Most parents coping with young kids and sleep issues are desperate for any solution to their nightly trials, and there are countless tinctures, sprays and salves that promise to soothe your child into a peaceful slumber. To me, this is not unlike the staggering number of natural weight-loss products on the market. There is no shortage of companies trying to make big bucks selling quick fixes. But do they really work? Not often... and not long-term. The truth is in order to lose weight and keep it off, you need to change your lifestyle, your diet and your way of thinking about food in order to keep off the Kilos. The same goes for SLEEP. To truly foster a healthy relationship with your child and their sleeping habits, you need to be disciplined, have a plan and change the way you structure bedtime. Lets say youre at your wits end with a fussy baby one night and you decide to use one of these products. Miraculously, your child stops crying, calms down and goes to sleep. That is wonderful, and you might think you have found your cure, but the problem is, you still havent addressed the core issues and taught your child to sleep on their own. Chances are, they will wake up again in a couple of hours and need you to come and soothe them back to sleep. And then they will wake up two hours later, and two hours after that, and on and on it will go. The ONLY way to get a baby sleeping well is to teach them this skill by creating a system that will promote sleep independence. Believe it or not, your baby truly is capable of sleeping on their own without too much help from you or anything else. Here are the basic steps for helping set up a lifetime of healthy sleep habits:- 1.Establish an early bedtime and stick to it. Even during holidays or when friends come to visit. Children thrive on routine, especially when it comes to sleep. 2.Have a bedtime ritual/routine that you dont stray from. This could mean bath, book, five minutes of cuddles, then lights out. Dont give in and read extra books just because your little one is being a bit fussy. 3.Create a dark sleeping environment with no blinking lights from electronics, nightlights, or distracting overhead mobiles. Remove toys that sing lullabies or illuminate images on the walls. As relaxing as store-bought sleep products, aromatherapy oils or herbs might be if a child hasnt learned to self-soothe, all the lavender in the world isnt going to help. Instead, develop your plan, stick to it, and before you know it, your child will be sleeping through the night. Consistency is the key. If you need help with a good sleep plan and support to implement it then I can help. Email. Littleonessleep@hotmail Ph. 0439778274 or 07 54966883
Posted on: Wed, 26 Nov 2014 11:00:00 +0000
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