How do I get my baby to sleep?

The best thing that I have learnt about getting my baby to sleep is to know when to put her down.

Sienna is breast-fed and feeds every three hours for about twenty minutes. After her feed we have playtime. Once she starts to show signs of being tired such as:

• Jerky movements
• Whining or crying
• Red eyebrows Hiccups

I know she is ready for bed. In Sienna’s case this is pretty much exactly one hour after the start of her feed. I then allow her a little quiet time by removing her toys, turning off any music then take her to bed.

Even though she is tired and quiet relaxed this doesn’t always mean that she will just put herself to sleep….if only!! So I have to give her a little helping hand. I learnt a technique from the baby clinic that has really helped. After I swaddle her I begin tapping (with a flat hand on her mattress) in a slow rhythm behind her head and place my other hand on her tummy. This allows her to know I am there and to relax to the rhythm. I guess it is like listening to my heartbeat. This works pretty much every time but can sometimes take up to 10 mins to put her to sleep, but once she is a sleep, she stays asleep…love it! The idea behind this is to teach her to go to sleep and the tapping will become a trigger. She is so much easier to put to sleep now and often doesn’t need my help.

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