Teaching Babies to Soothe Themselves to Sleep

Teaching Babies to Soothe Themselves to Sleep

When you bring a new baby home, you have two choices; you can cater to the baby’s schedule, or you can teach the baby how to fit in with yours. Parents who want to go to their baby every time he cries may be encouraging a fussy baby. If your baby is not getting a good night’s sleep, this may lead to fussy daytime behavior too. The solution is to get your baby on a schedule and stick with it as best as you can. The Ferber method is one way to teach babies how to soothe themselves to sleep.

I don’t know any Mom who wants to lose sleep and feel stressed all day due to lack of sleep. We all want to feel refreshed and ready to take on our daily duties and to be able to connect with our babies from day one.

Here’s some life saving tips to help you teach your little one techniques to lull them to sleep on their own:

1.) Put your baby down when she is awake. After you feed your baby, play with her for a while, and when it is time for a nap or for bed, put her down when she is awake. If you let her fall asleep while nursing, when she wakes up to find the breast or bottle gone, she will probably start to cry because she uses the nursing to put her to sleep. If you put her to sleep awake, she will teach herself how to self-soothe herself to sleep.

2.) Use the Ferber method. Introduced by Dr. Richard Ferber in the 1980s, many people associate the Ferber method with simply letting the baby cry himself to sleep. While that is part of the method, it is not that simple. There is more to the Ferber method than simply putting your baby in a crib and leaving him there to cry.

3.) Choose to start the Ferber method when your baby is at least 3 months old. Also, pick a time when it is not crucial that you get a good night’s sleep for up to a week or two. This method is time-consuming at first, and if you feel you must get up the next morning, you will be tempted to give up and continue with your old habits, which will put you back to square one.

4.) The first night put your baby to bed when she is tired, but awake. After you leave the room, expect your baby to start crying. Allow this to go on for five minutes. Come in the room just to check on your baby. This will provide some comfort for both of you. Do not linger in the room or pick up your baby, just come in, maybe rub her back a little and leave.

5.) Wait 10 minutes. After you leave the room for the second time, wait10 minutes before going back in. Repeat what you did the first time you came in, and leave.

6.) Wait 15 minutes. If the baby is still crying after 15 minutes, go in again, and repeat what you have been doing. Do this all night until your baby falls asleep. The first night is usually the worst one. On rare occasions, the baby will throw up during one of the crying episodes. Calmly clean up your baby and the bed, and then put him back down. Continue with the 15-minute intervals.

7.) The second night, start by waiting 10 minutes before entering the room the first time, 15 minutes the second time and 20 minutes the third time and for the rest of the night. Each night increase the increments by five minutes. Your baby will eventually learn to fall asleep on his own the first time you put him down with minimal or no crying.

References

http://www.babycenter.com/0_the-ferber-method-demystified_7755.bc?showAll=true

Cloth Diapers 101

Cloth Diapers 101

Think cloth diapers are impractical? Think again. They’ve changed a lot since Grandma’s day. Here are the latest facts.

Cloth Diapers: The Basics

For disposable users out there who wince when contemplating your family’s personal contribution to the local landfill but even more so at the thought of the alternative, cloth diapers are an option you may want to consider again. They’re not what they once were.

Say goodbye to your notions of the pins, the big square pieces of cotton, leaky kids, and the daunting task of cleaning up. Easily laundered all-in-one diapers are the order of the day. With snaps or Velcro closures, waterproof banding around the waist and legs, and natural, breathable fibers that require no soaking, cloth diapers can be a more palatable choice than you may imagine.

For the fashion conscious, there are all the cool patterns to consider. For those concerned with keeping little bottoms pristine, you won’t have to worry about blowouts and suspicious chemicals used in making disposables so absorbent. Add to this the potential savings and you may want to give cloth-diapering a try.

The Bottom Line
If you go cloth and launder them yourselves, the cost over three years will be between $800 and $1100, half as much as disposables. And diapering a second child will only cost you the laundering (about $400 for three years).

Home Laundering 101
Don’t worry that your house will become a toxic waste dump. There’s no longer any need to soak, rinse, or flush a diaper. Simply shake solids into the toilet and drop the diaper into a plastic-lined pail after a change. When the pail is full, tip into your washer. Wash once with a detergent like Tide or Cheer Free, reset washer, add more detergent, and wash again. Don’t use bleach. Rinse twice to be sure all residue detergent is completely rinsed away and dry on hot. Not as bad as you thought! And it won’t leave your washer stinky. It will be exactly as clean as the diaper and drains to the same place your toilet does.

Stocking the Changing Table
Experts estimate that you’ll need about 2-3 dozen diapers if you get to the wash every third day, about 75-80 if you use a weekly diaper service. Many diaper services include diaper rentals in their price but you sacrifice choice.

Eco-Friendly Diaper Services
If your motivation to use cloth isn’t based on finances, and the prospect of home laundering is an intimidating one, you may want to opt for a local diaper service. As a rule, services now use biodegradable detergents in their cleaning process rather than the harmful phosphates of old. Like disposables, the costs of using a diaper service plus diaper covers will fall in the range of $2000-$2500 over a three year period.

Related Links:

National Association of Diaper Services
Parenting Tip of the Day

Gone are the days when cloth diapers meant painful pins, awkward leaks, and unpleasant, nose-wrinkling laundry days. Today’s cloth diapers have snaps or hook-and-loop tape closures and waterproof banding, and they are much easier to clean.

Source Parents Magazine