Sleep Dreams Australia

I feel so lucky to connect with so many lovely mums and babies who benefit from our consults, and are feeling so much better after achieving a healthy sleep dynamic 🥹

What? The 4th trimester?

The fourth trimester, named by paediatrician Dr Harvey Karp refers to the first 12 weeks of your baby’s life outside the womb.

It makes sense that one minute your baby is in a confined space, with constant noise and movement and all of a sudden they are free to move, and at times their environment is still and quiet.

So… What can we do to help trigger the calming reflex as baby adjusts to life in the big world?


1️⃣ Swaddling

Swaddling helps to recreate the feeling of being snug in the womb. It can calm crying, prevent startling and is a useful strategy to help babies settle and sleep for increased periods on their back. If you have a Houdini baby who escapes their swaddle you can try a zip up option! Once your baby can roll, transition them to an arms out swaddle.


2️⃣ Side settling

Side settling can help soothe your baby. Hold baby on their side, stomach or over your shoulder. This is only safe for settling, for sleep always place your baby down on their back.


3️⃣ Shushing

The noise inside a mother’s womb is louder than a vacuum cleaner! It’s no wonder they find total silence unsettling. You can use your voice to “shush” or you can use a white noise machine. In order for it to have a calming effect, make sure it’s as loud as your baby’s cry. Once your baby is calm or asleep you can adjust the volume.

4️⃣ Swinging

Swinging or rocking helps to calm your baby during fussy periods. For it to be effective during a crying episode, try fast small motions. Once baby is calm, you can switch to a slow and calm rock. Be sure to support your babies head and neck.

5️⃣ Sucking

Sucking helps to lower your baby’s stress levels. If your baby is unsettled, try offering the breast or a dummy once breastfeeding is established.

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✨ Assisted naps ✨

One of the biggest questions or concerns our clients have whilst working together is how to fit naps into their already busy schedules.

Whether you have older children that require school drop off, or you have weekly commitments such as swimming lessons, it is possible to do it all and still have a good sleeper!

See our suggestions below 👇🏻

1️⃣ From a young age, try to get your baby comfortable napping in the carrier, car or pram.

2️⃣ When planning weekly activities, choose a time slot that's in between your baby's scheduled naps. If it requires travel, they may nap in the car on the way to or from.

3️⃣ For the first or last nap of the day, get out for a walk or activity and allow baby to nap in the carrier, car or pram.

4️⃣ We always recommend the longer lunch nap at home in the cot. It is the most restorative nap of the day and hangs around until they are 3 years old.

Let’s face it, settling your baby in the cot for 2-3 naps a day can be downright exhausting… Teaching your baby to sleep on the go means you aren’t trapped at home all day long!

Send us a DM if you have any questions about naps! 💕

Do you have any questions about your baby's sleep?

Are you unsure if you need help or not?

If this is you, jump onto our website and request a chat via "contact to book"

This is a no obligation complimentary call, we will be in touch in 24h 💕

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👶🏻 Tired signs 🥱

It’s important to recognise your baby’s early tired signs so you can start your pre nap or bed time ritual before they become overtired. I usually recommend winding down 10-15 minutes before they are due to sleep or as soon as you notice any of the early signs!

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How many naps does my baby need?

Some babies will drop their naps earlier than others, use the above as a guide and DM us if you have any questions regarding nap transitions, we would love to chat 💕

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🎄Sleep + Christmas Day 🎄

If your babe is already a great sleeper, one day out of the normal routine isn’t going to throw everything off track.

Here are some suggestions to get you through 💁🏻‍♀️

1️⃣ If you have a lunch commitment, take with you the pram, port a cot or carrier and aim to get your baby to nap at the same time as you usually would. If in the pram or cot, try to recreate their sleep environment at home. White noise, sleeping bag/swaddle etc.

2️⃣ If the nap is shorter than usual don’t stress! Use a 15 minute bridging nap to get them through to the next nap or bed time. These can be fully assisted naps in arms, in the car, pram, or carrier.

3️⃣ If you usually wake your baby from their first nap, consider letting them have a longer first nap and adjust the day accordingly.

4️⃣ If they have had a full day of shorter naps on the go, compensate with an early bed time and they may need extra sleep to catch up the following day!

Merry Christmas 💕

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👶🏻 Awake times 😴
 
How long your baby stays awake for between naps can have a huge impact on how easily they settle and the quality of their sleep. Being over or under tired can result in long settling periods, short naps, and fragmented night sleep.
 
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Early morning rising 🌅

What can we do to eliminate these wakes ⬇️

🌠 Overtiredness can cause early wakes due to raised cortisol levels. Try bringing bed time forward to the recommended awake time, in line with your baby’s age. Alternatively, your baby may have reached their overnight sleep needs and may require a later bed time.

🍼 Depending on your baby’s age and how many night feeds they’re having, a feed here can reinforce this wake. If it’s been less than 4 hours since your baby fed, aim to resettle this wake. (not applicable to newborn babies)

☀️ Melatonin the sleep hormone can only be produced in the dark. Some babies find it hard to resettle with the morning light coming in, especially in summer. Make the room as dark as possible.

🙋🏼‍♀️ If your baby is crying intermittently or chatting to themselves, try giving them space to resettle. If the crying escalates, you can use your chosen settling technique to encourage them back to sleep until your desired wake up time.

⏰ For older kids 2 years + try a sleep trainer clock with some rules and rewards.

DM us if you’re feeling stuck 😊