When a woman has a baby below one year old, you would naturally expect the mother to look bedraggled, with dark, nasty eye bags below her eyes every day of the week. Sometimes she may even be very difficult to converse with. This is because an infant would normally have several feeding times during the night, and in the morning she still would not be able to nap sufficiently because of all the chores she needs to do. This is a complete recipe for a snappish, moody mom, who would bite at the slightest prodding from a sometimes-insensitive husband. This highlights how important sleep is to any person, from a baby to any full-grown adult. After all, lack of sleep always makes a person cranky, exhausted, and lazy, and sometimes it may even cause serious damage to other organs in the body.
But there is good news! Recent studies have observed ways on how babies are actually able to sleep for at least five hour a night straight by the age of two months, and longer past that age. That means it is possible for a new mom to get a good night’s sleep, and have enough energy to face the rest of her responsibilities during the day. And this is very important, since she needs her precious energy to be able to give her best to the infant himself as well as to the rest of the family. After all, the house runs by her hands, and if those hands are tired, anyone can guess what state the household will be in!
The first thing being described in pediatricians’ study on infant sleep is that they sleep better when they are on a routine during the day. By routine, it means they have a relatively fixed pattern of feeding, playing, and sleeping. Instead of the normal way that babies wake up, then play, then feed to fall asleep, they propose a different routine wherein the baby feeds upon waking up, then spends some time awake, and then sleeps with no prop needed. This pattern will result in a baby that automatically sleeps for a stretch of five hours after the last cycle of feed, play, sleep comes to a close at the end of the day.
A second principle needed for a baby to develop this sleep pattern is the idea of full feedings. Full feedings means that the baby nurses until he is full, instead of falling asleep halfway and then asking for more ten minutes later. The first principle of an altered cycle schedule greatly facilitates this, since the baby feeds upon first waking up, which means he is not likely to fall asleep too soon. After all, infants tend to sleep so much of the time, and if he does, the mom will wind up waiting for the next hunger cry to come, which cannot be predicted. This way, he gets a full tummy and will usually last an hour or two before needing another feeding.
The last and another important principle at work why the baby will be able to sleep through the night is that it was not given a sleep prop during the day. A sleep prop is anything that helps a baby fall asleep. It could be rocking, patting, a lullaby, or even a milk bottle or a pacifier. What happens is that the baby gets used to falling asleep by himself, so that if by any chance he stirs during the night, he is perfectly able to fall back to sleep without needing to rouse mom or dad. This is in contrast to a baby who wakes up and then cries because he needs to be rocked back to sleep or he lost his pacifier and could not find it. This is definitely happy news for parents who would gladly appreciate the added hours of sleep!
Once these principles are understood and developed into the baby’s schedule, the mom, and even the dad, can be sure she herself will get sufficient rest. Baby’s happy sleeping patterns will automatically translate to a more relaxed mother with a sharp focus on the things she needs to accomplish for the day, even leaving her with enough time to dote on her husband.
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