Peaceful Nights

Day sleep challenges in the first year At specific ages in the first few years of life, day sleep issues arise that are common among most babies. They are not related to illness, nutrition or habits but are simply reflecting a shift of sleep needs as your baby matures. 1 – 4 months – Can’t settle to sleep Problem – For the first few weeks, your newborn seems to sleep for long stretches and getting her to sleep is not an issue. Then a few weeks down the line, every time you take your little one to sleep, she appears to fight sleep. Babies need to sleep regularly – more...

Meg Faure (OTR) Help, my 8 month old has started waking again! Why is my nine month old waking up three times at night? What can I do, my 7 month old has never slept through the night! These cries for help from parents of 6-9 month olds are all too common and yet the reality is that from 6 months old, you can very reasonably expect your baby to sleep through the night (10-12 hours without waking). If your baby is not sleeping through try these 8 steps: Rule out illness and teething              This is the time when your baby will most likely...

A visual look at the critical ages for establishing healthy sleep habits

As you wade through the quagmire of sleep deprivation, it is completely natural that you will try anything, well almost anything, to get a good night’s sleep. This month I look at products out there that really can help and make a difference. 1. Dummy/Pacifier In the early days babies sleep better while sucking. Non-nutritive sucking is calming and will aid sleep. As your baby gets to 5-8 months, he may go through a patch of sleeping worse because of a dummy/pacifier habit. Teach your baby to find the dummy and pop it in himself at night.  As to which dummy to buy – they are all great...

  Night feeds are simply a part of early parenting. All babies need them in the early days and all babies outgrow them in time. Meg Faure looks at managing night feeds and what you should expect at different ages. Prem or sick babies sick and under weight babies If your baby is born with higher needs than most babies, for instance if your baby is born prem, is ill or failing to thrive, you will be advised to wake your baby at night. In these circumstances, you may be told to wake your baby three hourly at night or to wake your baby at specific times.  This is the only circumstance when babies...