This is one of the most common questions I hear from parents. “My baby wakes several times during the night for a feed. When can I drop the night feeds?”

No two babies are alike they all come in this world with their own sleeping pattern. Some babies are born good sleepers while others need your guidance. But somewhere between the ages of 4 and 6 months, most babies get enough calories during the day to sustain them for five or six hours at night.

Being realistic in your approach will help you during hard times. Remember with your help you can encourage your baby to develop healthy sleep habits.

It will take more effort and time but it will happen and the rewards are endless.

For a normal healthy weight baby by 6 months of age night feeding is not required. If you are unsure check with your doctor or maternal health nurse regarding your baby’s growth and age to determine if you should continue night feeds.

In his book Solve Your Child’s Sleep Problems, Paediatrician Richard Ferber says unnecessary night feedings may actually cause sleep problems. According to Ferber, if a baby wakes up to eat several times during the night, a very wet nappy or digestive problems may cause them to wake up and then want to feed more, creating a vicious cycle.

Paediatrician William Sears, emphasizes the benefits of night feedings for strengthening the bond between parent and child. Sears urges parents not to rush to night weaning as long as the feedings aren’t too disruptive to the family.

If you’ve recently gone back to work and are less available during the day, your baby may want to feed at night as a way of reconnecting with you. And you may notice that your baby wakes up more often when he’s teething, catches a cold, or is going through a developmental leap. Remember that your baby is still young and has a tremendous need for comfort, closeness, and reassurance – particularly from you.

I often hear “my baby is hungry through the night”. This may be the case and how do you tell if they are actually hungry and need their night feed? Firstly, if you notice their first morning feed they are not take a full feed, this is a sure sign they are ready to drop the night feed. A baby will self-regulate their caloric intake and if they have no feeds during the night they will take the necessary calories they require during their waking hours.

No baby or adult sleeps consistently for 12 hours without intermitted wake ups. As adults, we have learnt to roll over, or get up to go to the toilet, and fall back to sleep.

 The aim is to allow your baby the opportunity to link their sleep cycles and to self-settle without your involvement.

However, what is age appropriate and without doing a full evaluation of your baby and family’s situation this is a guide on how many feeds between 7pm and 7am to get the well-deserved sleep you both aspire to.

Practical tips for dropping the night feeds

• Be sure your baby is healthy and has a normal healthy weight gain.

• Make sure your baby gets plenty to eat throughout the day.

• Offer extra feedings in the prior to bedtime.

• Avoid night-weaning during times of transition or illness.

• Have a plan of the times you will feed and gradually eliminate the feeds or reduce the volume, one at a time. Gently soothe and comfort your baby when they wake to feed, and explain that it’s time to sleep.

If you try to eliminate feedings and your baby cries inconsolably for several nights in a row, go back to your normal routine and try again in a week or two.

Sleep when your Baby Sleeps” Everyone knows this classic tip but we all know that is not possible….. your baby, on the other hand, is programmed to take naps.

 A babies daytime sleep and nighttime sleep work hand- in- hand with each other; the better a little one’s daytime sleep the better their nighttime sleep. Without napping during the day, a baby will become overtired. When a baby becomes overtired their bodies produce a hormone called adrenaline which helps them fight fatigue. Once that hormone kicks in, it is much harder for a little one to settle down and fall into a long, deep restorative sleep.

Understanding what is age appropriate for your baby to nap during the day is reassuring for parents that their baby will get the sleep they need so as not to be unsettled and overtired at bedtime. Being overtired can cause your baby to wake often throughout the night.

There are many different ways to teach your baby how to sleep better and success is defined differently for each family. Some babies sleeping habits become more consistent and predictable over time and your baby may fall into a fair pattern, however, if that’s not the case, you can gently encourage your babies emerging routine. Babies thrive on consistency and this will assist in them falling into a good sleep pattern.

 Our circadian rhythms dictate the times of day that is best for babies to have their naps as their hormones and body temperature are at the optimum level for good sleeps so settling will be easier, there is reduced stress and crying, longer sleeps are more likely and your baby is will be happier.

These nap windows fall 9 – 10am, 12 -2pm and 6 – 7 pm.

The morning nap to begin between 9 – 10 am. Treat this morning nap as a short nap of about 30 – 60 minutes to get them through to the longer lunch time sleep which is more restorative.

We do the longer lunch time sleep because this is where your little one is genetically programmed to get a deeper more restorative sleep. They reduce their sleep deficit in the middle of the day rather than at the beginning so that they are less likely to be over tired by night time. This is the sleep that remains when they finally drop the morning sleep which is around 16 – 18 months.

Power Nap

For a baby up to 6 months of age, they will need a very short power nap between 4 – 5 pm. This is to prevent them from becoming overtired before bedtime.

Ensure your baby has an optimum sleep environment

Dark Room

Their room must be very dark. The reason is because babies start to produce their own melatonin, the sleep hormone, from around 8 – 12 weeks of age and it is far more readily produced in darkness.

White Noise

White noise is recommended and encouraged to have playing for all their day time naps. This is very effective all the way up until about 12 months old. It needs to be quite loud and a constant sound to be effective, like a vacuum cleaner or heavy rain, and it needs to play continuously for the duration of their naps.

Swaddling

Swaddling is recommended until between 4-6 months of age or when your baby is rolling from back to front. The reason for this is your baby has the Moro reflex or startle reflex which is normally present in babies up to 3 or 4 months of age. The baby feels as if they are falling and they fling their arms out and the startle can wake them up.

Be sure to always place your baby on their back to sleep, and clear the bassinet or cot of blankets and other soft items.

Ideally, naps should be taken in the same place every day—consistency will make it easier for your little one fall and stay asleep. Usually, that place is where the baby sleeps at night, either in a bassinet or cot.

Avoid holding, rocking or feeding your baby to sleep.

In the early months of life, this may be the only way your baby is able to fall asleep and it is entirely normal. After around 3 months of age if your baby tends to fall asleep in your arms or while feeding, do something gentle right afterward such as changing their nappy or reading a short story to ensure you put your baby to bed drowsy, but awake. Drooping eyelids, eye rubbing and fussiness might be signs that your baby is tired. The longer you wait the more overtired and fussy your baby may become and the harder it will be for them to fall asleep.

Consistency is key

Putting your little one down for their naps at the same each day will go a long way to helping establish great naps. With a consistent schedule, you are likely to have fewer issues getting your little one to sleep well. When settling them down for a nap, having a routine is very important. A wind down period prior to a nap takes just a few minutes and helps indicate that nap time is coming next.

Don’t feel bad if some days are more challenging than others. Remember to look and listen for the signs that your baby is tired and try to keep their nap routine consistent.

The Curse of the Newborn Witching Hour!  And how to break it

It is 5pm and it starts. Your newborn baby is fussing and there appears nothing you do will help to settle them. Sounds like the witching hour has arrived again.

In European folklore, the witching hour is the time of the day when demons, monsters or other horrifying supernatural creatures are at their most powerful and wicked. Some people call it the baby’s “arsenic hour”, which sounds horrifying.

The witching hour can be described as a fussy period that almost all babies go through. It tends to happen around the same time every day and most frequently occurs in the late afternoon and evening hours (5 p.m.- 12 a.m.). The witching hour often begins between weeks 2 and 3. It will peak around week 6, and then decline around the 3-month mark. The worst thing is that the term “Witching Hour” is misleading (like ‘morning’ sickness!)… this period often lasts 3-4 hours or more at a time!

What Causes the Witching Hour?

I’m sorry to say, but there really are no known causes for it. Colic and reflux is often to blame.

Many parents feel sure, and may be told by healthcare professionals, family or friends that the baby must have ‘wind’ or painful ‘colic’ when they cry inconsolably. The accepted definition of colic is over 60 years old and applies to a healthy baby aged under 3-months who:

• cries inconsolably for more than 3 hours.

•  3 days out of every seven.

•  more than 3 weeks.

Colic is sometimes applied to any unexplained, persistent crying, usually assumed to be gut-related. There is, however, no scientific evidence that colic exists as a physical problem, or that wind is painful. The idea that babies cry for a long time because the wind is ‘trapped’ is not well supported by the research or physiology. The baby who gets rid of wind (one end or the other) and then stops crying may have taken in the wind by crying rather than wind causing the crying.

Possible causes for this fussiness include:

Overtiredness: Babies sometimes have a hard time developing a good sleep pattern, and over time that sleep debt will build up until they’re actually pretty miserable.

Overstimulation: Babies can easily become overstimulated due to all of the sights and sounds around them. While your baby isn’t necessarily taking part in all of the action, it still has an effect on her, which in turn can cause fussiness.

Prolactin levels drop: This could be contributed to a natural dip in mum’s prolactin levels (your body’s milk making hormone) as the day progresses, resulting in a slower flow. As the milk flow is slower, the baby may become frustrated, and as the milk volume is lower, the baby may want to feed more often. Be assured, this is a normal occurrence in breastfeeding. Feeding your baby often during these times ensures that you will have a good milk supply.

Tips

• Ensuring their awake time between naps is age appropriate to reduce that sleep debt from building up.

• Start with a regular feeding and nap schedule which is age appropriate. This will allow you to stop second guessing and reassure you that your baby is getting the sleep they need and they are not hungry but it is just a fussy period which is entirely normal.

• This is the time of day to offer frequent feeds or cluster feeding, as it offers comfort and allows them to relax and calm down.

• Skin to skin with your baby is also a great way to help calm and regulate their little system. Doing skin to skin is like a baby reboot! Skin to skin isn’t just for moms, dads can do it as well.

• Using a baby carrier allows baby to still be close to you, but frees up your hands to do other tasks. Dimming lights, slowing down the hustle and bustle of household activities, and switching to a low-key routine can often help those babies who are easily over stimulated.

• Bath time is often done around this time as it is calming and relaxing. Most newborns love being in the water, it is familiar to them, as they were surrounded by water in the womb.

• Take up the offer of help from family and friends

• Don’t blame yourself. This time does pass and research suggests babies become calmer, with less crying, after 3months of age.

When your baby arrives in the world, we think of how cute and tiny they are. With their adorable faces and innocent smiles. It is hard to not marvel at the miracle of life. But many parents are not prepared for the lack of sleep and the struggle they may face. The earlier you introduce healthy sleep habits the easier it will be. The older your baby is before you start the more likely you are to get protesting and tears.

There are many different ways to teach your baby how to sleep and success is defined differently for each family. There is no one size fits all approach to baby sleep. Some infants’ sleeping and feeding habits become more consistent and predictable over time and your baby may fall into a fairly predictable pattern, however, if that’s not the case, you can gently encourage your baby’s emerging routine. The most important part of sleep training is finding the method that works best for you and your baby. It depends on what you are comfortable with and how your baby responds to the different techniques.

Before you even think about sleep training your baby make sure you have an;

• Optimal sleep environment – a dark room, white noise and a firm swaddle.

• An age-appropriate routine.

• Regular naps and feeding schedule.

• A consistent bedtime each night and waking time each morning.

You can introduce a feeding and nap schedule and bedtime routine with a predictable wind-down period from 6 wsleeping through the nighteeks of age. This will encourage a predictable pattern which will help their set circadian rhythm and hormones.

Between 4 and 6 months, your baby is most likely ready for sleep training. While all babies are different, most babies at this age are capable of sleeping through the night. For some, this may be a six-hour stretch and for others, it may be 12 hours.

Sleep Training Techniques

Shush-Pat

The Shush-Pat is a good ‘no cry’ approach to teaching them to sleep with assistance and suitable from 6 weeks to 7 months of age.

Pick Up/Put Down

The pick up/put down approach is suitable for a baby over 3 months. It is reassuring and instils trust that you have not abandoned them, you are there to comfort them while they are learning to fall asleep. You pick them up for 1 minute. The pickup must be a boring pick up. The minute they stop crying put them back down in their cot. Repeat this process until you can see signs that your baby is settling and leave the room.

Gradual Withdrawal

This is a gentle sleep training method that lets you be a comforting presence as your child learns to put themselves to sleep. This sees you gradually reducing your involvement in your child falling asleep so they stop relying on you and instead learn to fall asleep on her own. You start our right by their side and over a 2week period gradually move further away until you will be able to leave the room.

Spaced Soothing

Spaced soothing is suitable from around 5 months. This is where you gradually teach your child how to fall asleep without your assistance through a series of incremental check-ins. Over time, you increase the amount of time between your check-ins. This allows your child space and time in which to practice falling asleep without using sleep associations.

Silent Returns

This is suitable for toddlers aged around 2 years. It is literally you silently returning your child back to bed when they get out of bed or go into your bed. You want these interactions to be as boring as possible – no threatening, no bargaining, no discussing. This will help discourage your child from repeated attempts to engage with you by getting out of bed.

All Sleep Training takes hard work, determination and consistency is your secret weapon!

If your baby is waking several times during the night it is unlikely to be directly related to teething. Your baby’s deepest sleep is from bed time through to midnight and from midnight till 7am your baby is in a light sleep phase and it is very common for your them to wake frequently and need to be settled.

Study on teething and related symptoms

When your baby is born, they generally have all their baby teeth (also known as primary teeth), but you cannot see them yet.

Girls teeth generally appear earlier than boys. Most children will have all of their 20 baby teeth by the age of three years.

For some babies the arrival of teeth happens without any pain, whilst for other babies teething may cause discomfort.

Teeth usually come through in pairs starting with the bottom front followed by the top two middle and then along the sides and back.

The diagram below is a general guide to when baby teeth will appear. The timing for the appearance of teeth can vary greatly.

There is no doubt teething in an ongoing issue for parents in the early months. Parents often describe a wide and varying range of symptoms with seems to persist for several weeks.

In a recent Australian study, most (70–85%) of parents in the study believed that teething causes fever, pain, irritability, sleep disturbance, mouthing/biting, drooling and red cheeks; 35–55% reported nappy rash, ‘sooking’, ear pulling, feeding problems, runny nose, loose stools, and infections; and a few (< 15%) reported smelly urine, constipation or colic.

Symptoms were only significantly more frequent in the 4 days before a tooth appeared, the day of the it appeared, and 3 days after, so this 8-day window was defined as the teething period.

Symptoms associated with teething

The symptoms reported were increased biting, drooling, gum-rubbing, sucking, irritability, wakefulness, ear-rubbing, facial rash, decreased appetite for solid foods, and mild temperature elevation were all associated with teething.

Symptoms not associated with teething

Chest congestion, sleep disturbance, loose and frequent stools, decreased appetite for milk, cough, rashes other than facial rashes, fever over 39°C, and vomiting were not significantly associated with the appearance of a tooth.

Conclusion

It has been concluded that almost all parents, the majority of nurses, and many physicians believe that teething is associated with the appearance of symptoms, most of which are minor and relate to discomfort rather than physical illness and most use some form of medication to manage it.

Treatments

Analgesia

If your one of the lucky ones your baby’s teeth will appear with no signs and symptoms!

Most parents accept that teething is an uncomfortable but a transient part of a baby’s development. However, teething is manageable if you’re happy (and it is appropriate) to give your baby pain relief which, as a nurse, I absolutely was.

Teething Gels

In May 2019 a popular teething gel is being removed from the Australian market after incidents of infants being harmed consuming too much of the active ingredient. Teething gels that contains lidocaine are said to be harmful if swallowed. There are many other safe products available and your pharmacists will be able to advise you.

Teething Rings

It is recommended that if a child has swollen and tender gums, you gently massage them with your finger and give the child a cool, teething ring or a clean, wet, cool washcloth to chew on. Frozen fruits are great for you little one to chew on, especially water melon.

I am passionate about SLEEP and understand the benefits for both adults and children, the evidence supporting sleep is compelling and widely understood and supported by health care professionals around the world.

The human brain—yours and your baby’s—runs on sleep. The American Academy of Paediatrics (AAP) has linked babies’ frequent night wakings to everything from postpartum depression in mums to future obesity and behaviour problems in kids. As Marc Weissbluth, M.D., the author of Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Children, explains, children who don’t get enough consolidated REM sleep have shorter attention spans, so they don’t learn as well. These babies also release more of the stress hormone cortisol, setting them up for frequent night wakings and short day naps.

Postpartum Depression

Relations between night waking in infants and depressive symptoms in their mothers at 6 months postpartum were examined using the data from the National Institute for Child Health and Human Development Study of Early Child Care. Although more depressive symptoms were only weakly correlated with a higher frequency of infant waking, longer wake times, and more total time awake, the rate of clinically significant depression scores was about double in mothers of chronically waking infants in comparison with mothers whose infants did not awaken during the night.

If your baby becomes overtired, the stress hormone cortisol is released, and the stress hormones are responsible for making your baby appear hyper alert, difficult to get to sleep, and difficult to stay asleep. These stress hormones including adrenalin cause your baby to wake more frequently throughout their naps and their night sleep. This is why we do our best to avoid your baby becoming overtired and stressed.

Self-settling

I cannot emphasise enough how important it is to start early with developing healthy sleep habits. The secret to teaching your baby to sleep well is to allow them to self-settle. The ability to fall asleep and stay asleep is a learned behaviour. The earlier you start to assist your baby, the easier it will be for them. If your baby is not self-settling from around 6 months of age, it may become more difficult and take longer for them to acquire this skill.

Sleep Associations

It is important to avoid falling into the trap of developing sleep associations that hinder your baby’s ability to learn to self-settle.

One of the key issues to address with self-settling is sleep associations. This means – what does your baby think they needs to fall asleep? If they have a sleep association that involves you then they will think they needs you to fall back to sleep.

All babies stir or wake at the end of each sleep cycle, and need to be able to resettle themselves back to sleep each time in order to sleep through the night. Until your baby can fall asleep by themselves they will continue to wake crying in the night and need your help to fall back to sleep.

If your baby is falling asleep at the breast or in your arms being rocked or bounced up and down, this is likely to be their sleep association. When they wake periodically through the night or during their naps they will not be able to settle alone as you, their sleep prop, is not there and they do not have to ability to return to sleep without you!

There are many gentle sleep training methods to teach your child how to fall asleep on their own in a secure environment and it is absolutely possible for all age groups.

When your baby arrives into the world, we think of how cute and tiny they are. With their adorable faces and innocent smiles. It is hard not to marvel at the miracle of life. But many parents are not prepared for the lack of sleep and the struggle they may face. The earlier you introduce healthy sleep habits the easier life will be for you and your baby.

Sleep Environment

Darkness

I recommend to make their room as dark as possible. The reason I suggest this is because at around 6 weeks of age they already know day and night and between 8-12 weeks of age babies start to produce their own melatonin, the sleep hormone, and this is far more readily produced in darkness.

White Noise

I recommend white noise for all their naps. It needs to play continuously for the duration of their naps and overnight sleep if they are unsettled. This is effective all the way up until about 12 months old and can be particularly helpful for newborns as it simulates the sound they hear in the womb. It needs to be very loud to be effective.

Swaddling

I recommend swaddling until between 4-6months of age, as the Moro (startle) reflex is often still very strong up until around 3 months old and can cause disruption from sleep. I recommend an arms down swaddle or a large wrap.

Monitor awake times

To help encourage them to start to take more consistent naps it is important to look at the time they are awake between naps and ensure its age appropriate. The reason for this is we want them tired enough to sleep well, without being so overtired that they find it difficult to sleep at all. For a newborn, we look at around 45 mins to 1hour awake time. A new born can become overtired very quickly. I recommend you set a timer from the minute they are awake and set it for 45 minutes and watch closely for tired signs. By the time they are 3 months old their awake times will increase to 1.45hour and up to 2 hours at 4 months.

Tired signs

Tired signs are these: they have been looking at you or interacting with you, and suddenly they look away, they have lost attention; their eyelids begin to droop just a bit and it’s getting harder for them to keep their eyes open; they zone right out with a glazed look in their eye. They arch their back and begin to squirm. They yawn, you’d better have their swaddle ready for sleep, because, the window is closing and if they get a second wind, they will begin to cry, and you may have to wait to the end of their next awake cycle before they will be ready to go to sleep. And they will probably cry while you wait out that 90 minutes of this alert cycle.

What are assisted naps

If your baby is not sleeping for long stretches, anything less than 90 minutes of sleep is not a full nap, it is sometimes easier to hold your baby for a nap or go for a walk and let your baby fall asleep in a stroller or pop them in a front pack in order to artificially induce longer stretches of sleep. Offer some naps in the bassinet and some naps on the go until their sleep matures, this will give you the flexibility to keep them rested, while also allowing them to maintain good habits in their room and bassinet.

Why do we do assisted naps

For newborns the aim of the assisted naps is to get your baby used to sleeping for longer stretches, which will help them to sleep through the night as soon as they is physically able to.

When are assisted naps appropriate?

Assisted naps are great for newborns from birth up to around 3 months. After 3 months I encourage you to allow your baby to become familiar with their room and sleep environment so this is their sanctuary where they recognise this is their environment where they sleep.

How to stop assisted naps

It is important to stop assisted naps, otherwise this may become a sleep association for them. All babies stir or wake at the end of each sleep cycle, and need to be able to resettle themselves back to sleep each time in order to sleep for long stretches. Until your baby can fall asleep by themselves, they will continue to wake crying and need your help to fall back to sleep.

One of the key issues to address with self-settling is sleep associations. This means – what does your baby think they needs to fall asleep? If they have a sleep association that involves you they will think they need you to fall back to sleep.

The most age appropriate settling technique for new born is the shush pat. The shush pat does take time and dedication to be effective but is very easy to back off from when they have the hang of it and is a good ‘no cry’ approach to teaching them to sleep with assistance and then removing this.

If they are really really crying, once in their basinette, pat them firm and fast and continue until they begins to calm down, as they become calmer reduce your patting to a tick tock, tick tock as they gradually stops crying, leave your hand on them untill they are asleep.

If they are fully crying for 5 – 10 minutes pick them up and continue to pat them, on their side, in your arms. So what you are doing t is side settling them, as they calm down, say about 90 % asleep, place them in their basinette and continue to leave your hands on their until they are completely calm and fall asleep.They will begin to associate patting with falling asleep. At first this may be in your arms but untimately you will settle them in their bassinette

As they gets used to going to sleep with patting this will make backing it off much easier, as you get to a point wtheire you can give them a cuddle and light pat over your shoulder and this is their sleep cue, so you then pop them in their basinette fully awake and they will go to sleep..

Nightmares and night terrors are both scary and can cause sleep disturbances, but they are not the same thing. Knowing some of the main differences can help you understand what’s going on and discover possible steps you can take to improve sleep.

Nightmares are defined as dreams with strong negative emotions which awaken your child. A nightmare begins as a normal dream and turns frightening towards the end. Most scary dreams are quickly forgotten! If your child is having a nightmare they can be awakened and consoled and it will spontaneously subside.

Night mares can occur as young as 2 years, however, evidence shows the highest prevalence between the ages of 5 and 10 years.

 Typical signs of nightmares

• Nightmares occur during REM sleep when the brain is most prone to vivid dreaming.

• The dreams are scary and unsettling and vividly recalled.

• They occur later at night or early-morning hours when the brain reaches that part of the sleep cycle.

• Typically, your child will awaken immediately with a pretty clear recall of the bad dream. (but quickly forgotten)

• Often, children will want to talk about the bad dream and have you reassure them that everything is ok.

Typical signs of Night Terror

• Your 3 – 10 year old utters a piercing scream and you run into their room!

• They appear wild-eyed, anxious and frightened and may shout, sleepwalk, or appear scared for several minutes before relaxing back into sleep.

• You cannot wake them up and you cannot comfort them.

• Later they will only have a vague recall of the dream.

• More common between 4 – 8 years

• Night terrors are a sleep disorder, resulting from a partial arousal during slow-wave sleep.

• Night terrors tend to occur earlier, during non-REM sleep.

• They usually occur within 2 hours of sleep onset and are characterized by agitation and unresponsiveness to external stimuli.

Although it can be distressing to see your child experiencing a night terror they aren’t harmful and chances are they won’t even remember it in the morning.

Here are some tips for helping your child with nightmares:

1. Talk to your child during the day about ways to soothe and cope with nightmares.

2. Give your child a comfort object such as a stuffed animal to protect them.

3. Avoid scary movies, stories, or TV shows, especially before bed.

4. If your child wakes up from a nightmare, calm them down and assure them that they are safe.

5. Don’t bring your child into your bedroom or sleep in theirs when they are afraid. This will quickly result in a bad habit.

6. Praise your child for “being brave” and falling asleep on their own after a nightmare.

If you suspect your child is not really having nightmares and running into your room at night and wanting to get into bed with you. I have found “magical monster spray” works a treat. Spray a bit of scented water at bedtime, to ward off monsters, or doing monster hunts around the room (to prove to the child that no monsters are there.) And these certainly can work.

Whether the concern is night terrors or nightmares, if frightening dreams are keeping you or your child awake at night for several nights (or weeks) in a row, consider talking with your doctor.

There is so much uncertainty surrounding Covid-19 and what our future may look like. Especially now, as we have been asked to physically distance ourselves from others around us and we are almost being entirely confined to our homes.

Baby Sleep Consultants are still working during Covid-19. In fact, we are all very busy as families struggle with being at home, working and entertaining the kids, life can be very hectic and unpredictable. The extra work load within the home and lack of support from family and friends has left many parents vulnerable to increased risks of postpartum depression and anxiety.

I am sure you have had plenty of family time in the past two months with lack of outings and activities and the stress of being stuck inside, our daily schedules have been thrown out the window while we are juggling working from home and entertaining the kids.

Your babies and toddlers need fresh air and sunshine and to burn off that excess energy so they are not wide-eyed at bedtime. The increased use of screens with distance learning and occupying their day, is totally understandable, but can interfere with sleep. Screens give a blue light, which can suppress the release of melatonin, a hormone, when released assists with sleep.

Many babies and toddlers are experiencing sleep regressions during this time. This unpredictable time is even more challenging when you have a baby or toddler who is;

• Waking frequently at night

• Experiencing a sleep regression

• Will only sleep in your arms

• Having short cat naps

• Early morning wake ups

• Getting out of bed

Adequate sleep is linked to all the things we need right now - boosted immune systems, greater attention spans, stronger emotional regulation, and much more.

You can tackle both – sleep and the uncertainty your child is facing - helping your entire family get the sleep you all need!

Prioritise outdoor activity

The benefits of outdoor activity are endless for our children’s from health, creativity, and social interaction, physical and mental well-being. When it comes to sleep it gives them the boost of sunshine they need. The brain tunes its "inner clock" using light cues, so going outdoors can help children maintain healthy sleep rhythms. They burn off excess energy to ensure they are adequately tired before bed time.

Maintain consistent nap routine

Sticking to a consistent nap schedule is very important. Though it might be tempting to move naps around to accommodate your zoom calls, try not to get too far off the regular schedule. Provided you have age appropriate awake times and encourage a longer nap in the middle of the day, this also gives you the break you need and ensures your baby is well rested and happy.

Early Bed Time Advantages

The best time for all children and toddlers to go to bed is between 6-7pm. An early bedtime can mean much more restful sleep for your child, and it is often much easier to implement than parents think. Here are the benefits of an early bedtime for your children.

• Quicker to fall sleep

• Less resistance at bedtime

• Less bedtime battles

• Quality family time before bed

• Less early morning wake ups

• More overall sleep time

• A healthier happier child

• More quality time for parents

Most importantly be kind to yourself and other around you.

For more information, check out the Sleep During the COVID-19 Pandemic resources;

Sleep for parents and their babies

Children’s sleep during the COVID-19 pandemic – Tips for parents

Tips to support better sleep and daytime functioning

As a certified sleep consultant and a mother, I know firsthand, early morning wakes up can be frustrating at any age and a tough habit to break for some babies and toddlers.

The definition of early morning waking is when your baby wakes between 4:00 – 6:00 am. Waking after 6am is considered waking for the day and waking before 4 am is considered night time wake up. The preferred wake time for babies is 7am, however, depending on their age and your family dynamics 6am for some families, is acceptable.

We all have sleep drive, this is the feeling of being tired and ready for sleep. Sleep drive builds up during the day because our circadian rhythm is optimal for sleep and the conditions are perfect for your brain and body. This is when we need a break and are ready to sleep and the time of day our body expects to go to sleep.

A baby’s sleep drive is very low between 4:00 - 6:00 am. We all slightly wake up multiple times during these early morning hours and we have learnt to go back to sleep. This is a skill your baby has to learn and may need our help.

For adults, sleep is an essential part of overall health. Getting enough sleep offers many physical benefits, while NOT getting enough sleep can interfere with work, driving, your sense of wellbeing and it is well documented that can lead to increases the risk of diabetes, hypertension, heart disease, stroke, depression and effects on memory. If you are sleep deprived, it’s most likely your child is also sleep deprived and may be irritable, grumpy and struggling with settling for naps during the night or early morning wake ups.

Why does my baby or toddler wake up early?

Reasons your baby is waking early in the morning:

• The most likely reason is being overtired – contrary to what most parents believe waking early can be a sign of not enough sleep.

• The morning nap may be too long.

• The morning nap is too early and can, in fact, cause and then reinforce an early wake up as your baby needs to

• wake earlier to be ready to have a longer sleep.

• The afternoon nap is too late, this can really interfere with bedtime.

• Bed time too late – putting your child to bed later is not the answer to solving early wake ups.

• Light entering the room as the sun comes up.

• Social interaction – entering the room and engaging with your child.

As you can see there are a multitude of reasons why your baby or toddler is waking too early, so what can you do to solve this?

• A long gentle predictable ritual transition to bedtime, or a wind down period is recommended and keep this consistent every night. This should be no less than 10 -15 minutes. Have the house quiet, no TV, perhaps soft relaxing music, read a book or sing songs. Create a gentle and calming environment.

• Ensure their sleep schedule is age appropriate and at the correct times. Our circadian rhythms dictate the times of day that is best for babies to have their naps as their hormones and body temperature are at the optimum level for good sleeps so settling will be easier, there is reduced stress and crying, longer sleeps are more likely and your baby is will be happier.

• These nap windows fall 9 - 10am, 12 -2pm and 6 – 7 pm.

• Make sure they are getting enough sleep overall.

• Early bed time is essential.

• Hold off on feeding before 7am.

Fortunately, for most babies and toddlers, this is a stage they go through and our children won’t sleep badly forever. If you feel like you have tried everything and nothing is working for you and you’re feeling sleep deprived and exhausted, reach out and ask for professional help. At Mother in touch baby sleep consultant we look at your individual child and develop a strategy to help all the family sleep well.

Wishing you all the luck towards getting your sleep back!

Darkness

When do I teach my baby day and night?

Your baby knows day and night at around 8 weeks of age as they start to produce their melatonin, the sleep hormone, and this is far more readily produced in darkness. This hormone is crucial to your baby's settling and sleeping well.

Should my room be dark for daytime naps?

The fact is that babies find the dark extremely comforting and it will be a lot easier for your baby to settle and sleep in a dark room. Especially if your baby is over 2 months old as the dark promotes the release of melatonin.

White Noise

Does white noise work?

Babies have what are called “sleep arousals”, usually about every 20 to 45 minutes.

When they hit their sleep arousal at the 20-minute mark they are unable to fall back into a deeper sleep and thus their nap is over. White noise helps babies gently navigate these arousals to get longer, more restorative naps. It also helps to block out the noise of life (older siblings, doorbells, garbage trucks, etc.) that can interfere with naps and night sleep.

White noise is effective up until about 12 months old but can be particularly helpful for newborns as it simulates the womb environment. It needs to be very loud to be effective, like a vacuum cleaner and it needs to play continuously for the duration of naps and overnight sleep.

Swaddling

Swaddling is the art of snugly wrapping your baby for warmth and security. It calms your baby – and helps them settle and sleep longer.

Swaddling is effective for two reasons:

1. It emulates the confined feeling of being in the womb.

2. It prevents your baby from waking themselves up because of the startle reflex (also known as ‘moro’), which remains strong until around 4 months.

I recommend an arms-down swaddle – with a large wrap or commercial swaddle.

Sleep regression refers to a period of time, usually lasting about 3 to 6 weeks, during which a baby or toddler, who has been sleeping well, suddenly begins waking up at night, taking shorter naps, or skipping naps without any apparent reason. Parents often find themselves caught off guard as they think they have resolved all sleep-related issues, but suddenly, they are back to dealing with constant night wakings or nap refusal. Sleep regressions can occur at any age, but the most common ages are:

4 Month Sleep Regression

At around 3 to 4 months of age, a baby's sleep pattern undergoes a developmental change. At this stage, they start sleeping in stages and cycles similar to adults. The impact of this change on their sleep quality depends on how they fall asleep. If the baby has learned to fall asleep on their own, self-settle, without any assistance from you, this shift in sleep cycles may not affect their sleep much. However, if the baby is fed, rocked, or assisted in sleeping, they are more likely to experience frequent night wakings and short naps.

6 – 9 Month Sleep Regression

Between 6 and 9 months of age, babies start to become more mobile. They may be crawling or walking, and they may also be constantly teething during this period. At this stage, babies typically transition to taking two naps per day. However, it's common for separation anxiety to peak during this period, causing babies who once went to sleep peacefully to suddenly stand up and reach for their parents, refusing to follow their usual nap routine. Additionally, the transition from three to two naps can result in overtiredness, making it temporarily harder for babies to settle and sleep well.

18 month Sleep Regression

As toddlers reach the age of 18 months, they undergo another round of developmental milestones, which often leads to a period of sleep regression. During this time, toddlers go through a nap transition and adjust to staying awake for longer periods. This can cause them to become overtired. This period can be particularly challenging for parents because children start to test boundaries and become more independent. You may find that your toddler's new favourite word is "no". As a result, bedtime can become much more difficult as your child begins to experiment with their own ideas and may not go along with your established sleep routine. It's worth noting that sleep issues may even arise before this period, as a 12-month sleep regression is also common.

2 Year Regression

Many parents of two-year-old face two main sleep issues: nap refusal and bedtime battles. At this age, toddlers typically need longer periods of awake time to feel tired enough to sleep. This means they may resist settling down for naps and bedtime if they're offered too early. Additionally, their desire for independence and testing of boundaries can make bedtime a power struggle, especially during a toddler sleep regression. The emergence of two-year molars can also make it tough for toddlers to sleep, particularly if they're had sleep-related issues in the past.