When you reflect on Sleep Experts, who were the pioneers? Will they ever be emulated?

Keeping your baby awake during the day will not help them sleep better at night. If your baby is overtired it is much harder for them to get to sleep. Carefully consider the placement of your cot when used in standalone mode. It’s important that it’s kept away from radiators or heaters of any kind to avoid overheating. Similarly with windows due to drafts, try and make sure your little one is kept at a consistent temperature while they sleep. Bed-sharing with baby is as old as the hills. From our earliest days, parents and babies have slept together for protection, warmth, and convenience. And this custom is growing in popularity; the number of bed-sharing families more than doubled between 1993 and 2000. The major reasons were to calm fussing, boost sleep, and make it easier to breast-feed. If you can, leave home just after nap time to make sure that your little one is wide awake and ready for the day’s activities. If they do fall asleep on the way, no worries! Just let that nap happen and focus on the next one. Let baby sleep, get them up when they wake, and shorten their next wake time by 15-30 minutes to make up for extra tiredness if they only took a short nap. Whilst short naps are OK in these environments, safer sleep charity, The Lullaby Trust has warned that evidence shows that sleeping a baby on anything but a firm, flat surface, can increase the risk of sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS). After spending nine months in a dark (and sometimes noisy) womb, your newborn has established her own sleep cycles, which feel natural to her even if they seem strange to you. Just as she lets you know she’s hungry at any time of the day or night, your baby’s sleep patterns may seem random at first, sometimes changing from one day to the next.

When babies are born they need darkness to switch off because they are used to the darkness of the womb and a dark room will stimulate the sleep hormone melatonin. Once your baby is a few months old, you can start to coax them into a more normal sleep routine. Whether you're figuring out the best way to get your baby to settle in for the night or trying to get them to go down easy after a midnight feeding, these tips, drawn from a number of leading baby sleep experts, can help. You should always place your baby on their back to sleep and not on their front or side (unless your doctor has advised you of a medical reason to do so). The best way to make sure your baby sleeps on their back is to put them in that position straight away. Keep it up with every sleep, at night and for naps. A sleep expert will be with you every step of the way, guiding you on how best to find a solution to your sleep concerns, whether its Sleep Training or one of an untold number of other things.

Introduce A Baby Sleep Routine Early On

Your baby will soon start to go down for longer stretches and eventually through the night, and you will get your sleep back again. Colds and ear infections can keep anyone awake at night — and your baby is no exception. Rest assured, once he starts feeling better, your baby should start sleeping better too. Schedule, routine, pattern; call it what you will, but the greatest tip I can give you is to make sure your child is not being kept up longer than she can handle; especially at bedtime. Your child is likely already overtired from the multiple night wakings, so respecting her need to sleep and have an earlier bedtime will be important to see success. Sleep your baby in the feet-to-foot position and avoid using soft or bulky bedding such as quilts, pillows and duvets. Babies need a lot of sleep during the first few months and parents who often inundated with well-meaning advice about how much shut-eye your baby should be getting and what is the safest way to place them down for their sleep. Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS), the sudden and unexplained death of a baby, are thankfully rare, but there are steps parents can take to help reduce the risks. The gentle approach and caring manner of a baby sleep expert allows them to assist you in the most preferable way to deal with Ferber Method and to assist you and your family in any way possible.

You may feel ready to introduce a bedtime routine when your baby is around 3 months old. Getting them into a simple, soothing bedtime routine can be a great opportunity to have 1-to-1 time with your baby. The routine could consist of changing into night clothes and a fresh nappy, putting them to bed and dimming the lights in the room to create a calm atmosphere. Make sure your baby’s cot or crib is clear of any unnecessary accessories. Keep bumpers, toys, and loose bedding away from your baby’s sleep space for an uncluttered, safe sleep environment. Your baby should be sleeping on a firm, flat surface protected with a waterproof cover. Always remember to remove head coverings for sleep and ensure baby is positioned with their feet at the bottom of the cot – and if you’re using sheets or blankets, make sure they are firmly tucked in to prevent baby from wriggling down and overheating. There are many reasons that may explain why your newborn baby won't sleep in their cot and lots of them can be easily resolved. For the past nine months your baby has been snuggled up, nice and cosy inside you. Now they are here in the big wide world, everything is cold, bright and can seem harsh in comparison. They long for the warmth, comfort and sounds that they were used to. The safest place for your baby to sleep is in a cot by the side of your bed. This means you can hear your baby and respond to their needs before they start crying or becoming distressed, and reach them easily without having to get up. For Sleep Consultant Training Course guidance it may be useful to enlist the services of a sleep consultant.

Create The Right Atmosphere

During the summertime, you’re likely to be out and about most of the time. While you’re exploring and enjoying the warm weather, it’s important that you try to maintain a regular nap schedule for your mini-me. When you find out you’re going to be a parent, one of the first things people might say to you is ‘Goodbye to your lie-ins’. And, we're sorry to say this, they’re probably right. There may be times when your baby remains unsettled after feeds. Placing your baby in skin-to-skin contact with you and gently rocking can provide comfort. Your partner can help with this too. If your baby shows signs of heat stress, such as flushed and clammy skin, remove some bedding or clothing and offer fluids such as breast milk for young babies or water for older children. Few babies sleep through the night. That might not be much comfort, but it lets you know you’re not alone! Once your wee one gets to 2-3 months old you can start to get them into a routine so they know it’s sleepy time. There are multiple approaches to How To Become A Sleep Consultant and a sleep expert will help you choose one that is right for you and your family.

Look at tweaking your daytime schedule a bit: increase face to face playtimes with your baby, get outside a bit more, and perhaps cut out one of the naps - especially if they’re not yet mobile. Try to stop them napping after 4pm, or at least keep it really short. You could also try making their bedtime slightly later. To help baby drift off, give your baby an infant massage. Studies suggest that babies who are massaged before bed may produce more of the sleep-enhancing hormone melatonin. And it’s a nice way for you to bond with your little night owl. If you haven’t already, begin to have a wind down routine in place before each sleep period. It’s important though that your child is now awake when you place her in the crib. This will be a new experience for her, so start your wind down earlier. Help them bond with a security object – choose a baby blanket or stuffed animal and keep it near you for a while, so it takes on your comforting smell. If you’re breastfeeding, you could even try expressing some breastmilk onto a small piece of muslin, then popping it in their cot. Babies have a strong sense of smell, so if they wake suddenly, your familiar smell may help them settle again. Start by transitioning baby to their cot when they’re drowsy and not fully asleep yet. You can stand nearby and rub their back or reassure them that you’re right there if they start to fuss. And if they continue crying, it’s OK to pick them up again and lull them back to sleep. Just start by introducing the fact that their crib is a safe space and can be just as cozy as mom or dad’s arms. Sleep consultants support hundreds of families every year, assisting with things such as Sleep Regression using gentle, tailored methods.

Sidestepping Infant Sleep Problems

Lying on a motionless bed may seem appealing to you, but to your baby it’s odd and unnatural. And for the 10–20 percent of all infants who are motion lovers, the stillness is almost intolerable. As their sleep cycles are much shorter, babies will often only sleep for a couple of hours at a time. Although most newborn babies are asleep more often than they are awake, disturbed nights can be hard to cope with as first-time parents – try to tackle this early on by sharing night time bottle feeds between you and your partner. Some babies hate transferring from your warm arms when feeding/cuddling to a cold moses basket or cot. To avoid this, put a muslin or blanket under them when feeding/cuddling and put it under them when you place them back in the cot: that way you’ve transferred some warmth and some of your reassuring smell. A baby sleep consultant or baby sleep coach can help demystify the process of getting an infant to sleep better and for longer stretches. Newborn bedtime routines don’t have to be elaborate or formalized, after all, baby is still adjusting to life outside the womb! Rather, parents should focus on a series of simple steps they can take to help baby learn it’s time to sleep. Whether its something specific like 4 Month Sleep Regression or really anything baby sleep related, a baby sleep consultant can guide you to find a sleep solution as individual as your baby is.

If for some reason your toddler has skipped their nap but come bedtime your little one doesn’t seem to be overly affected by the missed nap, this is an indication that daytime naps may be a thing of the past. It is normal for babies to be fed to sleep especially in the first 6 months, babies feel calmed and comforted by feeding and it helps them settle. This is not a problem and they will change this once they develop and are able to self soothe. If you’ve checked the obvious (hunger, nappy, temperature of baby/room) and they’re still not settling, try bending over the cot, patting them gently and shushing them quietly. Then retreat, and do it again if necessary. Leave longer gaps between each session until they (hopefully) settle. One can unearth additional insights relating to Sleep Experts at this NHS link.

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