If you or your partner are expecting, you’ve heard the advice 1,000 times by now from well-meaning parents to “get your sleep in before the baby comes!”. It’s not that they wish you be pulled through the exhaustion that they experienced, but they can’t fathom it any other way. Sure, newborns do make it notoriously challenging to get good sleep, but that doesn’t mean you need to throw in the towel. There are things you can do to set yourself up for success. It’s not only for comfort but necessary for both baby and parent’s health and well-being. For babies, sleep is critical for their cognitive and physical development. For adults, sleep deprivation has been linked to many chronic health conditions. And of course, sleep can also help you, the parent, stay healthy so you can best care for your baby.
The good news is that your sleep is not completely out of your control. There are things you can do proactively, before the baby comes, to set yourself up for success. Here are our top 4 recommended investments for better sleep:
1. High-Quality Swaddle
Babies are born with a startle reflex, also known as the Moro reflex. This primitive reflex is triggered when a baby is startled suddenly which could be from a sound, movement or the sensation of falling while sleeping. This reflex goes away after 2 months, but in the meantime, can be disruptive to a baby’s sleep. To minimize the effect of the Moro reflex, invest in a high-quality swaddle. We love the Butterfly Swaddle because of its unique, patented silent Velcro, the two-way zipper and the soft feel of the organic bamboo cotton.
2. Red Night Light
As you’re looking for a nightlight, be sure to purchase one that is red or has a red option. Red is the only color light that doesn’t interrupt a person’s circadian rhythm. That way, whatever sleep you do get will be high quality.
3. Sound Machine During the baby’s first 3 months, also known as the fourth trimester, babies are most easily comforted in an environment that mimics the womb. White noise most closely resembles the sounds of the womb and can calm a baby. Playing a sound machine with this noise can help your baby fall asleep faster and stay asleep longer. Many sound machines are sold as a 2-in-1 combination night light such as the Hatch Baby. These can also grow with a baby and be used to indicate an appropriate wake time and play various sounds such as lullabies, waves or birds chirping. 4. Baby Tracking App
The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends newborns sleep 14-17 hours per 24-hour period. It’s important to make sure your baby is meeting these recommendations so they can grow strong and healthy. Utilizing an app to keep track of your baby’s sleep will allow you to easily monitor the total sleep for the day as well as the patterns throughout the day. It will also help achieve ideal wake windows in order to put the baby to sleep before they become overtired. The Rayz Kidz app allows parents and caregivers to log a baby’s sleep, feeds, diaper changes and more in an efficient manner and allows for seamless hand-offs between multiple caregivers. Analyze the day-to-day patterns and overall sleep with the convenient graphs to make sure your baby is proper sleep for their health and development.
Source: RayzKidz, https://rayzkidz.com/blog-4-essential-baby-items-for-better-sleep.