How to Get Your Newborn Baby to Sleep Through the Night

Babies are wonderful, of course, but sleep deprivation is definitely not! Read on for tips on helping baby learn to sleep through the night.

 Everyone told you it was going to be exhausting having a baby, but when you get your newborn home and discover the scope of care required, the reality can be overwhelming. This is particularly true for first-time Moms/parents. Being alone at home with a newborn baby who won't sleep can add to the already high frustration and exhaustion levels, and of course any help is usually welcome. 

Getting baby to sleep for longer periods, and eventually overnight, becomes an important goal for the health and sanity of all involved.

Consider that in training your newborn to sleep for longer periods, you are not only giving yourself a break but helping baby as well. Longer periods of sleep help your baby get the proper rest required for healthy growth and development. Also, a Mom or primary caregiver who is rested will likely have far more patience and more resources to draw on, and this is good for all involved, including other family members if there are any.

Some tips you may find helpful include
Prolong wake times Even though it may seem, at times, that all your baby wants to do is sleep, you can train them to sleep more at night by keeping them awake more during the daytime. Help your new baby adopt your family's rhythms by engaging them during the day - while allowing plenty of nap time, of course - and keeping them up when it's not nap time. Tiny babies need lots of sleep, of course, but by ensuring their waking hours are primarily during the day you help them sleep longer at night, and they can pick up this rhythm more quickly. Gentle engagement during the day such as talking to them, taking them for walks (but not bundled up too much or they'll be too comfortable and fall asleep!) for fresh air, and perhaps non-stressful visits are all good to help keep baby awake during the day.

Deeper sleep While your baby is napping, try adding normal noises to he environment, such as running the vacuum, playing the radio or even just opening windows so neighbourhood sounds can filter in. While it may seem natural to try and be super-quiet while baby is napping, this actually trains them to expect quiet, and thus they will sleep lightly and be more likely to startle at any little noise. If you help them learn to sleep through various distractions, everyone in the home will benefit from deeper sleep!