As a parent, sleep usually becomes a precious commodity, and the best way to get more of it is to help your baby do more of it. Granted you cannot make a baby go to sleep, nor make him or her stay asleep, but you can use certain tips and techniques for better sleep.

Before getting into tips and techniques, remember that one of the best ways to get a baby to sleep is using a bedtime routine. You can read about that in “Baby Sleep Patterns”.

Tips for better sleep:

Swaddle
Swaddling has actually been proven to help infants sleep longer. It is a method of wrapping the baby in cloth or blankets that simulates the womb.

Feeding
If a baby’s stomach is full he or she will sleep better. Make sure to feed the baby before sleep. Formula is also known to keep a baby full longer than breast milk. A good long feeding of nice warm milk will help the baby relax, fall asleep, and possibly sleep longer.

A good environment
Another method to help babies sleep through the night is to make their room as much like the womb as possible. Keep the room dark and warm, but not hot.
You can also leave an item of yours behind like a nightdress to help the baby feel comfortable if you are not co-sleeping.

Sing a lullaby/ Play music
It was very common for our moms to sing lullabies for us to get to sleep you can do the same. Can consider playing soothing repetitive music. This will calm the baby, and his or her body will relax. It is like a signal for them to get to sleep.

Make the baby as comfortable as possible
Make any adjustments to the baby for comfort before they fall asleep. Clean the nose of buggers, change the diaper, give any medicines for example for teething and make sure the night clothes are soft and breathable.

Getting your baby to sleep well may take some trail and error, if you’ve tried all the tips and techniques on this page and are still having problems see our page on “Baby Sleep Problems”

Techniques:

The best technique to put a baby to sleep is a manner of debate. You as a parent will need to find which way works best for you. Here are the two most commonly used techniques.

Cry-It Out or Self Sooth Method

• Place the baby in his bed/crib while still awake.
• Say Good-night, give hugs and kisses etc. and leave the room.
• If the baby cries allow him/her to do so for 3 minutes.<>/li
• Return and offer comfort but don’t pick the baby up then leave again.
• Let the baby cry 5 more minutes then return again.
• Continue this process extending the time you wait before returning 2-5 minutes each time.

The idea is eventually the child will go to sleep and will learn to soothe itself and fall asleep without assistance.

The No-Cry Method or Parent Soothed

This method has no real structure. The parent can offer any form of soothing to get the baby to sleep. This includes nursing, feeding, rocking, co-sleeping, signing, etc. The idea is that the child will form positive sleep associations and want to sleep.