My second baby is due in just a few weeks, and I am over-the-moon excited for almost every aspect of her arrival.
Snuggles and cuddles? Yes!
Those very first smiles? Bring ’em on!
That new baby smell? Cannot wait!
The only thing I’m decidedly not looking forward to? Sleep deprivation, of course!
Fortunately, now I have a couple of tricks up my sleeve that I learned when my son was an infant. Here are 6 baby sleep tips that worked for us the first time around (after much research and trial-and-error on my part). No doubt I’ll be using these techniques again with baby #2!
6 Baby Sleep Tips Every Parent Should Know
1. Get baby comfy.
If there’s one thing that’s certain, it’s that all babies are different—and therefore have different sleep preferences.
Many infants love being swaddled nice and tight, but others can’t stand it (and still others prefer the arms-out half-swaddle). Similarly, some babies like a cooler room for sleeping, while others snooze better when it’s slightly warmer.
Play around with these factors until you determine exactly what makes your little one most comfortable.
2. Make it dark.
My son started sleeping longer in the mornings as soon as we added blackout window shades to the room. You can imagine what a glorious day it was when we discovered this simple trick and actually got to sleep in past 5:30am!
3. Add sound.
Because we adults generally sleep better when it’s quiet, it’s easy to forget that our newborns just spent nine months sleeping inside the womb—which is not exactly a silent place!
That’s why many babies sleep better when there’s some kind of white noise in the background. I’ve heard of parents using fans or even the radio turned to static, but we relied on a white noise machine that mimicked the rhythm of mama’s heartbeat.
This device saved us all so much sleep that I remember my husband and I panicking the first time it ran out of batteries! After that we stocked up on Duracell batteries, which *last longer in 99 percent of devices versus the next leading competitive brand.
So expectant parents, add them to your registry now! And new parents, stock up! You won’t regret it, I promise.
4. Choose beverages wisely.
Some breastfed babies don’t mind if mama needs a regular dose of caffeine to keep her going, but others simply don’t tolerate it well. Even small doses of caffeine can keep them from drifting off to dreamworld.
So if your baby isn’t sleeping well, consider how much caffeine—in the form of coffee, tea, soda, and even large quantities of dark chocolate!—you’re consuming in relation to when you nurse your infant.
5. Fill up the tummy.
Some moms swear by cluster feeding, which is when you feed your baby at extra intervals (think every hour) in the evenings to ensure that little belly is nice and full before bedtime, theoretically leading to a longer interval before the first wake-up.
Other moms—myself included—relied on what’s called dream feeding. This is when you actually wake your baby for a feeding before you yourself head to bed, except that your little one is actually just barely awake.
I’d put my son down around 8pm, then pick him up and nurse him ever-so-gently around 10 or 10:30. Believe it or not, he really was eating in his sleep! Then I’d head to bed and be ensured at least a few hours before I needed to wake and feed him again. We used this routine until he was about 4 months old.
6. Prioritize sleep.
Lots of new parents mistakenly believe that if they keep their baby awake for longer intervals during the day, it will help their infant sleep better at night.
Logical? Yes. Accurate? Nope.
As counter-intuitive as it sounds, overtired babies (or older children, for that matter) rarely fall asleep quickly and easily. Instead, they become fussy, irritable, and wired, and will often appear to be “fighting sleep.”
So even though it’s not always easy or convenient, it’s worthwhile to prioritize regular naps and bedtimes. Doing so will greatly improve your baby’s sleep, not to mention the bags under your own eyes.
What’s your best baby sleep tip? Leave an answer in the comments below and you will be entered for a chance to win a $100 Visa gift card!
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130 responses to “6 Proven Baby Sleep Tips Every Parent Should Know”
Putting baby to bed when he is actually tired works better; we’ve been wanting to put him down at a time that works for us but then end up sitting around waiting for him to settle down when he would rather play.
Tweeted here https://twitter.com/juliecookies/status/605434960808321025
I’m expecting my 4th baby in September and my tip would be to use a white noise machine.
tweet–https://twitter.com/mami2jcn/status/605461428053680130
These are all good tips.. I would say play some light music in the background for peaceful sleeping
tweet- https://twitter.com/groogruxking40/status/605461705343115264
Fill baby up is the best tip I can give. Starting at around 5 p.m., decrease the time between your childโs feedings. For example, if you usually feed her every three hours, do so every two hours in the evening. This kept my son full longer and he slept 5 hour stretches at 2 weeks!
Tweet-https://twitter.com/JewelWood/status/605471345246269441
My best tip is to try swaddling.
My best baby sleep tip is winding baby down a hour or so before bed time, and make sure baby is comfy.
Tweeted here: https://twitter.com/lil_lady_dz/status/605498549460037634
play some soothing music or sing a song to your baby
https://twitter.com/ElenaIstomina/status/605517315933765633
A great way to soothe a newborn is a nice quiet drive around the neighborhood in the car.
heather hgtempaddy@hotmail.com
I sleep with a fan, so I can attest to the sound part. It definitely helps.
I wish it were that easy! We did all of those things, but the best thing for us was swaddling!
Great tips for new moms and moms o be. Thanks for sharing your wisdom.
Great tips! It’s been a long time since my kids were babies!
These are great tips. The sound machine worked so well for my younger 2 kids- it worked like a charm ๐
My tip is to use light blocking curtains to help baby sleep better.
tweet
https://twitter.com/Kellydpa/status/605740653394337793
great tips, now to just get them to work:)
These are great tips! I was lucky, my son slept through the night starting at age six months! I’m the insomniac in the family! LOL!
I remember the challenge when I had all 3 of them!
A good rocking chair is very helpful in soothing cranky babies. I am having my second baby in Sept. I need to buy a rocker…it’s been years since I needed one.
Congrats on the new baby!! So exciting. My daughter slept better than my son, so I did have to utilize special tips with him. He loved quiet dark rooms and a full belly!
Sound was key for my son! These are such great tips or new moms!
https://twitter.com/OneFrugalGirl/status/605848816336568323
Do what works best for you and don’t let anyone else convince you there is a ‘right’ way to do it. It will ease your stress and that alone will help.
My daughter had to be swaddled. My son didn’t. Every child is different.
My baby always falls asleep when I put her in her rocker. Also, make sure your baby is wrapped in lots of blankets so he/she does not get cold at night
https://twitter.com/yarbr012/status/605884275532001280
I was so lucky. All three of my kids were good sleepers.
These tips will definitely help out! A new baby, how exciting is that?
Reading this post makes me even more excited about baby 6 due in Nov. I cannot wait for that new baby smell.
We used the sound tip with our kids and it really does work. We had waves soundtracks going all night!
I never thought about the white noise. I will have to suggest this to some new parents I know.
What was the most helpful for me was rocking our babies and singing a lullaby.
thank you
Tweet https://twitter.com/JalapenoMama/status/605946295941931008
My best tip is do not try to keep quiet around your sleeping baby. Our babies could and can as preschoolers sleep through noise.
Super tips! I love when everyone in this house sleeps through the night!
These are great tips. We always made noise because we didn’t want kids that couldn’t sleep without a silent room (cuz that never happens in our house anyway)!
What a great giveaway! I remember those days with my youngest and getting him to sleep. LOL He just slept in my in my bed it did the job every time lol
A sound machine was clutch for us when my son was a baby!
Congrats on your new little bundle. The light blocking curtains are a lifesaver!
I learned to prioritize sleep more and more with each child! It makes a chuge difference!
You have some great tips there. Love them. My tips is maintain a comfy temperature for your baby. my son loves a lower temp room while my girl loves it warmer. ๐
amy [at] utry [dot] it
tweeted:
https://twitter.com/uTry_it/status/606332166423769089
amy [at] utry [dot] it
Great tips to share. We struggled iwht both of our kids but thankfully using these tips and others we now get a full nights sleep.
Swing and a bit of noise (such as white noise) help my baby a lot.
tcarolinep at gmail dot com
-https://twitter.com/tcarolinep/status/606651994535661568
We couldn’t have lived without a baby swing to help get our child to sleep. It was either that or carry her around for half an hour!
madelinebrubaker {at} gmail [dot] com
Tweet link: https://twitter.com/shala_darkstone/status/607169815497830401
My best baby sleeping tip is to have a routine that is very calm and never try to keep things super quite get baby use to sleeping with noise!
Definitely my favorite ways to calm is rocking. Whether it’s reading a story, singing a song, or just being quiet and cuddling, I think it soothes both of us.
chambanachik(at)gmail(dot)com
Make sure the room is not overly warm.
tweeted
https://twitter.com/rubylorikeet/status/607741636710309888
For sure the white noise machine helps our girl, as does ensuring she gets solid naps during the day. I will have to invest in a blackout curtain – hadn’t thought of that but summer is here and I think it will be useful!
I don’t know if this makes me a cluster feeder, but in the evenings I would add one feed that my babies didn’t request. My oldest and youngest were always good sleepers, and though my middle needed more at night I think the extra feeding gave me a nice stretch at the beginning of her night sleep.
Rocking is a great way to sooth a baby into sleep.
a bath before bed and a Soothe & Glow Seahorse
https://twitter.com/HappyTina0115/status/608333460177043457
My best tip is to establish a routine early on and use blackout curtains
mummytotwoboys@yahoo.com
We have little bath time, and then get lotion, and jammies and maybe a little song or look at book, no tv or electronics stimulating, just white noise in background, and nurse or bottle in her room and she gets the idea it’s bed time…and doesn’t always like it..but we are working on it :/ !!
[…] 6 Proven Baby Sleep Tips Every Parent Should Know […]
My best tip is to keep a routine because your baby’s internal clock will adjust and I like rocking best to soothe them.
Rock with your baby in a rocker just before bed, the motion calms them.
My babies slept better as newborns when they were swaddled.
Great tips, my baby would fall asleep quickly in her baby swing.
https://twitter.com/susan1215/status/612461541594648576
take a nap when your baby takes a nap
https://twitter.com/purplelover04/status/612710766999941120
Swaddling and leaving a fan on helps.
Tweet https://twitter.com/Lindiac/status/612724435636715520
My babies loved their baby swing.
Give your baby a little ride on top of the rumbling dryer in the laundry room. Helps them fall asleep!
Tweeted! https://twitter.com/pixel_berry_pie/status/613169831739723777
Just before you leave the room or sneak away from the co-sleeper, repeat the same “night-night” phrase to your baby, signaling that bedtime is over and sleepytime has begun!
Singing always worked great for me.
tweet
https://twitter.com/aes529/status/613358437670494208
My 4.5 year old still doesn’t sleep through the night, so don’t take my advice!!! But #2 is due in September, so I’m definitely saving all these suggestions.
Give your baby a nightly routine. Give him a warm bath and a full tummy. Read a book to your little one or sing.
my tweet https://twitter.com/LuLu_Brown24/status/614407400955580417
Rhythmic movement like a swing or rocking seemed to be the key for my kids. It relaxed them and got them to sleep easily.
Tweet
https://twitter.com/clc408/status/614763844959866880
Give your baby a few minutes before instantly picking him up when he awakens during the night. I was surprised a few times, even when my daughter was very little, to find she put herself back to sleep without me.
https://twitter.com/Attea2d/status/614792633869799425
Swaddling is my favorite trick for getting babies to sleep longer.
Thanks for the chance to win!
wildorchid985 AT gmail DOT com
tweet–https://twitter.com/WildOrchid985/status/614820584766185473
Use a white noise machine
My best tip is to feed baby late at night-baby is more apt to sleep on a full tummy.
drive in the car to calm them
tvollowitz at aol dot com
I rocked and sang my babies to sleep
https://twitter.com/mkjmc/status/614894623740309504
my best baby sleep tip is to swaddle and rock them to sleep.
My tip would be to rock them to sleep.
kport207 at gmail dot com
Rock the baby back and forth while gently humming will sooth the infant and help aid sleep.
Hope to win!
The porch swing is very soothing way to get a baby to sleep.
https://twitter.com/smilekisses/status/615012735273836544
Sing and rock the baby to sleep.
tweeted
https://twitter.com/thomasmurphy40/status/615048170352078849
Sing a song to my baby โฅ
My tweet https://twitter.com/AurelieRed/status/615181280544690176
My daughter loves her vibrating chair.
we like to use a sound machine too
My best tip is to tap their bottom as you hold them. Both of my girls loved it and went right to sleep just about every single time I did it. thank you!
My best sleep tip was that there should always be sound. That way, when older kids make noise or someone closes the front door, the baby doesn’t immediately wake up ๐
My best tip is to take help from family when offered!
i sing softly to my baby
I find with my grandbaby that she prefers a certain way to lay in my arms and up against my chest. If she is comfortable, itโs much easier to sway her to sleep.
playing music or singing to baby! ๐
Co-sleeping worked well for my daughter and I.
Whisper in the little one’s ear!
Co-sleeping was amazing for us. Our girls slept perfectly.
https://twitter.com/Stephanie64030/status/615662983713140736
Always try to keep the same routine
we would hold them till they went to sleep
For me it was co-sleeping with all four of my girls and it made it easier for me to breast feed and rubbing her back
tbarrettno1 at gmail dot com
tweet https://twitter.com/ChelleB36/status/615700600618119168
tbarrettno1 at gmail dot com
I would rock them to sleep or put them in a swing.
A Glider Rocking Chair works great to help get baby to sleep.
https://twitter.com/myfolly/status/615757738400845824
Get on a sleep routine as soon as possible.
My tip is to use a white noise machine
tweeted https://twitter.com/iamdadtastic/status/615775325071388672
Start a bedtime routine early and get a sleep sheep (white noise machine).
This was a great post with a lot of awesome tips. For me, the swing and a full belly always did the trick. By 6 months, most babies can have a little baby cereal in their bottles or mixed with water. It really helps to keep them full through the night and they sleep much better
I learned to keep a routine. Thank you
https://twitter.com/davisesq212/status/616082944659193856
Best baby sleep tip is soothing music playing at bedtime with NO vocals especially when they are younger.
I nurse them or rock and sing to them.