If you’re going through the phase of your child not wanting to sleep – you’re not alone. This happens to every parent, and it leaves you feeling helpless and exhausted. Pair that up with work the next day and you’re left with a cranky version of yourself. Not fun.
Here are some tips and tricks that you can put in place to help get your child to sleep, without using up all your free hours of an evening.
Have a consistent bedtime routine
Having a routine that you stick to is important for everyone in general, but even more so when it comes to your young child. Doing certain things at a specific time, like taking a bath, or reading a book, will tell your little one that bedtime is approaching. The act of knowing what comes next can be very comforting, especially for a child. So get a routine in place and stick to it. Before you know it, your baby’s body will automatically start feeling sleepy while going through the stages of bedtime.
Create your own cd
Telling your child a bedtime story, or singing them a song is a wonderful way to help them fall asleep to a soothing, familiar voice. Having said that, sometimes there just isn’t time to sit by their bed and tell them stories until they sleep – who knows how long you’ll be there for. One brilliant answer to this is making a cd. Don’t buy one – make one of yourself. Get someone to help you record your voice, telling your child’s favourite story, or singing their favourite song on the cd. Then get the help of Nationwide Disc Replication to make a few copies.
This will give you more time to relax in the evening, while keeping your little one calm.
Create a sleep-inducing environment
You may be under the impression that the more teddies in and around the bed – the better. But in fact, if there’s too many, it may cause your child a distraction or discomfort because there’s too much going on. Focus on the sheets, make sure they’re soft on your little one’s skin. Create the right amount of darkness in the room so there is an obvious difference between daytime and nighttime. And when it comes to the teddies, let your child decide what they want to bring to bed with them.
Keep it cool
You may have never thought about it before, but your child’s sleep cycle relies a lot on the temperature. Don’t tuck your child in so much that they’ll overheat, because their body won’t be able to relax as the imbalance of temperature will keep them awake. – Just how we have trouble sleeping in the summer because it’s so hot. So try and keep the bedroom at room temperature, or even a little below to promote a deeper sleep.
Try out these tricks and see if your child’s sleep improves. Just remember to be patient, the phase will pass, and you’ll get your own good night’s sleep… Eventually.
