Sleepy Dreams DAEEblPLelM Free Sleep Guide Instructions

DAEEblPLelM Free Sleep Guide

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Product Information

Specifications

• Product Name: Sleepy Dreams Co Sleep Guide
• Author: Bernadette
• Target Audience: Parents of babies and young children

Product Usage Instructions

Introduction

Welcome to Sleepy Dreams Co! This guide aims to assist parents
in understanding and improving their child’s sleep habits over the
first few years of their life. It provides valuable insights into
creating a positive sleep environment and establishing healthy
sleep routines.

The 4th Trimester

What is the 4th Trimester?

The 4th trimester refers to the first three months of a baby’s
life after birth. It is a period where babies require nurturing and
care as if they were still in the mother’s womb. During this time,
it is essential to prioritize cuddles, feeding on demand, and
providing comfort to help babies adjust to the outside world.

Our Recommendations during the 4th trimester

It is advised not to engage in sleep training during the 4th
trimester. Focus on meeting your baby’s needs, offering comfort,
and assisting them in falling asleep through methods like rocking,
bouncing, or feeding. Your presence and support are crucial during
this developmental phase.

FAQ

Q: Can I start sleep training during the 4th trimester?

A: It is not recommended to start sleep training during the
first three months of your baby’s life. Providing comfort, cuddles,
and meeting your baby’s needs are more important during this
period.

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Free Sleep Guide
A guide to sleep & settling in the first 4 years.

Contents Each page of this hyper-linked, and then a hyper0link at the bottom of each page will bring you back to the contents page, for ease of use. 1. Introduction 2.The 4th Timester 3.Awake Times 4.Building Good Sleep Habits 5.Sleep Environment 6.Settling Techniques 7.Nap Refusal & 2-4 Year old bedtime 8.Further Information

Introduction
Hello! You’re either a new mum , you’re an expectant mum or you’re a seasoned sleepless mum! Either way, welcome to Sleepy Dreams Co!
Sleepy Dreams Co is run by mum of 4, Bernadette (me!). I know all too well how sleep deprivation can affect your life and time with your baby and young children, so I made this guide to try and help as many parents get a head start to getting some sleep and making beautiful, happy memories with their little families.
Sleep is going to be a big part of your life over the first few years of your child’s life (I assume it’s why you’re reading this!), so it’s important to get you off to a positive start and get an understanding of your little one’s sleep and what you can do to help guide them to better sleep, for the long term.
This guide will help you with setting up the perfect sleep environment and creating positive sleep habits for your baby. It includes advice on how you can settle your baby, what to expect in the 4th trimester & safe sleeping guides, also some information on helping older children sleep to ensure your first few years with your babies are as happy and well-rested as can be!
We wish you all the very best on your journey with your child and suggest you take every opportunity to soak up those
Bernadette xx newborn cuddles (and smells) and bond with your baby.
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The 4th Trimester

What is the 4th trimester

Have you heard of the 4th trimester? If you haven’t you might want to read on, if you have, you would already know that the 4th trimester occurs once your baby is born and spans the first 3 months of their life!

The idea of the 4th trimester came from Dr. Harvey Karp, a paediatrician from the USA. Basically, he suggests that human babies are born too early (3 months too early) because their brains grow too big to be birthed if they spent any longer in the womb. Karp states that because a baby’s brain is still ‘mushy, smushy and very immature’ they really just aren’t ready to be introduced to the outside world.

He suggests that for the first three months of life babies benefit from being cared for as if they were still in the mother’s womb (but let’s be thankful we don’t have the endure another trimester with our baby in utero!!).

Our Recommendations during the 4th trimester.

Sleep training int the 4th During the first three months, we recommend doing whatever you need to get your baby to sleep.

trimester.
We don’t recommend any sleep training in the first three months of your baby’s life. We strongly believe they are not developmentally or emotionally ready for sleep training!!

We recommend giving your baby lots of cuddles and snuggles, feed your baby on demand, and do what you need to get your baby to sleep. If they need to be rocked, bounced, or fed to sleep then do it. Your baby needs you here!

If you need to co-sleep? go for it (just do it safely). Your baby will crave your touch and it’s pretty nice to enjoy your new baby’s snuggles and their newborn smell!

But there are certainly some things you can do you help set up your baby’s sleep environment for successful sleep and if you read on you will find our suggestions of setting up your baby for sleep success, and ultimately have a less fussy, happier baby (and in turn a rested, happy mum!).

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Awake Times

You will find out very quickly that your fresh newborn won’t and can’t stay awake for very long! They are very easily overstimulated and get overtired very very quickly, this can make it hard for them to wind down and settle for sleep.

Do you know what being overstimulated and overtired can cause? CRYING. Lots of crying!

This crying is often mistaken for other issues such as wind, colic, or reflux. So if you suspect your baby has one of these issues, ensure you set up the sleep environment and set the appropriate awake times for your baby, because these issues are often misdiagnosed and could have been fixed with better sleep
practices. (It is very possible that your baby is experiencing these and if you do suspect they are, it is best to speak with your health professional).

You will notice during the first year of your baby’s life their `awake times’, or the amount of time your baby can be awake before getting overtired, changes rapidly, especially in the first few weeks! It can be hard to know when they are getting overtired and if they get to this stage they will become fussy and
hard to settle, on the contrary, if your baby is under tired they will be fussy and hard to settle at bedtime!

Below is our recommended awake times for babies up to 4 months old. Of course, your baby is an individual and you might find they need a little more or a little less than these recommendations, so you
might need to play around by 15 minutes either side to find your bub’s ultimate awake times.

As we don’t recommend or expect our newborns to follow a strict schedule, it is useful to stick to these awake times to keep your bub happy and more likely to sleep!

Baby Refusing to Nap?: A baby who refuses to nap is most likely already overtired, in this instance, you want to do whatever you need to get them to sleep, however you can! If not overtired, your baby may be
under tired, in this case, you want to extend their awake times.

Birth – 6 weeks 2 months 3 months 6 months 12 months 2 years 4 years

45-60 mins 1 hour
1 – 1.5 hours 2-2.25 hours
3-4 hours 5.5-7 hours 6-8 hours

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Building Good Sleep Habits
Did you know that babies need to learn how to sleep? Just like we teach them to eat and ride a bike we need
to teach them how to sleep too!
As we know that newborn babies are incapable of being ‘sleep trained’ it’s important to teach them good habits that can set them up for successful sleep long
term.
– Aim to let your bub sleep in their cot/bed space once per day so they learn what their bed means = sleep – Implement a wind-down routine at the start of each sleep, this can be as simple as a milk feed, book, song and saying your sleepy phrase. This is enough to let your bub know it’s sleep time. Be consistent.
– Put your baby down drowsy but awake, it will start to teach independent sleep (but don’t stress if your bub needs assistance in going to sleep at this age)
– Having quiet time before sleep can help make them more calm leading up to sleep time.
– Implement a feed-play-sleep routine to try and not make a feeding to sleep a negative sleep association (if that is your ultimate goal).
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Sleep Environment

Your baby’s sleep environment can have a huge impact on their ability to settle to sleep easily, sleep well, and stay asleep. Whether you are bedsharing, have your baby sleeping in your room or if they are in their own room, these are some ways you can set up their sleep space to help promote sleep:

Dark Room: Ensure the room your baby sleeps in is dark, as close to pitch black as
possible. Melatonin (the sleep hormone) is more readily released
in the dark. This is especially important after your maternal melatonin starts to wear off from 3 weeks, at approx 8 weeks your baby will start producing their own
melatonin for sleep!.
Safe Sleep: We always recommend you adhere
to safe sleeping guidelines when putting your baby to bed. Always place your baby on their back with no toys or loose blankets in with
them.
Please visit https://rednose.org.au/section/safe -sleeping for more information on safe sleep guides, including those
for co-sleeping.

White Noise: Use continuous white noise for the entirety of your baby’s sleep, both day and night. White noise helps drown out any surrounding sounds to promote longer sleeps. It should be as loud as a
running shower.
Temperature: It is recommended by experts that you sleep your baby in a
cool room between 18 – 20 Degrees C, using a TOG rated sleeping bag takes the guess
work out.
Swaddle: Use a swaddle for all sleeps, babies love the feeling of being swaddled as it mimics the
feeling of being the womb. You can use traditional swaddles/wraps or a great alternative is the Love To Dream swaddle (keep in mind not all babies like the arms up,
this will be individual to your baby).

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Settling Techniques

Newborn babies often help to settle to sleep. Before Stomach or Side Position

to three months, we suggest you assisting your baby

to sleep if they need it. It’s a good idea to ensure

Always sleep your baby on their back, but when you

your baby has at least one sleep per day in their bed are needing to calm/settle them you can turn your

(wherever that may be, bassinet, own cot, in their

baby on to their side or stomach or over your

own room or yours), this will ensure they learn that shoulder to create calm.

bed is for sleeping, rather than in your arms. But it’s

also lovely to have and enjoy those newborn

cuddles!

The following are the 5 ‘s’ which Dr Harvey Karp has

determined be the necessities for newborn sleep.

Swaddle

Swaddling recreates the feeling your baby has in the

womb, it helps feel snug and secure and safe.

Swaddle your baby tight, if your baby gets their arms

out consider double swaddling. TIght swaddling is

the key to starting to help your baby settle as they

are unable to move their arms around which can cause more fussiness.

Shushing

Tip: swaddling should be used for sleep but if your A loud ‘Shhh’ sound repeatedly can help your baby

baby is particularly fussy and you can’t settle them, calm, as it mimics the sounds in the womb (which

try swaddling them to calm them down.

are surprisingly loud), remember your baby does

not need silence to sleep, and white noise is your

friend!

Swing/ Movement
As you can imagine, life in utero is very bouncy. So movement can be a fantastic way to settle your baby, swinging, rocking, baby wearing are all grat tools here.

Sucking
Babies love to suck, and a dummy can be an effective tool in the first few months to help them settle and sleep. If you don’t wish to, or your baby doesn’t take a dummy they will probably suck their thumb or hand to find their own comfort.

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Nap Refusal
There are several reasons why your baby might be refusing to nap/ is unsettled at their nap time.
Your baby is already overtired – if this is the case you will want to get to sleep ASAP, any way you can!
Your baby is under-tired – if this is the case you want to extend their awake time
Ensure their sleep environment is set up, remember darkness, cool, and white noise.
Ensure your baby isn’t hungry or has wind, wind can be a huge reason for your baby not settling to sleep.
Following a guide can certainly help you ensure you have done all you can to promote sleep for your child and help learn how to sleep independently and gently.
2-4 year old bedtime battles
WHen it comes to the 2 – 4 year old age group, the most common people seek our support for if that bedtime has become a hard, frustrating and unejoyable time!
By this age, our little people have their own opinions and idea of how things work and what they want or likely DON’T want to do. And most children at some point, refuse to go to bed. So was can you do to help?
Ensure your child has had the appropriate nap time and length, it is a vital part of a seamless bedtime so they aren’t over or under tired.
As with all ages, consistency & routine remains the key factor is succeeding for a lovely bed time.
Utilise nightlights, rewards charts, and full conversation/role playing to help your child understand are all parts of making bed time successful for your whole family.
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More Infmormation
Thank you for choosing Sleepy Deams Co. We hope that these routines have helped you create some structure in your day to improve
your child’s sleep. If you need more help and support, we offer a range of tailored-for-you programs and sleep guides to suit your needs. Our sleep guides are available to purchase on our website, they
will guide you through all the tools you need to have your child sleeping well. You can find us at:
www.sleepydreams.com.au

FREE Sleep guide

Buy 4-12 month sleep guide $39

Buy 12-24 month sleep guide Buy 2 – 4 Years sleep guide

$39

$39

You can also follow up on socials for more information, tips & tricks!

@sleepydreamsco

Disclaimer: Please note this program is a guide and all information

included is from experience I gain through working with clients and

my certification training. This information should be followed at your

discretion and used as a general guide, not tailored or medical

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advice.

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