Are you exhausted by these endless night awakenings and wondering when your baby will sleep through the night? If the ideal instructions for use do not exist, these few tips, combined with each other, should help you to get him in shape so that he can finally sleep.
1. Benchmarks are essential.
To sleep through the night, your baby needs to learn to distinguish between day and night, something he is unable to do when he leaves the maternity ward. He wakes up when he's hungry, no matter what time. Some babies will quickly make this difference, others will take time. It is you, through the routine you establish, who will help him. Your baby needs to realize that daytime is associated with light and noise, and that night gives way to darkness and whispers when you feed her. While he sleeps during the day, there is no need to silence the whole house. On the contrary, hearing its sounds will help your toddler to find his or her way around. Yes, it's possible to start a machine during a nap!
2. Beware of "micro alarms".
Towards the end of the first month, your baby begins to extend the duration of her nights and can sleep for 6 hours at a time. Without making it an absolute rule, specialists estimate that it takes between 3 and 6 months for a toddler to set up his sleep patterns and start working full nights from 8 to 9 a.m. He now falls asleep in slow sleep and no longer in restless sleep, with a longer recuperative slow sleep at the beginning of the night, and a light slow sleep then a REM sleep at the end of the night. Each end of the cycle (every 2 hours) is punctuated by microwaves that last 1 to 10 minutes, during which your baby will growl, sometimes cry, then fall asleep. Do not interfere, otherwise, he will get into the habit of calling you instead of going back to sleep alone.
3. Nothing beats good rituals.
To start his night without difficulty, your baby needs rituals that reassure him and make him understand that it is time to sleep. It's up to you to imagine them and stick to them every night: a story in a low voice, a hug and a kiss, a lullaby.
Be careful not to get caught in your own trap by setting up rituals that are too restrictive. If your baby only falls asleep in your arms, he or she will need you when he or she wakes up between cycles. Same thing if he gets used to you stroking his hair at bedtime, he may well call you in the middle of the night.
4. Signals not to be missed.
Set up rituals, okay, but it has to be at the right time. To make bedtime as comfortable as possible, it is important to learn to decode your toddler's signs of fatigue and not to miss the "sleep train". Does your baby rub his eyes? Is he yawning? It's bedtime. He will then have less tendency to "resist" and will fall more easily into Morpheus' arms.
5. Moments of tenderness.
Hugging, massage, bath before bedtime... Between your mother and your girlfriends, each one of them gives her advice so that your child can fall asleep without difficulty. There is no magic recipe, all the moments of exchange of quality and appeasement are beneficial. What matters is the quality of this moment of tenderness and your involvement. Watching TV with your baby in your arms won't help him fall asleep...
6. Respect for bedtime rules.
Lay your baby on his back in a sleeping bag, never on his stomach or side, to avoid any risk of sudden infant death. The temperature of his room should be about 19°C. His bed should be as bare as possible. Do not give her pillows or duvets, and do not install a bed bumper that is too thick (use fine cotton). For the same reasons, avoid the accumulation of stuffed animals in the bed, a comfort blanket will be enough to comfort him.
7. Is he crying? Not in your arms!
Beware of bad habits. You just put your baby to bed and he starts screaming? Although it is very tempting and especially difficult to resist, do not intervene right away. Give him a chance to fall asleep alone. If it doesn't work, go into the room to make sure he's okay: maybe a burp bothers him? Did he lose his pacifier? If so, repeat that it is time to sleep and reassure them. If the crying continues, make brief appearances so that he feels you are there, but especially do not hold him in your arms. Put him in his bed so he can sleep and take him back to your arms five minutes later: the message is paradoxical for your little one. What should he do? Sleep or hug?
8. You don't move the bedtime.
It has taken your child weeks to set his pace... so don't try to change it, even slightly, to hope for asleep in. If he calls you at 6 a.m., it's because his internal clock is set that way. If you put him to bed later, he will wake up at the same time more tired, having missed a sleep cycle.
9. Cosleeping? To avoid
With the fatigue of the first few weeks, you have become accustomed to falling asleep with your baby in your bed... It is tempting, but doctors recommend avoiding cosleeping as much as possible. You may interfere with breathing and cause sudden infant death. On the other hand, there is nothing to prevent you from placing the cradle next to your bed for practical reasons (if you are breastfeeding, for example). He will be close to you but in his own space...
10. What about Grandma's tricks?
Flour in the evening bottle to make him sleep? This grandmother's remedy will in no way be a solution: "Your child will be satisfied, you will be reassured, but it is a mistake. The risk of weight gain is real and it is not advisable to introduce flour too early in the diet," explains Arnaud Pfersdorff, a pediatrician. Plants: orange blossom, chamomile, on the other hand, can be recommended by your pediatrician.
Should you consult?
Your baby still doesn't sleep through the night after 6 months? Although there is no rule, at this age, he should be able to sleep for several hours without waking you up, unless he is still breastfeeding. Ask yourself: Is there something going on in the family to keep your child awake? Does an event disturb him? Does your child see you enough? If you're already gone when he wakes up in the morning and he's already in bed when you get home, he may just miss you. Does he sleep too much during the day? If it doesn't get better, talk to your pediatrician.