How To Correct Your Newborn’s Day-Night Confusion
Does your baby want to sleep all day and stay awake all night? Unfortunately, this is a common problem that could lead to sleepless nights for you. This parenting guide explains how to correct your newborn’s day-night confusion so that both you and your baby can sleep at night. After all, infants need a lot of quality sleep to flourish as they learn more about the wonderful world around them.
Why Does Day-Night Confusion Happen?
When your baby refuses to sleep at night, one of the first things you may ask yourself as you seek out a solution is “why?”. There are a few reasons your baby may be confusing their sleeping and wake hours. Some of the typical reasons include:
They’re Confused
Sometimes, newborns encounter this issue because their natural sleep schedules differed in the womb. Before they’re born, babies will fall asleep when their moms move around because her movements rock them to sleep. Newborns don’t have internal clocks yet because their minds aren’t fully developed, and as a result, they’ll do what was natural in the womb: sleep during the day. You can correct this by creating a schedule for your little one, which we’ll cover soon.
Too Many Naps
Babies need naps, and depending on their age, they may need more or less sleep. For example, a 10-week-old needs more sleep than a 10-month-old. This means more sleep at night and more naps. However, when naptime becomes too long, your baby won’t feel as tired at night.
All babies hit an age when they need to drop a nap. There’s no perfect time because every baby is different, hitting this milestone at varying ages. You’ll know your baby is ready if they refuse to nap but sleep great throughout the night.
Tips To Help Your Baby
Now that we’ve covered why many babies mix up day and night, let’s talk about how to correct your newborn’s day-night confusion. Below, we’ve covered some of the top recommended methods to help your baby sleep through the night and stay awake during the day.
Keep Your Baby Comfy
Falling asleep isn’t easy if you can’t get comfortable. Whether you try counting sheep or simply keep tossing and turning, you may feel more and more awake as time passes. Babies experience this, too. Some parents give their babies pacifiers at night because it calms the infant, making falling asleep easier. Many parents also swaddle their babies at bedtime, but if you wrap the blanket too tightly, your baby may feel constricted or too warm. You can avoid this struggle altogether with a merino wool sleep sack. Woolino sells baby sleeping bags made with temperature-controlling fabric that will keep your baby cozy year round. These sleep sacks will keep your baby cool on warm days and toasty when it’s cold out.
Have a Bedtime Routine
Infants need routines because consistency gives them something to rely on as their young minds develop. Create a bedtime schedule for your little one, and avoid going straight from playtime to bedtime. Instead, establish a routine where you:
- Bathe your baby
- Gently massage them
- Dress them in some comfy pajamas
- Spend time cuddling them while singing or reading to them
- Tuck them into their crib or bassinet
Strive to keep up with this routine at a similar time each night. As time goes on, your baby will likely feel tired around bath time because their body knows it’s nearly time for sleep. A routine clarifies the confusion your infant may experience when they first enter the world, since their sleep schedule won’t be what it was in the womb.
Parenting Tip
As you get your little one ready for bed, avoid overstimulating them. Bath time isn’t playtime; instead, it should feel rather relaxing for your child. Additionally, dim the lights as you settle into cuddle time. Your baby may need a quick feeding or diaper change, and if they do, you should still aim to keep the lights dim. Use only the amount of light you need to see.
Keep Daytime Active
Daytime is when things should feel exciting. This is when the two of you should explore, play, and learn, since these activities will keep their little mind active. Sunshine helps us wake up, so many experts recommend letting plenty of natural light into the home in the morning. If your baby knows that all the fun happens while the sun’s up, they’ll understand that it’s also time for them to wake up.
As the day goes on and naptime or bedtime approaches, the fun should gradually dwindle down, since your child may otherwise feel overstimulated. Too much excitement before they need to sleep can keep their mind active and lead to a cranky, overtired baby.
Tend to Your Baby’s Needs
When we’re young, we communicate only by crying, and we trust our parents to understand and help us. For instance, if your baby starts crying because they’re hungry, you always feed them. Similarly, you should also know when your baby seems tired to make sure you tuck them in at the right time. If your infant rubs their eyes and yawns or seems a bit fussier than normal, it’s time for bed. A usual bedtime is important, but it’s okay to put them down a bit earlier if they seem tired. By comforting your infant when they need you to, you also teach them that they can trust you.
At Woolino, we create products to help your baby get a safe and restful night of sleep. All our products are guaranteed to keep your little one nice and cozy. Merino wool helps babies sleep longer so that they can get the necessary rest to flourish. Infants need quality sleep, and merino wool fabrics such as the ones we use in our products will keep your baby comfortable throughout the night.
Help your baby sleep through the night so that they can spend the daytime exploring the fascinating world in which they live. When the sun is up, it’s time to learn and play; then, by day’s end, your little one can rest their tired eyes.
