How much sleep does my child need?

06/03/2012 at 2:26 pm | Posted in Night Nanny, Sleep, Supernanny, Top Tips, Uncategorized | 3 Comments

This is a question many parents ask us… it’s important to stress that all children are different and of course some will need slightly more (or less) sleep than others!

The parents who contact us for advice often say that their child doesn’t seem to need much sleep. Maybe their baby or toddler won’t sleep for long stretches or their youngster refuses to go to bed at a reasonable hour. In most cases the opposite is actually true; they are likely to be sleep deprived! Just a little persistent encouragement will help them learn the skill of falling and staying asleep.

Sleep is so important for growth and rejuvenation as well as the physical and mental development which occurs in early childhood – it really is never too late to encourage good sleep habits!

Newborns – 15 to 18 hours:

Although a newborn will sleep for 15 to 18 hours a day, they will wake regularly ‘around-the-clock’ to feed. As they have no comprehension of day and night at this age, you can help them to begin to understand by keeping night feeds quiet and dark, and day feeds bright and stimulating.

1 to 3 Months – 14 to 17 hours:

The length between feeds will increase as baby grows. They will probably sleep for a stretch of eight to ten hours, making up the extra sleep time during their day naps. If they have been encouraged to know the difference between night-time and daytime, their longer stretches of sleep will be during the night – maybe with a night-feed.

4 to 6 Months – 13 to 16 hours:

At around four to six months, baby is likely to drop from three to two day naps, and as many experts suggest, become physically capable of sleeping through the night. It is important to establish good sleep habits at this stage, to ensure they are able to benefit from quality sleep at night and during their daytime naps. Many babies cat nap during the day and/or wake regularly during the night, which isn’t ideal. If this sounds familiar, read our article on dealing with sleep problems.

7 to 12 Months – 13 to 15 hours:

By this stage, your baby will most probably be having two rather than three naps during the day; one in the morning and one in the afternoon. If you establish good sleep habits, they will be sleeping soundly during these naps, as well as through the night.

1 to 3 Years – 12 to 14 hours:

At around 18 months your little-one is likely to drop the morning nap but they will still ideally need an afternoon nap of at least one to two hours.

3 to 6 Years – 10 to 12 hours:

By the age of three some children are still having a short daytime nap, but they are likely to have dropped this completely by the age of five.

If your child isn’t a good sleeper, don’t despair. It’s never too late to encourage change. You can help to make improvements by reading our article on dealing with sleep problems and by introducing good sleep habits.

For individual advice you can get in touch with our Supernanny – Chelsea –  Call 020 7193 5256 or email: hello@thenannytree.co.uk

You might also like to visit our website www.TheNannyTree.co.uk

How to teach healthy sleep habits…

03/03/2012 at 1:49 pm | Posted in Night Nanny, Sleep, Supernanny, Top Tips | 3 Comments

If you would like your little-one to sleep well during naps AND through the night, you can help them to achieve this – sooner rather than later – by teaching healthy sleep habits!

Sleep is so very  important for growth and rejuvenation, as well as the physical and mental development which occurs in early childhood. It really is never too late to introduce healthy sleep habits – the key, is consistency!

 

1) Teach the difference between night and day.

This applies mostly to newborns, but The Nanny Tree Supernanny also helps many families whose youngster is up and raring to go before sunrise! With a newborn you can begin to introduce the differences between night and day by keeping night-feeds dark and quiet, and daytimes bright and stimulating. With an older child, you can instil that night-time is for sleeping by putting them back to bed each time they get up, until morning. You will no doubt face resistance at first, but eventually their internal body clock will fall back into a healthy rhythm… if you are consistent!

2) Become an expert at spotting your little-ones tired signs.

If your child becomes over tired they will struggle to fall and stay asleep. If you become an expert at spotting their tired signs, you can put them down for a nap before they become overtired. You will no doubt find that their ‘tired signs’ come in a regular pattern – say, every 2hrs for a 5 month old. Tired signs to look out for include rubbing their ears or eyes, being irritable or overexcited, etc. See our article on How Much Sleep does my child need?

3)Teach them how to fall asleep on their own

If you would like your little-one to be able to enjoy a full night of sleep without calling out for you every time they rouse, you will need to help them learn how to fall asleep on their own. If they need a prop to fall asleep – such as a dummy, milk, rocking, etc – they’ll have trouble getting back to sleep when they rouse during the night or a nap. We recommend the ‘pick up, put down’ method, controlled crying or a mixture of the two – depending on your parenting style. Read our article on Dealing with sleep problems.

4)Routine, routine, routine – set their internal clock:

Children thrive on familiarity. Regardless of your child’s age, keeping a regular sleep schedule will set and maintain their body’s internal clock, which will help them fall and stay asleep more easily. Stick to the same bedtime and wake-up time every day. When bedtime comes, follow the same routine so that it becomes a familiar time for your little one to wind down. A good routine might be – bath, cuddles/story, bed. Also, be consistent with nap times – you could stick to set nap times or you could be intuitive to your babies tired signs and put them down for a nap when they show signs of tiredness (for example, roughly every two hours for a 5mth old).

 

For individual advice you can get in touch with our Supernanny – Chelsea –  Call 020 7193 5256 or email: hello@thenannytree.co.uk. You might also like to visit our website www.TheNannyTree.co.uk


Dealing with sleep problems…

09/02/2012 at 4:27 pm | Posted in Employing A Nanny, Night Nanny, Sleep, Supernanny, Top Tips, Uncategorized | 4 Comments

SLEEP – Such a small but hugely important word for most parents! Life with a baby or a young child is sometimes challenging, especially with little or no sleep!

So, If your functioning through the bleary eyes of sleep deprivation, this article will show you how to begin nurturing your child into good sleeping habits so that you can ALL enjoy a good night’s sleep!

Let’s start at the beginning and look at the common causes of sleep problems:

Feeding to sleep –

You bring your sleepy bundle of joy home and feed on demand because tiny babies need to feed little and often – including throughout the night. Just like us, babies have sleep cycles where they drift between light and deep sleep. But, as they grow and become able to sleep through the night (yes, it is possible!) there can be a thin line between a baby waking from hunger or because they’ve woken from a light sleep and can’t re-settle by themselves.
Doing whatever it takes –

When you’re exhausted you might try anything to get your baby to sleep. Offering more milk or a dummy, a drive in the car, a walk in the pram, rocking, pacing the floor, sitting in their room until they nod off, letting them sleep in your bed (or on you)… All of these ‘props’ soon become necessary for your baby to re-settle when they awake. Therefore, your baby will get into the habit of relying on the ‘prop’ and won’t be able to settle themselves without it.

Whether you’re still in those early weeks with a newborn or the parent to a toddler who isn’t a good sleeper, don’t despair. There is always a way to nurture your little-one to be able to sleep well.

Make sure they’re not overtired –

Naps are important. If children get overtired, not only will this affect their moods it will also make it harder for them to fall into a deep sleep. (See our article on How Much Sleep does my child need?).  Spot their tired signs (maybe they rub their ears or eyes, get irritable or overexcited etc) and put them down for their nap straight away.
Follow a daily routine –

You’ll probably find that their ‘tired signs’ will come in a regular pattern – say, every couple of hours for a 6mth old, because this is how often they will need to sleep. The bedtime routine is the most important because it becomes a familiar time to wind down… depending on your little-ones age, a good routine might be – bath, cuddles/story, bed. For young babies, a dream feed just before you go to bed helps them sleep longer through the night.
Choose your approach –

There are lots of ways in which you can help your baby sleep without the need for a ‘prop’. But, it is very important that you choose your approach and stick with it because it WILL take time, maybe a couple of weeks for your little-one to forget the old habits that they’ve been used to for many months! At The Nanny Tree, we would recommend a gentle, reassuring approach. Something like ‘Pick-Up-Put-Down’ which is detailed in The Baby Whisperer book.

It’s a fact that babies and young children need more sleep than adults. A good night’s sleep AND daytime naps are not only crucial for your childs growth and rejuvenation, but also for the physical and mental development which occurs in early childhood – (and of course daytime naps will give you the chance to catch up on chores, unwind or even take a powernap yourself).

 

For individual advice you can get in touch with our Supernanny – Chelsea –  Call 020 7193 5256 or email: hello@thenannytree.co.uk. You might also like to visit our website www.TheNannyTree.co.uk

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