When it comes to sleep…not, all baby products are the same.
When assessing your baby's sleep environment, I look for both things that hinder and help sleep.
There are baby products that will help you and those that will hinder your efforts to help your little one sleep better. The truth is that environment matters.
Our brains are wired to respond to them, and the first thing we should look at is, are we providing the best environment that will promote sleep.
Or
Are there things in our environment that are waking up my baby's brain and making it more difficult for them to fall asleep?
I'm going to give you my top picks for helping to promote a great sleep environment and the products that you should avoid if you want to improve sleep.
Ready??
Five products I believe are a must and pretty much all you need (no need to overwhelm yourself with expensive baby products)
Blackout blinds/Curtains
If you invest in one thing, this is it! Darkness makes ALL the difference in your baby falling asleep and staying asleep.
The room should be dim before sleep and pitch dark once you put your baby to bed.
If light is coming in through the cracks, that can be enough to hit the skin and wake up your baby in the early mornings or prevent them from falling asleep for naps.
If you can find something that sticks to the window, even better!
Here are some options:
Sound machine
Get yourself a good sound machine, one that plugs into the wall and one for naps on the go. A good sound machine can be your saving grace; not only is it great for newborns, but it blocks out noise if siblings share a room, and you can have it until toddlerhood (heck, I still love my sound machine!). It's also VERY easy to wean, and you can whip it out at any time when you need to create a good sleep environment on the go.
Read more about white noise here
50 dbl is what is the recommendation or the volume of a vacuum cleaner in the room.
We want to keep that sound machine on for the entire duration of night sleep (hence, it's better to have it plugged in). If it turns off, then your baby will wake up, ESPECIALLY, in the morning hours as they need their environment to stay consistent the ENTIRE time.
Here are a few options:
Sleep Sacks/Swaddles
There are significant differences between a swaddle and sleep sack and guidelines that must be followed to keep baby safe. See my blog post on sleep sacks and swaddles.
Swaddles for newborns mimic a womb-like environment and prevent them from startling themselves awake. If it feels like your little one hates the swaddle, my most significant piece of advice is to keep trying. Often, if a baby is overtired and fussy, they will seem to fight the swaddle, but it is calming for them once in it. They don't know how comfy it is until they are calm and comfortable in it. So keep trying.
Anytime after eight weeks, we will need to transition to a sleep sack with arms out. A swaddle is not safe for babies that can potentially rollover. If they roll on their tummy in a swaddle, it can be dangerous as a baby will need their arms free to hold their head up.
Sleepsacks can become a positive sleep association. Putting on their sleep sack at bedtime can signal that it's almost time for sleep and cause them to get drowsy. It's also great for keeping them warm (blankets are not recommended, and there should be nothing in the crib until after 12 months).
Find the right swaddle or sleep sack here
Soother
Introducing a soother is a personal choice. It works great for newborns and babies over eight months old but not recommended for babies between 4-8 months unless you are okay with replacing the soother every 2 hours at night.
Soothers are an excellent layer of protection against SIDS. They can help a baby soothe to sleep easier but can be a problematic association for parents to keep up with if your baby cannot replace it themselves.
So this suggestion is at your discretion and based on age and comfort.
Find out when, how and why to introduce a soother
Monitor
I used to watch my kids sleep on the monitor. They looked so peaceful, and I could watch them wake up and put themselves back to sleep. Having a great monitor can give you peace of mind that your baby is okay!
Turn down the volume. We don't need to amplify every little noise that will affect your sleep, and don't worry; you WILL hear if your baby cries in the night.
Five items to avoid.
Let me clarify if you own any of these items, and your baby is sleeping well. Then AWESOME! Keep doing what you are doing! BUT if you are struggling with sleep, I would consider removing some of these and seeing if it makes a difference.
Mobiles
I'm not against mobiles; I think they are great as long as they are not too distracting and don't have lights or noise.
A plain mobile can help your baby get tired, and it not too stimulating. If the room is as dark as it should be, they won't see it at night anyway.
However, if you find the mobile play's music has lights or plays AT your child, this could cause them to get overstimulated.
Lights
Light plays a HUGE role in sleep. Preparing us for rest and helping us fall back asleep. Don't underestimate the power of light!
Light has the most significant impact on our internal clocks and can activate the brain very quickly. Blue or yellow light, in particular, trick our brains into thinking it's daylight; any amount hitting our skin/eyes will send a signal to the brain to produce less melatonin and wake up.
Red light, however, is a much lower wavelength and doesn't affect the brain in the same way. So if you want to use a night light, then red light is best, and try to avoid any blue or white lights in the room, especially in the early morning hours when our brains and body are already starting to wake up.
Music
Music can be very relaxing and enjoyable; I often recommend it for bedtime routines. However, music is not a constant noise; it has rising and falling tones and intonations, and any of these can trigger a wake-up if your baby is in a light stage of sleep.
If you are going to include noise, it should be consistent and non-stimulating to the brain (white noise)
Anything in the crib/stuffed animals/bumpers
Reduce the clutter in the crib; not only is it not safe (risk of suffocation, choking, SIDS, and strangulation), but it's distracting. If your little one is over 12 months, you can offer a stuffed friend as long as it's safe and has no small loose parts. A stuffed friend can help calm and soothe your child to sleep, but ten stuffed friends are unnecessary.
In the end, if you do choose to put something in your toddler's crib after 12 months of age, it should not talk AT them through light, voice, or music.
Here is more on when and how to introduce a lovey.
Swings
Swings with movement are often used as a last resort for sleep. I get it; your baby will not sleep any other way. If this is your situation, it's probably better to start to teach your baby to sleep without movement. One of the biggest reasons children should not sleep in a swing is the danger of positional asphyxiation. The other is because a deep dependency and association on movement can be developed where your child will ONLY sleep while moving. This is a deep-set association that you CAN wean, but it takes some time and a plan.
In the end, you and only you have the last say on what you want to include in your child's bedroom. I hope you'll consider the safety aspects, as the chance even slim is not worth it.
Instead, reach out and get help to work on great sleep habits and foundations that will have them not dependent on anything to put them to sleep.
Reach out!
Lil xx
