Bedtime can often turn into a crying session for babies, leaving parents feeling helpless. Here are seven common reasons behind those tears and ways to soothe your little one:
1. Physical discomfort: Check for a wet diaper, uncomfortable clothes, colics or signs of illness. Addressing these issues can help soothe your baby.
2. External disturbances: Try to minimize lights ans noise. Ideally create a pitch dark sleep room (blackout curtains can help) and turn on white noise to create a calm sleep environment.
3. Overtiredness: Watch the clock for age-according wake windows. And remember, awake time increase as your little one grows, but is really short in the first months (with just 45-60 min in the 1st month and up to 2 hours by 4 months).
4. New skills: Periods of disrupted sleep are common during developmental leaps. Babies may want to practice new skills in their cribs leading to frustration. Encourage mastering those skills during awake time to reduce bedtime struggles.
5. Testing boundaries: Toddlers may resist bedtime as a way to assert independence. Stay firm with bedtime rules and remember that little ones actually really do feel safer with boundaries.
6. Emotional turmoil: Strong emotional activities (new activities outside, parties, friends visiting) can unsettle your baby. Try to dedicate last 20 minutes before bedtime ritual to a calm awake time (without loud noises and games) and extend the bedtime ritual.
7. Sleep associations: If previous reasons don't apply but your presence is always needed for your baby to fall asleep, it may be time to teach them the self-soothing skill through sleep training. I will be happy to support you in this process. Check out my 1-1 Sleep Training Package for details.
1. Physical discomfort: Check for a wet diaper, uncomfortable clothes, colics or signs of illness. Addressing these issues can help soothe your baby.
2. External disturbances: Try to minimize lights ans noise. Ideally create a pitch dark sleep room (blackout curtains can help) and turn on white noise to create a calm sleep environment.
3. Overtiredness: Watch the clock for age-according wake windows. And remember, awake time increase as your little one grows, but is really short in the first months (with just 45-60 min in the 1st month and up to 2 hours by 4 months).
4. New skills: Periods of disrupted sleep are common during developmental leaps. Babies may want to practice new skills in their cribs leading to frustration. Encourage mastering those skills during awake time to reduce bedtime struggles.
5. Testing boundaries: Toddlers may resist bedtime as a way to assert independence. Stay firm with bedtime rules and remember that little ones actually really do feel safer with boundaries.
6. Emotional turmoil: Strong emotional activities (new activities outside, parties, friends visiting) can unsettle your baby. Try to dedicate last 20 minutes before bedtime ritual to a calm awake time (without loud noises and games) and extend the bedtime ritual.
7. Sleep associations: If previous reasons don't apply but your presence is always needed for your baby to fall asleep, it may be time to teach them the self-soothing skill through sleep training. I will be happy to support you in this process. Check out my 1-1 Sleep Training Package for details.
