Following on from our day of consultations for Naturalmat Baby earlier this week, we thought it would be helpful to mention the three top questions that were asked (please be aware that these babies were around 6-9 months old).
Every baby, family unit, circumstances are so incredibly different, and at NEST, we know this first hand, but often it can reassure parents and carers to know that you are not alone with the questions you have.
1. Every night is so inconsistent with how many times they wake- what do I do?
Our first question in response to this is; how are they getting to sleep?
Are you feeding them to sleep, are they being rocked to sleep, do them have a dummy to get to sleep which keeps falling out during the night?
The way that a little one falls asleep at bedtime is the way that they will fall asleep when they wake from a sleep cycle in the middle of the night. It is worth being aware of how your little one is getting to sleep. Are they waking up frequently throughout the night because they are needing you to rock them back to sleep? Once you are aware of what their sleep cues are then this makes it a much easier task of supporting and teaching them to self settle. There are many ways in which this can be done but please be rest assured that we would not suggest leaving your little one to cry.
Consistency is absolutely key, so once you have identified what their sleep cue is then it will be easier to tweak this and support your little one with settling to sleep with a different sleep cue whilst remining consistent.
2. They are waking at the same time every night- is this habit?
It is always helpful to work out why they are waking: are you disturbing them when you go to bed (if they are still in the same room as you)? Are they cold? Is their room near the boiler or hot water tank? Does a neighbour get home from work when your little one is in bed and do they park right outside the window?
If at all possible, resettle them just before they stir, this will put them into a new sleep cycle. This is only possible if they are waking at a time when you are heading to bed etc. Please don’t think we are suggesting to do this in the middle of the night- we want you to be having a better nights sleep…not having to get up during the night!
3. Why are they waking every 45mins/ 1hr?
A sleep cycle lasts anywhere between 30-60 minutes.
A sleep cue is what your little one associates with going to sleep. Whether this is a dark room, a story before their nap and being put to bed at night time, sucking their thumb, having a milk feed, being rocked to sleep etc.
The way that a little one falls asleep at bedtime is the way that they will fall asleep when they wake from a sleep cycle in the middle of the night. It is worth being aware of how your little one is getting to sleep. Are they waking up frequently throughout the night because they are needing you to support them with finding their sleep cue? Once you are aware of what their sleep cues are then this makes it a much easier task of supporting and teaching them to self settle which will ensure that they are then able to settle themselves back to sleep when they wake up from a sleep cycle during the night (which is a very normal process!)
There are many ways in which this can be done but please be rest assured that we would not suggest leaving your little one to cry.
If you have further questions about your little ones sleep please don't hesitate to get in touch. We are passionate to ensure that you feel heard, supported and empowered.
We work together alongside you and offer advice and support which works for you and your little one.
1:1 consultations with one of our highly qualified team are available virtually or face-to-face