How to Establish a Peaceful Bedtime Routine for Your Baby

Isla Ann Wright - 13 Dec 17

Let’s be honest – if any new parent was granted one wish, they would all choose the same thing: a good night’s sleep. Sometimes it seems that babies have a sensor for telling when you want to get some rest, since they always seem to wake up the exact same moment you decide to take a nap. Don’t worry, it’s just temporary. After the first two to three months, their sleeping routine will become more structured and you will have a much easier time putting your baby – and yourself – to sleep. But how do you create a good bedtime routine and one that your baby will willingly stick to?

First comes the bath

As you already know, one of the most popular parts of many bedtime rituals is a bath. For most babies, sitting in warm water is a quite soothing experience. Getting your baby warm and clean and dry represents a great way to slowly ease them into bedtime. Keep in mind that you should try and use natural products, as to avoid any itching and discomfort during the night. In addition,  bath time is great for your partner as they can spend some quality time with the baby, this is especially important if you’re breastfeeding and your partner doesn’t get to help so much with meal preparation and feeding.

Create a peaceful atmosphere

When it’s time for baby to go to bed the entire home should go into a snooze mode. Turn off the TV and the computer, put your phone to silent and ask everyone else present to be quiet for a while. Constant loud noise, or even a sudden sound, like the phone ringing, can mess up the routine and wake your baby right up. If you can, dim the lights in the room where you are trying to put your baby to sleep. All of this combined will put most adults to sleep as well, so you can bet it works on babies.

Set the right temperature

Nobody likes going to sleep when they are too cold or too hot. Set a thermometer in your baby’s room and start adjusting the temperature about an hour before the baby goes to bed. Open the windows, or turn on a fan if it’s too hot, or turn up the heating and warm your baby’s bed with a warm towel if you think it’s too chilly. The baby’s own body temperature also comes into play.

White noise and movement

If your child is having trouble falling asleep, they might need some extra encouragement. Scientist presume that the best way for a person to fall asleep is to mimic the sounds and motions babies experienced in the womb. This is why so many white noise devices contain heartbeat and swooshing sounds. If you are unable to hold your baby for long periods of time, you can drive around in the car for a while or buy an automated rocking chair. Simply sitting in a rocking chair with them in your arms might do the trick as well. Often times, you don’t need to fabricate the white noise: the cars outside of the window, quiet talking in the next room or even wind are some of the sounds that will put your baby to sleep.

Stay consistent

Your baby will soon get used to the routine if you stick to it yourself. But you have to make sure you are not changing anything, unless it’s absolutely necessary. Babies will notice if you start their bedtime later, don’t turn off the TV, leave a light on that is usually off, and all the other small changes. If, for example, your baby is not sleeping well because their sheets aren’t comfortable, you can replace them with ultra-soft sheets, which are made out of super fine materials. Also, if you notice that they sleep better if the temperature is lower, then start slightly lowering it to find the sweet spot. Make only small, subtle changes if you want your child to keep up with the routine, and if someone else is taking care of them for the night, make sure they know all the little details.

Putting them to bed might be the hardest thing to do right now, but rest assured that in a blink of an eye they will grow into teenagers and then you’ll be struggling to get them out of bed!

Isla Ann Wright

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