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Getting your baby to sleep can be quite a challenge at times. There are a hundred different reasons that could cause a baby to fuss and cry and we as parents must figure it out to solve the problem. After you’ve run through the mental checklist of the possible causes such as hunger, gas, diaper or anything else, then you know that maybe the baby just needs to be held and rocked to sleep. Keeping the baby asleep is just as important and so here is where this great little machine for white noise for baby comes in to play.
Newborn sleep
Typically, newborns sleep about 16 hours per day. However, they usually wake about every 2 hours for breast feeding or about every 4 hours for bottle feeding. That sounds like a lot of sleep, but when it comes to newborns, they need it. Babies are growing very rapidly during the first year of life and they need every minute of sleep they can get.
Importance of sleep the first year
Sleep is of the utmost importance for your newborn and is required for your baby’s overall development. Babies with double their birth weight by around 5 months of age. They will triple it by about 12 months of age or 1 year. This is a lot of growth in a short amount of time and good sleep plays an important role in this.
Brain development
Your baby’s brain will double in size by around 1 year of age. They develop rapidly and a lot of the learning is taking place while they sleep! There have been studies which show that there is a connection between normal sleep development and higher developmental scores.
Memory
Sleep is important for the process of memory consolidation (the brain encounters something, the brain develops pathways that can be used to access a memory). This will happen over weeks and months as the brain is developing and creating these pathways. This is true for adults and older children as well as the newborn to 3-month old baby.
Immune system
Sleep is important for our immune system, no matter what our age. It is especially important for babies. Their immune systems are still immature and not as strong as an adult. It takes time to develop and sleep is a necessary part for this to occur. If the baby is sleep deprived, he or she is more likely to get a disease or infection and it an affect the baby’s ability to get better or recover.
Getting the baby to sleep
Newborn to 3-months of age is a time period where your baby will not be likely to have a regular sleep pattern. There are of course, exceptions to the rule. However, you as the parent should work towards establishing a “routine” for your baby. This is a must if you are going to get any sleep and is just as important for you as is for the baby. When the baby does sleep, that’s your chance to get some shut eye too. Take your opportunities!
I want to offer some suggestions on how to start establishing that routine and create an environment that is conducive for sleep. First, I want to say that until around 5 months of age, your baby will most likely not sleep through the night. Some babies will sleep through the night, but that is an exception.
Consistency
When your baby starts to sleep through the night, you will want to establish a bed time. Every evening at the same time, get your baby ready for bed. Have a routine for which nights are bath nights and then every night should be story time before the lights go out. No matter what your routine will be, be consistent with it every single day.
Cozy nursery
Make your nursery just as cozy as it can be. Hang teddy bears from the ceiling, have a dimly lit lamp and a rocking chair (especially helpful for rocking your little one). The room temperature should be around 70 to 72 degrees fahrenheit (21.1 to 22.2 degrees Celsius).
Make baby comfortable
Always check to see if your baby is dressed comfortably. A good rule of thumb is if you are over dressed and warm, then baby is too. If you would not put a heavy sweater on, then don’t put your baby in a sweater or sweatshirt like clothing. Feel the back of your baby’s neck and if it is warm and sweaty, then he is over dressed. Put lighter clothes on him. He will sleep so much better and so will you!
Soothing and quiet atmosphere
One of the most important things you can do to help get your baby to sleep is to create a soothing and quiet atmosphere. I have found a great way to accomplish this, even in the noisiest of times. First thing to do is to keep the lighting soft and dim as you do not want bight lights around your baby before bed time. This will help him learn the difference between day and night. Even for those “during the night feedings” keep those lights dim.
Creating that soothing and quiet atmosphere also includes soft music or lullabies and a white noise machine. I want to point out that you should only use a white noise machine for either naps or bed time. Your baby will know and recognize the sound and relate it to sleep time.
White noise
The Hatch Rest Sound Machine is a white noise machine that also has a night light and a “time to wake” feature for when your child is older. You can set the controls from your smartphone and adjust or customize the light, sound, and volume levels so you won’t have to enter the room and disrupt your little one.
You can purchase this great little machine here!
Hatch Baby Rest Sound Machine, Night Light and Time-to-Rise
Lullabies
Here is another great option for you to get. It is the Skip Hop Baby Sound Machine: Moonlight & Melodies Nightlight Soother, Owl. This is also a beautifully dimmed night light and plays 4 lullabies and has 4 nature sounds. It has a star and moon ceiling projection and a glowing night light belly with dimmer.
You can purchase yours here!
Skip Hop Baby Sound Machine: Moonlight & Melodies Nightlight Soother, Owl
Final thoughts
Whatever method you decide to use, be it white noise or lullabies, I know you will be pleased with either of these products. I personally use the white noise machine for my grandson when it is time for his naps. It is amazing to see how he correlates the white noise with nap time! It works like a charm!!
Questions or comments?
Please leave your questions or comments in the comment section below and I will get back to you as soon as I can.
Happy trails to lullaby land!
Evelyn
I mean, I kind of knew why sleep is important for babies and why they need so much of it. But what I did not know was all the numbers and facts that really put that into perspective. I mean, the fact that they double their weight at 5 months and triple that at 12 is just bonkers when I really come to think of it. What if I were to double my weight in 5 months? Like legitimately double my body mass not just fat through sugar? 5 months would be an extremely short time for that.
Other than that, I really agree on the consistency thing. Plus, I feel babies kind of love it. They have structure which makes for a happier baby and that is a good thing. Also, I appreciate the product suggestion for a white noise machine. Cheers. 🙂
Hello! Yes, babies grow at a very fast rate when they are under 1 year of age. Of course, after that they slow down and do not grow as fast, however children do grow at a pretty decent rate until they are around 18 to 21 for boys and about 15 for girls. Glad you found this interesting!
I remembered when I was taking care of my nephews, anything of noise would wake them up. They were infants at the time which means that my sister and I had very little sleep. Thank you for sharing all these developments in babies. I did not know that sleep can have such a huge impact on their development and growth. I heard that the white noise machine helps tremendously but I never tried it on my nephews. I am going to share your post with my sister. Thanks for all these amazing suggestions.
Hello and you are very welcome!!! Yes, the white noise really works well for the baby and for the parent too! Thanks for commenting and sharing this info with your sister.