Every new parent knows how hard it can be to sleep properly at night due to the diaper changes, frequent feedings, and having to deal with the crying infant. However, as challenging as it is, it is imperative to ensure that even when you have a newborn, you get quality rest.
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Mother with an Infant
By getting an adequate night’s sleep, you will be in a better position for fulfilling your responsibilities as a new mother. You will be more patient and even more likely to feel good about your new role. That being said, here are a few tips from the expert on how to get quality rest as a new parent. Click here to read about baby walkers
Sleep as The Baby Sleeps
Newborns tend to take frequent naps that last anywhere between two to four hours, making it a total of 16 to 18 hours every day. As a new parent, you are likely to be sleep deprived if you only catch those Zzzs at night. Yes, sleeping while the infant rests can be hard when other children are around and even due to your internal biological clock. However, you must adapt as it’s the only way to ensure you get quality sleep as a new mom.
Share Nightime Baby Responsibilities
You can your partner should consider sharing tasks like diaper changes, feedings, and other tasks. You can pump your breastmilk so that your partner can have a bottle to feed the baby at night while you sleep. Sharing responsibilities is one of the best ways to ensure you get some quality sleep at night.
Skip Household Chores
Instead of loading the dishwasher or vacuuming the carpet, sleep instead. Your family and friends are going to understand why your house is a mess. You need to be in the best mood when looking after a baby and quality rest is an excellent way of ensuring that.
Put The Baby’s Crib Next To Your Bed
Putting the bassinet or baby’s crib near your bed makes it way easier to tend to the infant and then go back to sleep. Co-sleeping with the young one might be tempting, but experts discourage it due to the high risk of suffocating the infant.
Ask Help From Family Members and Help
Do not be afraid to ask for help from your relatives and friends. This can be anything from cleaning the house, picking up the groceries and even looking after the child as you rest. Family members and friends might also be willing to help you with nighttime duties like changing diapers and feeding the young one.
Practice Good Sleeping Hygiene
This will allow you to get more rest, regardless of whether you have a newborn or not. Good sleep hygiene includes:
- Switching off electronics before bed. Yes, it’s tempting to do one last scroll of your social media feed or watch one more episode of your favorite series on Netflix, but this will only hamper your ability to sleep when it’s time. The blue light from electronic devices tends to mess with the internal biological clock system.
- Create a comfortable environment conducive with sleep. Make sure you invest in a good mattress, take a look at mattress warehouse reviews.
- Avoid taking caffeine. This is a stimulant that can really mess with your sleep cycle. So, if you are a coffee lover, avoid taking it after 4 pm.
- Stick to a regular sleeping schedule. As hard as this might sound, given you are a new parent, try as much as you can to sleep and wake up at the same time. This will tune your body to sleeping easily and waking up easily, thus allowing quality rest. However, keep in mind that you’ll have regular awakenings to tend to the newborn.
To ensure you and your newborn benefit from these rest tips, remember to embrace the joyful moments, such as celebrating milestones like your daughter’s birthday. These precious occasions provide a unique opportunity to create lasting memories while nurturing your well-being.
