Often, the process of putting a child in the bed turns into a real feat. Therefore, the question of how to put a child to sleep without tears and hysterical reactions worries many parents. There are many reasons for insomnia in children: commonplace discomfort, teething teeth and a sore stomach, fear of being in a dark room, increased irritability. Sometimes the baby does not sleep due to serious illness.
If a baby cannot be put to sleep at 1 or 5 months, then it is best to consult a pediatrician. But in the absence of serious reasons for concern, you can use one of the methods of falling asleep quickly or listen to popular advice from experienced specialists.
How to put a baby to bed?
The question of how to properly put a newborn or a slightly older child to bed does not have a clear answer. The prerequisites for insomnia can be intestinal colic, teething, poor health.
There are some rules and age characteristics that will allow you to get to know your baby better and understand how to put a newborn to sleep at night.
a child under one year old should be well fed before laying, otherwise the baby will remain hungry and scream from hunger. This rule loses its relevance if the baby loves to play after eating;- if the night's sleep of an infant leaves much to be desired, it can be assumed that the baby gets enough sleep during the day. And since the quality of rest cannot be disturbed, the duration of daytime sleep should be reduced and the duration of night sleep should be increased;
- Until the 6th month of life, the baby requires private feedings at night. That is why mom, in order not to rise every two hours, begins to practice sleeping together. Once feeding at night is reduced, falling asleep is usually optimized;
- so that evening lying down is not accompanied by crying, the pause between the last day of sleep and the night falling asleep should be about four hours;
- how to quickly put a baby to bed at night? Some experts are convinced that the dormouse should be woken up during the day if he sleeps too well. However, some children fall asleep well both at night and during the day;
- if a child under 6 months has confused night with day, it is necessary to endure this difficult period, while trying to transfer the baby to the optimal sleep and wakefulness regime.
a child under one year old should be well fed before laying, otherwise the baby will remain hungry and scream from hunger. This rule loses its relevance if the baby loves to play after eating;Many doctors are convinced that it is not so important for an infant to observe a special regime, since up to a year, biological rhythms have not yet been fully established. In addition, the quality and duration of sleep is also influenced by the temperament and characteristics of the nervous system.
Popular styling methods
How to put a child to bed without too many problems? There are many effective methods known since ancient times - the so-called grandmother's advice.
For example, many people still use lullabies, since the soothing voice of my mother cannot be replaced by any modern technology. Moreover, it is not the aesthetics of the song that is important to the crumb, but the emotional mood and the soothing rhythm. How else to put the child to sleep?
"Sleepy" ritual
This method should take into account the age, characteristics of the child's nervous system. In this case, ritual means any action that is repeated every day at a certain time, and it does not matter if it is summer or winter.
Children under 6 months old can be reassured by being in a familiar environment. But problems with falling asleep can be caused by a violation of the ritual - changing the bed, room, pajamas, mother's hairstyle, the appearance of strangers in the room, etc.
If the child is already 6 months old, it is imperative to create your own ritual, which would be associated with falling asleep. The most important rule is that this "rite" should be associated exclusively with positive emotions.
Examples of such "sleepy" actions are:
- "Farewell to the sun." Mom takes the crumbs on the handles, brings them to the window and says that the sun, as well as all the animals, have already fallen asleep, therefore, it is also time for small children to “baine”. Then the curtains are pulled back, the light is turned off, and the child is placed in the crib;
- reading fairy tales, poems, viewing colorful pictures;
- hugging a child's favorite teddy bear;
- humming a lullaby;
- watching aquarium fish, etc.
Such ritual actions usually allow you to lull a child who already understands their meaning without problems. However, when a baby gets sick, even this method does not always work.
Motion sickness
Contrary to the fears of many mothers, it is possible to rock a child, of course, if there are no medical contraindications. On the contrary, some doctors are convinced that moderate motion sickness can benefit the child's body.
Rhythmic swaying that mimics the heartbeat stabilizes the baby's biological rhythms.
It is only important to remember that babies have an imperfect vestibular apparatus, so the question of how to rock a baby correctly is really relevant.
The main thing is to act extremely carefully, slowly swinging the baby back and forth, held on the arms.
Such monotonous movements affect the human body, like a sleeping pill.
On the other hand, by constantly rocking a child, parents risk turning this habit into a kind of psychological dependence.
Therefore, if there is an opportunity to do without motion sickness, then you should use it. In such a situation, you will not have to then wean the baby from the habit of falling asleep from constant swaying and only if he is on his mother's arms.
Soother / nipple
Babies at both 2 and 4 months have developed a sucking reflex, which they strive to satisfy in all available ways. If you can't put your child to sleep, you can offer him a pacifier, which will allow him to calm down and fall asleep.
After the child falls asleep, it is better to remove the pacifier. Otherwise, there is a risk of a new unwanted habit - nipple sucking.
At five or six months, the sucking reflex begins to fade. And when the baby turns one year old, it is generally better to give up the silicone assistant and find other methods that allow the child to calm down before falling asleep.
Musical works
You can put your baby to bed either in silence or to the appropriate music. Melodies for falling asleep should be chosen soothing ones. The sound of the ocean, raindrops, singing of birds, etc. will perfectly cope with this role.
By the way, pediatricians do not recommend putting a baby to bed in absolute silence. If parents behave quietly with a rhyme, then the child will react to any rustle. However, it is also undesirable to teach the baby to fall asleep under a working TV.
Swaddling
This method works both for falling asleep as soon as possible and for quickly calming a newborn baby. A baby, especially if he is less than 4 months old, often tosses and turns in his sleep, spreading his arms and thereby disturbing his own sleep.
If you don't know how to put a 2 month old baby to bed, try swaddling it tightly enough, but not very tight. The tightness of the diaper creates an association with the mother's womb in the baby, therefore it rather calms and lulls.
Children's bed
In order to be able to quickly and smoothly put the baby to bed, it is necessary to create a strong association with him: bed is a place for falling asleep and sweet dreams, and not for play activities or ordinary relaxation.
Imagine if mom will put the baby in bed for almost the whole day, with the exception of time for walking and feeding. In this case, the child will not have the necessary connection, signaling that it is time to close his eyes when going to bed.
Of course, sometimes it turns out that the child falls asleep where it is necessary: in an infant car seat, a stroller, on mom's arms or a feeding chair. However, it is necessary to accustom to the crib, which becomes an ideal place to sleep.
For more information on how to teach a child to sleep in their crib, read the article by a child psychologist. From this material, you can learn the pros and cons of sleeping together, as well as possible habituation mistakes.
"Exit - Entry"
A rather ambiguous way, its meaning lies in the fact that the child must be put in the crib and immediately go out for five to seven minutes, without waiting for the little unwilling to fall asleep.
If during this period the baby has not fallen asleep, then the mother needs to return, try to calm him down, lull him to sleep and leave the room again so that the baby can doze off on his own.
Usually, after a few days, the child realizes that he needs to fall asleep “on his own”. Therefore, this method is more suitable for babies 2 years old or slightly younger, but not for newborns.
Caress and hugs
You can calm your child down with gentle strokes when he is already in bed. Some children like it when their eyebrows, ears, and palms are ironed. Others calm down from gentle touches to the back or tummy.
A similar feature is typical for children under 6 months old, in whom tactile sensations are developed quite strongly. Therefore, the question of how to quickly put the child to bed can be answered simply: touch the baby more often or press it to you.
Complacency
If none of the methods has worked and the problem of how to put the baby to sleep during the day or at night has not been solved, you need to calm down, first of all, mom. A woman trying to put her child to sleep is trying too hard, as a result the baby feels tension and cries even more.
Therefore, the mother needs to give up excessive efforts and try to simply distract the baby in any way: show something bright, turn on unfamiliar music, dance with him. After relieving stress, the child will begin to calm down and fall asleep faster.
Pediatricians recommend to understand the background of childhood insomnia and eliminate it. Therefore, parents need to make sure that the child is not sick, fed, and is not worried about too high or low air temperature in the room.
Author's methods
The question of how to properly put a child to bed is asked not only by parents, but also by specialists - somnologists or pediatricians. They offer their own methods, which involve either the baby falling asleep quickly on her own, or the mother performing certain sequential actions.
Harvey Karp Method
For several decades, the American pediatrician Karp's method has been used in practice by parents around the world. It consists of 5 effective techniques:
motion sickness;- swaddling;
- using a nipple;
- laying on a side;
- inclusion of "white noise".
motion sickness;All of these steps can be used in combination or separately. Someone succeeds in sending the baby to a daytime sleep or to bed at night after the motion sickness, other parents note that the child instantly calms down when hissing over his ear ("white noise").
Estiville's method
This technique of the Spanish pediatrician is more suitable for children over one and a half years old who already understand the words spoken by their parents a little. For newborns, this method of laying is unacceptable.
The method of self-falling asleep from Dr. Estiville is that the mother regularly tells the baby during daylight hours that he sleeps in his own bed today without motion sickness and reminders.
In the evening, mom puts the baby to bed, wishes him pleasant dreams and says that she will come and check it in a minute. She then leaves the room and locks the door. These 60 seconds must be sustained, although the baby will cry loudly.
During the week, the child's solitude increases. At the same time, the mother does not need to pity him, but explain in the same words why he now sleeps in his crib. The pediatrician even developed a special plate for the intervals through which the baby is shown.
This technique of falling asleep has both followers and opponents. Therefore, it is worth focusing not on the opinions of other parents on the network, but on your own child.
Nathan Dailo's Method
Is it possible to put a baby to bed in a minute? It turns out that this is possible if you approach the matter with a certain imagination. For example, a young father from Australia showed in the video how in 40 seconds he plunged his two-month-old son into a restful sleep, passing a paper napkin over his face.
As experts explain, there is nothing extraordinary in this, since many newborn babies react in a similar way to the touch of a soft object to the face and ears. Touching your fingernails or toenails is also common.
Naturally, a guaranteed way to lull a baby or an older child is not easy to find. What works for one baby may not work for another. Trial and error will help to find the most suitable option.
10 rules from doctor Komarovsky
The popular TV doctor Yevgeny Komarovsky identifies 10 main recommendations, the implementation of which will help ensure a healthy sleep for the baby and other household members.
- Prioritize... The first point in other words - all family members should rest. For newborns, it is necessary for the mother to be calm, happy and sleepy.
- Determine your sleep pattern... The sleep and wakefulness routine must take into account the peculiarities of the parents' daily regimen, as well as the baby's biorhythms. Moreover, you need to observe the time of falling asleep every day.
- Decide where your child will sleep... Komarovsky believes that the baby should sleep alone in a separate bed. In such a situation, adults will sleep well, and at 1 year old the bed can be moved to another room. However, mom can lay the baby next to her.
- Don't be afraid to wake up your baby... Often, the question of how to put a child to bed during the day smoothly flows into the problem of his unwillingness to sleep at night. Therefore, adjust your nap time.
- Optimize feeding... Track how your child reacts to food. If after a meal he is drawn to sleep, feed tightly in the evening. If the situation is the opposite and the baby wants to play after milk, on the contrary, reduce the amount of food.
- Increase activity during the day... Make the waking mode more active: walk on the street, communicate with people and animals, observe the world around you, play. This will increase the length of your night's sleep.
- Provide fresh air... If the room is stuffy, the baby simply will not fall asleep. Also, low air humidity does not contribute to healthy sleep. Bring these parameters to optimal values.
- Bathe your child... Warm water will relieve fatigue, improve mood, and also relax the little bather.
- Prepare the crib... Komarovsky advises every time to monitor whether the sleeping place is properly organized. It is important to purchase only high-quality sheets, mattresses and nappies.
- Don't forget the diaper... A high-quality disposable diaper will allow the child to sleep well and the mother to relax. Therefore, do not be afraid to use these hygiene items.
If you follow these simple recommendations, then a sweetly sleeping baby and saved your own nerves will be your reward.
As a conclusion
The question of how to put a child to bed in 5 minutes, perhaps, will never lose its relevance.In order for the baby to fall asleep quickly and without tears, you will have to try many methods and use a variety of recommendations.
It is only important not to forget about yourself and your psychological health. Agree that a freaked out mother and a tired father will not help the child fall asleep quickly. Therefore, stay calm and solve the problem without unnecessary nerves.
