Managing Newborn’s Sleep Demands
Newborns are really stubborn when it comes to sleep. It is one of the most challenging tasks to look after a newborn. They do not have any schedule and the fact is they end up disturbing our schedule also. My baby sleeps whenever he wants to. The moment I feel like having a nap or sleep for a while, he wakes up. He spends more time sleeping than he awake, though the sleep happens in small chunks or on irregular chunks. In the initial days I was worried, as he was sleeping too much. Then I started keeping a sleep log and that helped me to track his sleep demands. Today I”ll be sharing some of the Newborn Parenting Tips.
Newborns are recommended to get 14-17 hours of sleep per day. Some newborns may sleep for 11 hours while others sleep for 19 hours per day. They may sleep more or less when they are sick or experience a disruption in their regular routine. Babies sleep in bursts of 30-45 minutes or as long as 3-4 hours in one shot. In the first weeks, it is normal for a newborn to wake up, feed and then go right back to sleep. After a couple of weeks they begin to develop a schedule. They eventually start sleeping at night, but they may still wake several times to feed. Most of the babies do not have a sleep schedule until they are 6 months old. My experience says that newborns are not awake for more than 3 hours a day.
What to do if your baby sleeps too much
If you are a new mommy and feel that your baby is sleeping too much than you must watch for signs that might need attention. Remember, sleep matters a lot. Sleep is essential for baby’s health, growth and development. It is important for both mother and the baby. SO don’t rush into things. Start developing a schedule for a baby when he is 2-3 months old. Waking, feeding and sleeping schedules will help you a lot to get back to your normal life. Try to follow the below strategies to manage the sleep demands of the baby:
• Feed him every time he shows hunger cues
• Offer him breast every 1-2 hours to ensure he gets adequate food
• Make sure that the baby is not too cold or hot
• Keep a log of baby’s sleep schedule for a week
Try not to rock or hold or feed the baby until he falls asleep. Babies have the ability to self soothe themselves and fall back to sleep again. To control the sleep demands of babies during day hours, start playing with them during the day. Spend time with them, take them close to nature. Make them feel the difference between day and night. I know the early months of parenthood are tiring, but soon you will be having a toddler bouncing off the walls and sleeping for longer stretched at night. This is the stage of tiny onesies and infant burp clothes and it too shall pass.
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