In the first months after birth, parents allow the baby to sleep with them. It’s convenient for mom to feed the baby. But the baby is growing up. It is important not to miss the moment when you need to start accustoming it to your own bed.
Advantages and disadvantages of sharing sleep
Often there are times when a child does not want to sleep in his crib. Pediatricians believe that at the age of 2-3 months, a joint sleep with parents is useful for the baby.
Benefits:
- A newborn often wakes up in the middle of the night and wants to get a breast. Mom has to constantly get up and feed the baby. Often a child cannot fall asleep due to the fact that he does not feel his mother’s warmth nearby.
- With a joint sleep, the biorhythms of the newborn and mother begin to coincide, respectively, the baby begins to sleep more calmly, and the young mother gets more time to relax.
- Lactation rises. The greatest amount of prolactin is produced at night. In a joint dream, mom put the baby on her chest, he ate and calmly fell asleep. A regular lack of sleep leads to the fact that my mother begins to produce milk poorly.
In addition to the advantages, this approach has disadvantages:
- The kid takes up a lot of space on the parent's bed, often dad is evicted on a sofa or in another room. A woman absorbed in the joy of motherhood runs the risk of losing her husband. Therefore, it is important to give all your time not only to the baby, but also to your beloved.
- Most mothers are stressed that they can crush the baby during sleep. But such cases are a huge rarity, since mom perfectly feels every shudder of the crumbs. Even a tired mom sleeps quite sensitively.
- If the parents have a cold or have cold sores, then the baby should not sleep in a joint bed, since the skin of the newborn is very sensitive to infections.
Crib as a solution to the problem
There are many types of such furniture. If you have been dealing with the problem of how to teach a child to sleep in a crib for a long time, but this does not bring results, you may need to use an attached sleeping place for children.
This type of furniture is designed as a cradle, but it does not have one side. Thus, the cot blends seamlessly with the bed of adults.
The level of lift is adjustable, so the baby can be on the same level with the parents. Moreover, it’s much more convenient for mother to feed her baby. The baby is always there, feeding him is not difficult. In case of crying during sleep, mother's gentle hands also always calm a small child. When he begins to grow up, you can first use a low soft edge, and later go to the standard wooden one.
After some time, the crib is moved a short distance from the parent's berth. This procedure helps to avoid a negative reaction from the child.
How to wean the baby from sleeping with parents
The baby does not sleep in the crib. What to do? Recommendations that will help you wean babies from sharing sleep:
- Age up to 6 months is the most optimal period for making changes in the life of a small child. At this time, the baby has already developed enough memory, he quickly mastered in a new place.
- Think of some procedure or ritual before going to bed. Try to do the same thing every night. This can be reading fairy tales, turning on a nightlight or a calm musical melody. Gradually, the baby will get used to this kind of signal and begin to fall asleep on their own.
- Try to develop a reflex in the crumbs. Pay attention when the baby is tired, and try to lay it at this time regularly. If you see that the child is not yet ready for bed and wants to play, then you should not put him to bed under duress. This will not lead to anything, the baby will simply toss and turn in bed and will not go to bed.
- It is important to show the crumb that the bed is the most comfortable corner for sleeping. Over time, the child will perceive his crib as a place where he will be well and comfortable.
- Many mothers prefer to feed the baby on a pillow in their lap. As soon as the baby is full, he falls asleep. The deep stage of sleep occurs in 15-20 minutes, and only after this time you can carefully transfer the baby to the crib. There is a great idea - put a folded warm diaper near the baby. The baby will think that mom is nearby.
- After birth, it is common for some babies to be afraid of a very open space, since the baby is used to being in the mother’s womb, where it was quite crowded. For such crumbs, special cocoon mattresses have been developed that comfortably envelop the crumb body and create coziness.
Best Time for Innovation
How to teach a child to sleep in a crib on their own without parents? The most optimal age for accustoming to your own crib is 6-8 months from the moment of birth. By this time, there is practically no night feed, and the baby can sleep until the morning. Accordingly, mom does not need to wake up.
If by this age the baby was not accustomed to the crib, then the learning process can be carried out later. You can not send the crumbs to the crib, and the next day again to take to his bed. The child will not understand what you want from him.
When the baby is ready to sleep alone
To solve the question of how to teach a child to sleep separately from his parents is half the story. We still need to figure out whether the baby is ready to sleep on its own. The following criteria correspond to this:
- Breast milk feeding is completed or reduced to 1 time per night.
- A child’s night sleep is about 6 hours.
- A few baby teeth erupted in the crumbs, and he has no more concern about this.
- The kid can play for 10-15 minutes on his own.
- The child does not receive stressful and negative emotions.
Comfortable atmosphere
How to teach a child to sleep in a crib? Komarovsky believes that it is necessary to interest the baby so that he has a desire to sleep separately from his parents. In the room where the baby sleeps, comfortable conditions must be created. The temperature in the room should be about 18-22 degrees.
Before bed, the room should be ventilated. Make sure that the baby is comfortable and cozy in the crib. It is hard for the child to get enough sleep in the heat, so regular ventilation is necessary. If the baby is afraid of the dark, then you must turn on the nightlight.
Children after 2 years
If the parents cannot understand how to put the child to bed in a crib after 2 years, this does not mean that time is lost. But it is important to understand that sharing a dream with parents at this age is unacceptable. Consider actionable tips:
- If the baby does not sleep alone in the crib, then you should accustom him to a new place gradually. It is very good to use side furniture. The baby will be nearby, but sleep in his crib. Over time, it can be placed remotely from the parent's berth. Such a transition will be painless for the psyche crumbs.
- To buy a bed, you must purchase all bedding: a sheet, a blanket, a pillow and pajamas. If the baby is afraid of the dark, then be sure to get a nightlight.
- It’s easier to accustom to the crib if the baby will independently choose furniture for the nursery in the store. There are models in the form of a car, plane, boat and castle.
- Peers who have their own crib can also teach their baby to sleep separately. It is enough to come to visit and see how the baby goes to bed.
- You can teach your child to sleep in a crib using closed curtains during the day. Create a positive atmosphere, read a tiny fairy tale, or give it a light massage. So that the baby wants to sleep faster, be sure to let him play enough and run up.
- When the child is ready, you can go to sleep in the crib.
Warning errors
Mom’s overly anxious state and irritability, the child feels great. As a result, he does not want to sleep on his own.
Talking about how to teach a child to sleep in a crib, you need to caution against the following common mistakes:
- Refuse extra light in the children's room at night.
- Scare the baby with scary stories about the wolf coming to the kids who do not sleep, etc.
- Act by agreement with the spouse about accustoming the crumbs to independent sleep.
- Teasing or laughing at childhood fears.
- Raise your voice and apply penalties when the child does not fall asleep on his own in the crib.
- Discuss the problem with friends and relatives in the presence of the child.
- For a long time to leave the baby alone in the crib if he cries.
- Move a child over 2 years old from the cot to the crib. This is the period of fear in the baby, and this approach can be perceived negatively and incorrectly.
- Allow the child to stay in the parent's bed for a long time before going to bed.
To summarize
If the question of how to teach a child to sleep in a crib on your own seems very difficult, you can contact a good pediatrician and consult.
Remember: the sooner you prepare the crumbs for a separate sleep from parents, the easier. Do not delay moving to a nursery until 2-3 years, otherwise the process of accustoming to your own crib will be very difficult. Try to understand why the baby is not sleeping in the crib. Perhaps he has fears, so talk to him and set up in a positive way. Explain that the bed is magic, no one will offend him there, so he will be in his bed in complete safety.