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Baby Sleep Training
Baby Sleep Training > Crying baby > Baby Moon > Pregnancy Planet > Parenting Planet > Home page
Sleep training is just helping a baby learn to get to sleep and stay asleep through the night.
Some babies are able to develop a regular sleep routine quickly and easily with very little sleep training while many others have trouble settling down to sleep — or getting back to sleep when they've been wakened — and they may need our help and guidance along the way.. If you are going to give your baby sleep training, there are a few approaches you can consider.
Stages of baby sleep training
NEWBORNS
Don't try to start a sleep schedule or a baby sleep training program with a newborn (first 3 months of life). Your new baby will need to feed every few hours, around the clock, so it's normal and healthy for him to sleep for just a few hours at a time. Respond promptly to his cries, feed and comfort him, and try to sleep when he does to minimise your own sleep deprivation.
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Beginning at about 6 weeks, you can reinforce your child's biological rhythms by establishing a regular bedtime routine. At about the same time every night, for instance, give him a warm bath, read him a book, and then feed him before putting him to bed. Try to get your baby up at around the same time every morning and put him down for naps at the same point in the day. Routines are essential for a baby and also for children.
At this point, you need to think of your own routine and your baby's sleep routines as a work in progress: During the first three months of life, your baby will gradually sleep more at night and less during the day. You'll most certainly need to keep re-adjusting the schedule as your baby grows and develops.Baby sleep training involves just this, adjusting to your baby's sleep behaviours to gently reshape them.
| 3-6 MONTHS
Typically, by 12 weeks or so, babies have started to develop more of a regular sleep/wake pattern and have dropped most of their night feedings. And somewhere between 3 and 6 months, experts say, most babies are ready for baby sleep training and are capable of sleeping through the night. They're not talking about eight hours, though — they generally mean a stretch of five or six hours.
Of course, every baby is different: Some may be ready earlier, others later. And some will sleep seven hours or longer at an early age while others won't do so until they're much older.
Before starting any baby sleep training, make sure your baby doesn't have any medical conditions that affect his sleep. Then be flexible about how you apply your chosen program and carefully observe how your baby reacts. If he's very resistant or you see a change for the worse in his overall mood and behaviour, stop and wait a few weeks before trying to give your baby sleep training again.
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If you're not sure whether your baby is ready for sleep training, ask your Maternal and Child Healthcare nurse.
Baby Sleep training options/ approaches There are many different ways to teach healthy sleep habits to your child. Which technique should you try? That depends on what you feel comfortable with — and which sleep strategy you think your child will respond well to.
Consistency is more important than method. A review of 52 sleep studies using various methods, published in 2006 in the journal Sleep, found almost all the techniques effective if applied consistently. Choose a sleep training method you can live with and follow through on it — and chances are, it'll work for you.
Most sleep training methods follow one of two basic approaches:
The idea is that if your child gets used to having you rock him to sleep, or he always falls asleep while nursing, he won't learn to fall asleep on his own. When he wakes up during the night — as all children and adults do as part of the natural sleep cycle — he'll become alarmed and cry for you instead of being able to go back to sleep.
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"Cry it out" technique
These sleep training methods suggest it is best to leave your child to cry, if necessary, although they don't advocate letting a baby cry endlessly. Typically these approaches suggest putting your baby to bed when he's still awake and allowing short periods of crying punctuated by comforting (but not picking up) your child.
The most well known "cry it out" technique is the one developed by pediatrician Richard Ferber, director of the Center for Pediatric Sleep Disorders at Children's Hospital Boston. Ferber says that in order to fall asleep on their own and sleep through the night, babies have to learn to soothe themselves. Ferber believes that teaching a baby to soothe himself may involve leaving him alone to cry for prescribed periods of time.
The "cry it out" approach assumes that falling asleep on your own is a skill like any other and that your baby can master this skill if you give him the opportunity.
No tears methods
Practical tips for finding a no-tears solution
* Make your baby gets plenty to eat during the day. He'll learn that daytime is for eating and nights are for sleeping. And he'll be less likely to wake up hungry in the early hours.
* Establish a regular nap schedule. A consistent sleep routine during the daytime helps regulate nighttime sleep.
* Put your baby to bed on the early side, such as 6:30 or 7. Don't fall into the trap of keeping your baby awake so he'll be more tired. An overtired baby may actually have a harder time getting to sleep. Some experts say babies who go to bed earlier sleep longer, too.
* Make changes slowly. If your baby's on a later schedule, don't suddenly move bedtime from, say, 9:30 to 7 o'clock. Make bedtime a little earlier each night until you reach the time that seems best for your baby.
* Find a soothing bedtime routine and stick to it. For example, a bath, then a book, then a lullaby, then bed, at the same time every night.
* Develop some "key sounds," as Pantley calls them, to signal to your child that it's time for sleep. A sound could be a simple "ssshhhh" or a softly spoken phrase like "It's sleepy time." Repeat the sound or phrase when you're soothing your child to sleep or back to sleep so he'll associate it with bedtime.
* Create a comfortable sleep environment that's tailored to your child. Some babies need more quiet and darkness than others. Recordings of soft music or nature sounds or the sound of a gurgling aquarium can be soothing. Make sure the sheets are cozy (warm them with a hot water bottle or a microwavable heating pad, for example, before laying your baby down) and that sleepwear doesn't chafe or bind. Younger babies may sleep better when swaddled. Don't overdress your child or overheat the room.
* Don't respond to every little noise your child makes. Learn to distinguish a real cry from a sleepy whimper. If you're not sure, it's okay to wait for a minute outside the door so you won't disturb him if he's actually asleep.
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