SLEEP GUIDE FOR NEWBORNS AND TODDLERS

Practical Tips to Getting Started

BROUGHT TO YOU BY:

About the Author Cecile de Scally is an experienced, South African trained midwife. Qualified in 1990, she has more than 15 years of experience in Antenatal and Postnatal support and education. She started antenatal sessions with 2 other midwives in 1997 and the first post-natal and home visit program in 2004 at American Hospital which was successful. She had spoken at many conferences in Dubai as well as written articles that have been publish in a lot of local magazines. She had also spoken at radio and TV about baby feeding and sleeping habits. She is the founder of BabySenseDubai that aims to provide support and sound educational advice to ensure confident, happy and healthy families.

About this Book

Sleep plays a vital role in your child’s physical, emotional and mental growth. Like any other

person of whatever age, a child without enough sleep can be irritable and inattentive. The

earlier you can establish good sleep habits the better it is for you and your baby. This book will

provide you useful tips on how to make your newborns and toddlers sleep better.

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Introduction Do you know that your baby needs twice as much sleep as you need?

Health care professionals recommend that your baby gets enough

sleep but most people may ignore this fact, as they are still not aware

of the benefits of sleep for their newborns and toddlers.

Sleep is important for your baby. It affects their moods and their

immune system and their capability to develop socially. Sleep affects

the way your baby or toddler interacts with you and with other

people. As earlier stated, your baby needs as much sleep as you need

and more for their brain development. The brain of your child

develops at night and nobody can trivialize the importance of brain

development. The brain controls most of the anatomical and

physiological aspects of the body and so as a parent you need to

ensure adequate sleep for your child.

The amount of sleep affects the alertness of the child and their

concentration on different developmental aspects and how the child

relates with the environment and how they are able to pass through

the required psychological stages as described by doctors. Quality

sleep is as crucial to your newborns and toddlers as is the

nourishment you give them.

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Contents CHAPTER ONE (5)

Sleep and Nervous System Development

CHAPTER TWO (7)

Sleep Guide for Babies 0-6 Months

CHAPTER THREE (10)

Sleep Guide for Babies 6-12 Months

CHAPTER FOUR (13)

Sleep Guide for Babies 1-2 Years

CHAPTER FIVE (16)

How to Help Your Child Cope with Separation Anxiety

CHAPTER SIX (18)

Sleep Guide for Toddlers 2-5 Years

CHAPTER SEVEN (20)

Sleep Guide for Newborn Twins

CHAPTER EIGHT (23)

Managing Toddler Sleep When a New Baby Arrives

CHAPTER NINE (26)

More Useful Tips to Help New Parents Get Some Sleep

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Chapter 1

Sleep and Nervous System Development

According to research, the Central Nervous System (CNS) develops as

a result of the sleep that your baby gets. The development of the CNS

is very important as it coordinates the interaction of the baby and the

environment in terms of stimuli and response.

General body development also relies on the amount and the quality

of sleep that your baby gets. Further research shows the development

of the newborns’ immune system occurs while the baby sleeps. The

ability of the child to fight diseases will thus depend on the amount of

sleep they get.

While your child is awake, they are exposed to different experiences

which require time to process. Each of the experiences is new to them

and they have not yet learned to block out or how to deal with the

sounds and movements they need and those they do not need. Sleep

is thus a sanctuary from the social and the physical environment.

6 Sleep and Nervous System Development

There are two cycles of sleep that your baby will experience; deep

sleep (Non REM) and active sleep (REM). The two cycles rotates in 45 -

60 minutes cycle.

Active sleep involves movements and it is at this time that your baby

will twitch, smile, open eyes and other body movements. It is at this

time that the baby’s brain develops. The body movements indicate

the amount of activity going through the baby’s brain.

Deep sleep is important for your baby as different aspects of

development also take part during this time. Research shows that the

physical aspect of the brain and other physical aspects of the entire

body are developing and thus letting your child enjoy deep sleep is

crucial.

Your newborn’s or toddler’s sleep each day needs to be consistent, to

enable your baby to develop as required. Under normal conditions the

baby and toddler do not have to be forced to sleep as it is

involuntarily. Their body processes ensure that they sleep whether

you soothe them or not. Sleep is important and if it happens that your

baby stays awake for long without sleeping, you should seek help

from a trained professional.

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Chapter 2

Sleep Guide for Babies 0-6 Months

How much sleep is enough for a baby 0-6 months old?

This needs to be split into more specific ages as the first 6 weeks are

all about brain growth and the baby feeds a lot, so they may have very

short, one cycle sleeps. And may sleep for an hour and feed for an

hour. After this the next 6-12 weeks a baby will start to stay awake a

little longer, around 90 minutes which includes feeding and then sleep

for 90 minutes. Not every baby falls naturally into these patterns and

may start to need some assistance and guidance. They do not have

the knowledge of time and they often confuse day and night. Enough

sleep in the first 12 weeks can be 16-18 hours, split into a 12 hour

night and 4-6 hours during the day. After 12 weeks day sleep is mostly

around 4 hours, while once they reach 6 months they drop down to 2-

4 hours during the day. As the baby develops, they will recognize the

change in times and will thus sleep less during the day and more at

night. However, note that the babies require to be fed at least 2-3

times a night, up till 6 weeks and at least twice a night up till 12

weeks, they will only drop to one night feed after 12 weeks. Five

straight hours of sleep is often referred to as through the night

sleeping.

8 Sleep Guide for Babies 0-6 Months

Preparing the Babies 0-6 Months to Sleep

It takes a keen mother to learn the signs that a baby is tired and needs

resting. You should watch the child while they are playing and in the

minutes before they sleep. This will help you recognize the signs to

help your baby to achieve sleep when necessary. Common signs that

your baby is tired and needs to sleep include hiccupping, sneezing,

blinking, rubbing its eyes, random and jerky movements and crying.

Young babies are mostly relaxed and sleepy after each feeding.

Mothers can initiate a bedtime pattern that may include feeding,

bathing and some form of singing or story-telling for the child. Some

of the babies 0-6 months tend to be more alert during the evening

and at night– when the environment is quite rather than during the

day when they are involved with lots of playing. As the babies grow

more towards 6 months, they have more play time during the day and

they get to learn more from their surroundings. They are more in

touch with the environment and they have less time to play at night

as they are tired. The time they sleep at night will continue increasing

compared to the time they sleep during the day.

Getting Your Baby to Sleep

You should put your baby on their back to sleep. When a baby is tired,

they prefer being placed in the cot while awake and then they will

learn to sleep on their own. Babies have preferences in terms of the

environment they sleep in; some will sleep well in noisy places and

others will sleep well in dark and silent places.

9 Sleep Guide for Babies 0-6 Months

You have to watch your baby to know what it wants. To settle your

baby to sleep:

Have constant noise like humming or family conversations

or even singing which relaxes the baby to sleep. You can also

try vibration noise, often called white noise and see if it

works for your baby.

Most babies enjoy being swaddled and will start to enjoy

their arms out after 8-12 weeks.

Do not put a hat on your baby to sleep at night.

Settle baby in the cot on their back or side, use patting or

rocking and as you slow down they will calm down. This

relaxes them to sleep.

Rock the baby in its pram or crib for some time and let him

sleep. Try to avoid rocking in your arms. Babies under 6

months prefer when the mother or carer stays with them

before sleeping.

Check that the room temperature is cool before you leave.

You can regulate the babies clothing and covers to ensure

that your baby is comfortable. You should also ensure the

baby is not wrapped too tight and can move their arms.

Some babies under 6 months may prefer sucking a dummy

while other like a massage before sleeping.

Ensure that you follow a similar sleeping pattern every day

or night, this will help your baby gets used to the pattern

quickly.

A soothing voice and calm talk works miracles in getting

babies under 6 months to sleep.

Want to read more?

Need professional help?

Get the best practical sleep advice from

Cecile de Scally of BabySenseDubai ─

Mobile: +971 55 588 6298

Email: cecilemidwife@gmail.com