4 Tips to Help Your Newborn Sleep

Newborn sleep solutions you can use tonight!

What if you had some newborn sleep solutions to help your infant sleep better tonight?

I’m sure you want to get a full nights sleep as soon as possible because sleep deprivation is exhausting! Newborn sleep shaping lays a foundation for your little one so that independent sleep can be part of your newborn’s story!

It’s not sleep training, it’s practicing skills and routines that help your newborn learn to sleep independently! This is helpful so that you are more likely to avoid sleep struggles down the road.

What is newborn sleep shaping?

It is creating positive sleep associations at a young age, understanding what your newborn’s cues are, following sleep cues and understanding how wake windows impact great sleep. Shaping a newborn’s sleep with consistency and positive sleep habits can be a great way to avoid sleep struggles later. Teaching your little one these skills now can also help them sleep better when you are ready to transfer your little one to their crib.

4 Tips you can start now to help your newborn sleep better tonight and in the future!

1. Create positive sleep associations that your newborn starts to learn to associate with sleep now to set a good foundation to foster great independent sleep skills. Such as swaddling for naps and bedtime.
2. Watch your newborn for sleep cues (signs that your newborn is tired.) Some newborn signs you might see include pink eyebrows, when your newborn avoids eye contact, staring away and when you see the FIRST yawn. The first yawn is a clue to you to start swaddling your newborn for a nap. Watch your newborn and see what cues come before she starts crying, as crying is a late cue that your little one is tired.
3. Apply wake windows to help your newborn not get overtired and extremely fussy. Try laying your newborn down awake at the end of their wake window. Wake Windows changes so frequently in the first 3 months. Make sure you are adjusting their wake windows every few weeks!
4. Being consistent and practice once or twice a day to lay your newborn down swaddled and awake at the end of the wake window. They might surprise you and fall asleep on their own! Remember, there is support available if you are struggling!

Remember newborns have irregular sleep, this is normal!

Newborns do not have regular sleep patterns. It usually takes 6-10 weeks for them to develop a good 24 hour schedule.

Newborn sleep can look like a 20 minute nap or a 2 hour nap and both of these are normal at this age. The goal is for their longer stretches of sleep to be at the beginning of the night.

The newborn period can be difficult but it doesn’t have to be something you have to figure out on your own. I want you to enjoy your newborn and be able to have support at your fingertips! I have a Newborn Support package that will give you messaging support when you need it to be able to thrive in the newborn stage. You are not alone!