Newborn babies are a joy. They are so small and delicate, yet so lovable. The professional magazine Midwifery Today states that newborn babies sleep an average of 16 to 18 hours per day. Newborn babies wake only every couple of hours to feed. Even though they sleep much of the day, it is still hard to put a baby to sleep if you don't know their sleep patterns. Following some simple steps will keep your baby healthy and allow your baby to fall asleep quickly when she is tired.
Step 1
Look for the signs of readiness to sleep in your baby. If your baby is not ready to sleep, you should not try putting her to sleep, because she will just become fussy. The Lucile Packard Children's Hospital states that the signs a newborn baby makes when they are ready to sleep include yawning, rubbing her eyes and fussing. These are your cues that you can start helping your baby fall asleep.
Step 2
Make a bedtime routine by doing the same thing each time your baby gets tired and you want to put the baby to sleep. You can rock her gently in your arms or you can sing softly to the baby. Playing gentle and soft music may also help ease the baby to sleep if you do it consistently at nap time or bedtime.
Step 3
Turn off the lights in the room so that it's dark. Babies like to see colors, and the brightness of the light along with all the different colors in the room can be very distracting to a young baby. If you turn the lights off, your baby will be relaxed and will fall asleep easier.
Step 4
Breastfeed your baby if she seems tired but is having a hard time falling asleep. Midwifery Today states that sometimes the act of sucking on mom's breast soothes a baby and puts him to sleep if he is already tired. When you notice he falls asleep, you can remove him from the breast and lay him down.
Step 5
Put your baby to sleep on her back only. She can spend time on her tummy while she is awake but never when you put her down to sleep. The Lucile Packard Children's Hospital states that putting a baby to sleep on her tummy may be dangerous and may even lead to Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) in some babies.
Things You'll Need
- Soft, calming music
