Navigating life with a newborn can be one of the most significant challenges you face in life. Between feeding, diaper changes, and crying, you also have to work out how to ensure you get enough sleep to function during the day. You might never achieve as much sleep as you did before your bundle of joy arrived, but you may have some luck avoiding complete sleep deprivation if you do some of the following things.
Purchase Sleep Aid Products for Babies
After reading plenty of Snoo reviews, you might have come to the conclusion that baby product manufacturers want you to achieve a restful night’s sleep just as much as you do. Having a newborn can be challenging, but products made to make your baby more comfortable and well-rested might make a world of difference.
For example, you can purchase bassinets like the Snoo to rock your baby, provide white noise, and keep them swaddled for comfort and safety. If your baby has their needs taken care of by their bassinet, they might need your assistance less often.
Stay Away From Screens Before Bed
When you finally get your baby to sleep at night and have the space you need for some ‘me’ time, it can be tempting to hop on your mobile device and browse the internet. However, too much screen time at night might present sleep challenges.
The light from devices can make your brain think it’s daytime, causing your body to produce the stimulating hormone cortisol, which might make it challenging to get to sleep and stay asleep. When you’re already not getting enough sleep due to nightly feeds, this can be a recipe for disaster.
Do One Relaxing Activity Each Day
Caring for a newborn takes a lot of time and energy, especially when you’re still trying to create a feeding and sleeping routine. Emotions are heightened, you might feel stressed, and you are unlikely to dedicate any time to yourself and activities that make you feel relaxed.
While there’s likely very little time for relaxing activities, making time for them is essential. Something as simple as a warm bath, a walk in nature, or a coffee with friends might keep your stress hormones at bay and allow you to sleep better at night.
Split Night Feeds
Not everyone will be in a position to split night feeds, especially solo parents and breastfeeding mothers. However, if you have someone you can rely on to share the load, consider it for the sake of your health. You might decide to alternate nights, with one parent handling all the night feeds on one evening and the other parent taking care of them the following night.
Some parents might even choose to split the feeds evenly each night so that both parents achieve the same amount of sleep. While work commitments might play a part in how you share the load, it can be worth relying on your support network as much as possible to take care of your physical and mental health.
Parenthood and sleepless nights sometimes seem to go hand in hand, but they don’t have to. Take note of these tips above, and you might be able to achieve more sleep with a newborn than you thought possible.
