Calm young woman in casual clothes caressing and embracing adorable sleeping baby while sitting on comfortable couch at home

Simple Ways to Create a Healthy Sleep Foundation for Your Infant

ByBrie Ann

Every parent knows that the quest for a good night’s sleep with a newborn can feel like a fairytale adventure, filled with challenges and magical moments alike. Setting a healthy sleep foundation from the beginning for your newborn starts with introducing sleep shaping techniques in the first few weeks of life.

These techniques will give you the skills and confidence to teach your infant simple, yet gentle ways to encourage longer stretches of sleep for you and your infant.

Do you know what Newborn Sleep Shaping is? It’s NOT sleep training!! It’s an approach to help infants establish healthy sleep patterns and routines from an early age.

It includes  contact naps and baby wearing to encourage bonding time

Here are some  of the benefits that Newborn Sleep Shaping offers your newborn:

  • Reduced fussiness- newborns tend to be  more content during their awake hours if they get frequent naps by following age appropriate wake windows.
  • Decreased colic and reflux symptoms- better sleep helps your infant stay awake during feedings to fill up their tummy.
  • Your infant will be content to lay down awake and may be able to continue sleeping well WITHOUT the need for sleep training later!

However, there are also many benefits to you as a Mom as well by introducing sleep shaping techniques. Some of these include reduced stress and anxiety and improved bonding time with your infant. A rested mother is more likely to be emotionally available and present which strengthens the mother-infant bond.

Newborn sleep shaping can contribute to better emotional and physical development for both the baby and the mother, while also offering long-term sleep benefits by reducing sleep regressions and fostering good sleep habits.

What are the basics of Infant Sleep Shaping?

The goal of infant sleep shaping is to improve the infant’s sleep quality by offering gentle ways that parents can be responsive and present to soothe their infant for naps and at night.

  1. Create a consistent sleep environment by sleeping in a dark room with blackout blinds.
  2. Develop a simple bedtime routine, this can help your infant start to understand that sleep is coming.
  3. Pay close attention to your newborn’s sleep cues to be able to lay your infant down for a nap or bedtime before they are overtired.
  4. Pause and wait if you hear noises from your infant. Not all noises mean it’s time to eat, your infant might surprise you and fall back to sleep. It’s normal for newborns to cycle in and out of different sleep cycles every 40-50 minutes.
  5. Feel free to baby wear and offer contact naps especially at the end of the day when your infant can struggle more with fussiness. Newborns seek comfort and reassurance often needing to be held and baby wearing is a great way to encourage sleep too!
  6. Cluster Feeding! Infants might engage in cluster feeding, where they need to feed more frequently in the evening hours. This is normal and encouraged and often helps infants get the extra nourishment they need before a longer sleep period.
  7. Keep nighttime feedings quiet and dark to help facilitate sleep for you and your infant. If you need a light, use a red night light, it’s the least intrusive color that won’t disrupt your sleep.
  8. Keep your infant swaddled for all naps and at bedtime to decrease the startle reflex which will allow them to stay asleep for longer periods of time. Swaddling can also help calm an overstimulated infant making it easier for them to transition into sleep.
    • For safety-Always place your infant on their back to sleep! Don’t use additional blankets, stuffed animals or toys in their sleep space.

I love supporting families in the newborn stage to be able to get off to a great start with their infants! Seeking support can provide valuable guidance at this stage of adjustment into parenting a newborn. My postpartum services include messaging support which will give you one on one expert education. Plus having support from a professional postpartum doula and sleep consultant when you need it most will be a benefit to your whole family!