. Lights Out
Keep your baby's room dark at nighttime to help your baby associate that with nighttime. When it's time for your baby to wake up in the morning, open wide your curtains for the light to come in the room. Doing this will help your baby understand the difference between night and day.
6. Touch Therapy
Do not underestimate the power of your hands brushing through your baby's body. The warmth that they feel from your hand will help soothe and comfort your baby while they are about to sleep. Skin to skin contact is important to also promote the emotional bond between you and your little one.
7. Swaddling
As first-time parents, you need to learn how to swaddle your baby as it is essential to their adjustment outside their mother's womb and making them sleep faster and better. The tightness that swaddling gives replicates the experience they had being wrapped in the womb for 9 months.
