Question: FAQ- How do I get my baby to sleep through the night?
My daughter is 5 months old, shouldn’t she be sleeping through the night by now? Is there a way I can get her to start sleeping through the night?
Answer:
Step 2 When they wake up the real work begins. As much as it pains you, leave them in bed. This is so hard, she will be crying and every instinct you have will be screaming at you to go get her. Don’t. She has to learn to fall asleep on her own. Instead, sit next to her bed, but don’t talk to her. Your presence will be comforting, but if you talk to her, she’ll never fall back asleep. I would sing a lullaby during this time. I would not look at my son, talk directly to him, or pick him up, but I would sit in the rocker next to his bed and sing. After what seemed like hours, he would finally settle himself and go back to sleep. After a few nights of this he stopped waking up, and we both finally got a full night’s sleep.
Some babies don’t start sleeping through the night until their six months old, the average is about 2 to 4 months. When my oldest was still a baby he had his own thoughts about how his sleep schedule should be. By the time he was four months old I was slowly going insane from the lack of a full night’s sleep. After a lot of research, and some experimentation, I finally developed a great technique that has worked for every one of my children.
Step 1 Create a nighttime routine. This is a calming routine for your little one that tells them it is nighttime now. This can include a bath, a book, rocking, then laying her in bed when she's almost asleep. Keep this calm, soothing, and consistent. You can also create a separate place for naps, like a Pack N' Play, this can be a subtle way to denote the difference in nighttime versus nap time.Step 2 When they wake up the real work begins. As much as it pains you, leave them in bed. This is so hard, she will be crying and every instinct you have will be screaming at you to go get her. Don’t. She has to learn to fall asleep on her own. Instead, sit next to her bed, but don’t talk to her. Your presence will be comforting, but if you talk to her, she’ll never fall back asleep. I would sing a lullaby during this time. I would not look at my son, talk directly to him, or pick him up, but I would sit in the rocker next to his bed and sing. After what seemed like hours, he would finally settle himself and go back to sleep. After a few nights of this he stopped waking up, and we both finally got a full night’s sleep.
