New babies sleep upwards of 16 hours per day, according to the University of Michigan Health System. In the beginning, sleep cycles are erratic with seemingly little to no rhyme or reason. As your baby grows, sleep cycles get more regular and your baby will spend more time active and awake. As this active, awake time increases, you might find it more difficult to get your baby to sleep. Overtired babies actually have more trouble falling asleep than babies who get adequate amounts of sleep. A structured routine and a few tips will help your baby develop a consistent sleep cycle.
Night and Day Confusion
There are a few tips you can observe if your baby has his days and nights confused, according to pregnancy experts at Baby Center. First, don't force your baby to stay awake during the day so he'll sleep through the night. Rather, stimulate him as much as possible during the day and as little as possible at night. For example, play with your baby while he's awake during the day. Talk to him, keep him awake during feedings and keep his surroundings bright. At night, only address his needs (feeding, changing, among others) and then put him back to sleep. This teaches him that it's more enjoyable to be awake during the day and that night is resting time.
Routine Behaviors
Babies naturally fall into routines if they are provided, according to the Nemours Foundation's informational website Kid's Health. Create significant and identifiable routines centered around sleep to help signal to your baby that it's time to rest. For example, bathe your baby at night before putting him down. Cuddle, rock and sing to your baby each afternoon before the afternoon nap. Whatever activities you use to get your baby to sleep, do them consistently and your baby will associate them with sleep time.
Self-Sleeping
A helpful tip for tired moms is to add some self-sleep training to your sleep routines. Self-sleep means your baby can fall asleep on his own when placed in his bad and put himself back to sleep if he wakes in the middle of a nap. To do this, according to the Mayo Clinic, you need to put your baby to sleep when he's still awake but about to fall asleep. Since he is still awake when you put him down, he develops a familiarity and comfortableness with his surroundings. As you do this routinely, your baby will learn that his bed means sleep and start to understand that when he's in bed, he should be sleeping.
