They say it takes 21 days to form a habit but when it comes to your baby’s sleep habits, routine is your secret weapon. While, there are a lot of factors to consider why your baby sleeps late, routine is a good place to start.
Why routine will help your baby sleep better?
You don’t just hop off the bed when you are about to sleep, right? You brush your teeth, take a quick shower and change your pajamas. These routines signal your body that it’s time to slow down and go to sleep. The same goes for your baby or toddler.
Scientifically, this is what we called Circadian Rhythms or your body clock. Circadian rhythms control your daily schedule for sleep and wakefulness. Newborns do not have a circadian rhythm until they are a few months old. That’s the reason their sleeping pattern is a mess especially during the first few days or weeks. What you can do is to watch out your baby’s routine and nurture their environment of sleepiness and wakefulness to help your baby mentally prepare for sleep.
What happen when your baby has no routine?
Everything turns south when there is a lack of routine. The lack of it results in overstimulation. Overstimulation is one of the reasons for late bedtime that turns into crankiness. Like adults, babies and toddlers tend to not function well when they don’t get enough sleep. They get cranky and frustrated hence leads to more crying and fussiness.
We must realize that babies and toddlers need to experience quality sleep at night. Although babies might have different sleep cycles depending on their stage, everything boils down to completing the required number of hours based on their age. Following a routine that can lead them to sleep early at night.
Routine for a good night sleep
Here’s one routine that can help your baby or toddler to go to bed early and still experience quality sleep at night:
Creating a predictable bedtime routine helps! Get your baby to take a bath (especially great to help them relax and wind down) put on those pajamas, brushing their teeth, reading bedtime stories and singing lullabies can set their mind that it’s nearly bedtime. If you do this consistently every single night, they will soon know this means it’s time for bed and get some rest.
I can’t stress this enough – being consistent with your baby’s routine can really pave the way to healthy sleep habits for life.
Visit Sleep Supernanny shop if you would like to DIY baby sleep training – to understand the sleep science and how to establish a routine. Everything you need to know to help you get started with your baby’s sleep.
If you just want coaching and guidance to get your precious sleep back in just a matter of days, then feel free to book a FREE discovery call with us to see which solution is the best for you and your baby! Either way, we are here for you!!
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