All parents always wonder when their babies will start to sleep through the night, without sleep disturbances, insomnia, or unquenchable crying. It is a stage that all parents go through, from changing diapers, giving food or breast milk to their children in the middle of the night. Everyone knows that waking up every two hours a night is exhausting and frustrating, that is why we share the best tips for putting your baby to sleep at night in this article.
At what age should a baby sleep all night?
On average, a baby can sleep all night at the age of two years old. There are babies who can already sleep through the night at two months of age but there are times when at eight or nine months babies seem to change their sleeping behavior.
They find it difficult to fall asleep, they often wake up in the middle of the night and they constantly look for their parents. It is also very common that many babies want to eat at night. The most common reason babies don’t sleep through the night is separation anxiety from the mother. Another factor is the growth of teeth that causes discomfort and disturb the behavior of babies. In any case, a lot of patience is needed, as it is just a stage that all babies go through.
Why is it hard for babies to sleep at night?
It is hard for babies to sleep at night due to some of these reasons:
- Gas and colic
- Mealtime
- Unsuitable environment
- Temperature
- Tiredness
- Wake up time
Gas and colic
This is an extensive topic that encompasses different factors as not all babies are the same. Several things can be done to prevent your baby from having colic discomfort, but keep in mind that when your baby begins to move more, it will be easier to do so. Their reaction to breastfeeding, as well as their sensitivity to certain types of formulas, might be some of the causes.
A baby takes in air in many ways: crying, sucking milk, sucking on the bottle, etc. However, it sometimes causes the babies pain so it’s important to help them learn to expel gas naturally and especially to get rid of them as much as possible before going to sleep.
Mealtime
Reducing the appearance of colic and gas requires a precise feeding routine, taking precautions when necessary. Do not wait for the baby to wake up hungry. Infants can sleep too many hours at night, so you need to establish a specific feeding routine if you want them to sleep consistently through the night. Mealtime routine will be addressed more thoroughly below.
Unsuitable environment
To promote nighttime sleep, it is important that the environment is adequate and that there are no stimuli to disturb the baby's sleep. The room should be dark or have soft light. Noises are also annoying for babies. However, you must keep in mind that some children fall asleep more easily if you play white noise in the background.
The baby is too hot or too cold
The temperature of the room in which a baby sleeps should never be too high or too low. The ideal room temperature is between 18°C and 20°C. In addition, the clothes must adapt to the temperature.
Most parents think that their babies should be covered in thick pajamas and several layers of blankets, but that is not necessarily the case. In general, light pajamas and a blanket are sufficient, but it is best to adapt to each child, avoiding too much coverage for children who are very hot and too little for those who tend to be cold.
The baby is too tired
It may seem like a paradox, but for many babies, it works the other way around than for adults: the more tired they are, the more difficult it is for them to fall asleep. For this, it is very useful to observe the baby's sleep problems signals (yawning, rubbing his eyes, or staring at a distant point) to put them to bed just when they occur. If this happens frequently, it will be an indicator that the baby is potentially in a state of hyperarousal.
The baby wakes up too late in the morning
If your baby never wants to go to sleep at night, one way to break this recurring problem to their bedtime routine is to wake them up earlier in the morning.
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What do you do when your baby won't sleep at night?
For the baby to understand that going to sleep is not a negative thing, it is necessary to make the bedtime ritual enjoyable. What you can do when your baby won’t sleep at night is carry them in your arms and walk around showing them the different objects that are in the house.
5 tips to get your baby to sleep through the night
These 5 tips to get your baby to sleep through the night are based on the experience of parents, pediatricians, and experts to promote positive sleep habits:
- Create the right environment
- Get them used to their bedroom
- Establish a routine
- Herbal tea before going to bed
- Acceptance
1. Create the right environment
When going to bed, the baby's bedroom should have the light off or dimly lit. All the toys must be in order, placed in their containers, and the TV and electronic devices should be turned off. It’s important to create the right environment for them to fall asleep.
2. Get them used to their bedroom
From birth, babies usually take at least one nap a day in the crib of their bedroom. This gradually accustoms them to falling asleep alone and sleeping without their mother's company. Even if the babies sleep in their parents' room at some point, it is highly advisable to put some kind of separation between their bed and the parents’ bed.
If babies wake up and see their parents, they will naturally want to be with them to sleep. It is important to get children used to sleeping in their crib without their parents as soon as possible, reserving the master bed for special occasions, such as when they are sick.
3. Establish a routine
During the day, the activities may be different and vary according to the day of the week, but it is important that at night, a well-defined routine is followed that the baby can recognize. For example, dinner should always be served at the same time and with very marked rituals. The ideal is to start between 6 and 8 PM with a warm bath of about 15 to 20 minutes. Then you put his pajamas on and sit them at the table for dinner.
After dinner, a couple of hours should pass so that the baby can digest appropriately. During this time, quiet games, relaxing music, or singing and reading books are recommended. We assure you that if you adopt this routine from the baby's birth, it will be easier for him/her to fall asleep in a serene way.
4. Herbal tea before going to bed
It is also advisable to serve tea and infusions before putting the baby to bed, perhaps to replace the last bottle of milk before going to bed. Infusions such as chamomile, hawthorn, lemon balm, lime, valerian, or verbena are ideal to promote the baby's sleep, as long as they do not contain sugar or sweeteners.
To make the herbal tea more palatable, you can sweeten it with a little honey. Its use in child nutrition is recommended because it is natural and healthy. However, experts also point out that the tea should not be administered to babies under 1 year of age. This is because the intestinal bacterial flora is not yet fully formed and the spores contained in honey could cause infant botulism, which is a serious form of poisoning.
5. Nightly awakenings, nightmares, and petitions
No matter how good the practices adopted to promote your baby's sleep are, it should be considered normal for your baby to wake up in the middle of the night. In the first phase, they will most likely coincide with breastfeeding sessions, so it is advisable to try to be quick so as not to turn the awakening into a desperate cry that is difficult to comfort.
When the baby is older and begins to sleep alone, they may wake up at night because they need to drink water, go to the bathroom, or maybe they had a nightmare. At this stage, it is vital to keep the bedroom as a place of reference and keep the baby safe and protected. If the baby had a nightmare, it is not a good idea to take him/her to the parents’ bed. It is best to move them to their bed and help them calm down.
