The first thing you should do is investigate some simple possible causes for your babies broken sleep routine. Most bad sleep patterns can be associated with feeding problems so this article will discuss the following issues:

• Complimenting breast feeding with bottle feeding.
• Using feeds to get your baby to sleep
• You are what you eat – and so if your baby if you are breastfeeding
• Do solids help babies sleep

Complimenting feeds and the relationship to sleep problems.

Some believe that combining a mixture of bottle feedings with breast feeding could be a potential cause for some sleep problems. There are many reasons why parents would want to compliment their breast feedings including going back to work, becoming pregnant again or just for convenience. If there is no change between your babies sleep patterns compared to when you baby was breast fed exclusively then this is unlikely to be the cause of your problems. There is a risk that your milk supply will lesson if you are not breast feeding at least once every four hours. If you milk supply is diminishing then this could be a cause of your babies poor sleeping problems as they may be waking up hungry.

Using Feeds to get your baby to sleep.

Feeding your baby to sleep is a dangerous path to go down for two reasons. The main reason that this causes trouble is that the baby doesn’t get a chance to burp before going down for their nap. This causes wind pain that will likely wake your baby before they have had enough sleep. The second reason that this is not recommended is that your baby will associate sleep with food. This may lead them to expect a feed every time they need to go back to sleep including in the middle of the night. Try to establish a routine where the feed is given upon waking. This will allow time for the baby to expel their wind and will help to break the trend of associating a feed with sleep.

You are what you eat – and so if your baby if you are breastfeeding.

A breastfeeding mom will need to consider what they are eating and drinking as everything they consume has the potential to go through to the breast milk.  A healthy balanced diet will defiantly help you keep up a great milk supply for your baby but you may want to reconsider some types of food s that may cause tummy upset in your bub. Some foods that are known to cause wind pains are garlic and chilli, but these need to be consumed in large amounts to have an effect. Also consider how much caffeine you are having as this could be helping to keep you baby awake. It is a common myth that your baby will wake if they are not getting enough food. This might be the case if they wake because it is time for another feed but a severely undernourished baby is more likely to sleep for very long periods of time because they lack the nutrition to stay awake.

Does introducing solids help your baby to sleep?

This is another myth that many parents will hear. Many people think that the baby will sleep longer once they have a more satisfying meal in their tummies. The truth is that introducing solids too early may cause a tummy ache and prevent your baby from getting to sleep. Doctors usually don’t recommend solids to babies under the age of 6 months.

Toddler Interpreter teach Baby Signs and they offer the best Free Baby Sign Language Chart  available online and their Baby Sign Language Book is used by parents and childcare centres in the United Kingdom, USA, Canada, Australia and New Zealand to Teach Baby Sign Language. Sign Language for Babies is easy using Toddler Interpreter’s comprehensive Baby Sign Language Dictionary. Sign Language for Toddlers can help reduce frustration and Baby Sign Language has proved very beneficial for Premature Babies, children with Velo Cardio Facial Syndrome and other babies at risk of developing a speech delay.

Now I want to clarify that this is not an article on controlled crying. That isn’t something that I wish to promote. Teaching your baby to self settle isn’t really about teaching so much as providing them with the best opportunity to learn. A baby, who is content, has a full tummy, is relaxed and has a familiar routine will be more likely to settle themselves off to sleep through the night as opposed to a baby who has a tummy ache, is over stimulated or over tired.

The first few weeks or months of a newborns life is spent feeding and sleeping in a bit of a random order, but if you can follow closely and work out what your baby’s habits are then you will be able to gently guide them into a routine. Does your baby feed straight after a sleep or do they wake and play first? When do they usually do a poo, is it straight after a feed, do they sleep better after this? Establishing a routine will definitely help in the long term and if it is based around your babies natural habits it will be more effective. Our babies routine from about 4 weeks onwards was sleep, feed, burp, play followed by more sleep. This worked really well and was on a 3 hour cycle. We found that the hour or two that she was awake following a feed was enough time for her to get all the wind up from her feed so that when she was worn out enough for a sleep she did not have a tummy ache to wake her. She would sleep peacefully and wake when she was ready for another feed.

Having a particular method of putting your baby to sleep can also help instill a routine. The baby has certain things that they associate with sleep. It is most likely to involve you but it could also involve the things that you do to help soothe her to sleep such as rocking, singing or things such as a pacifier or a certain toy. Once they have made this association they think that this is what is required to get to sleep so to make things easier for you try to be consistent.

Set up a particular room that you take the baby to put them to sleep and do the same routine every single time that you are home. For us we used our study. As soon as she showed any signs of being tired (rubbing her ear, rubbing her eyes or yawning) we would change her nappy and take her into the study. I would just assume the position, cradle her in my lap and gently sing or rock her off to sleep. She usually nods off within a few minutes; I wait until she is in a deep sleep and then take her to her cot. I have been doing this for so long now that when she comes into my office she assumes the position and closes her eyes straight away. She is familiar with the sounds, the smell and the comfort.

Once your baby is comfortable with the fact that they are going to go off to sleep and have established a routine where they are not overtired, they don’t fight sleep and are happy to spend time in their cot, you will find that they are more likely to self settle or self soothe if they wake during their sleep. Eventually your baby will learn to fall asleep on their own, if put to bed awake, although don’t have unrealistic expectations that this will occur anytime before they are two years old or you might be setting yourself up for disappointment.

Establishing the routine during the day follows on to have a positive effect at nighttime. By putting your baby to sleep at the same time each night they will begin to realize the difference between day and night, especially if the routine involves play during the day and not during the night.

By the age of 10 – 16 weeks your baby should be able to sleep through the night without waking for another feed providing they have fed just before bed. If your little one has a substantial feed around the same time each evening, approximately 10-12 pm, this should be sufficient for them to last through the remainder of the night until they wake in the morning. Ensure that they are burped properly, that they have a clean diaper and are in comfortable clothing. If they do wake during the night, try to settle them back down without a feed first. Sometimes a night time feed can cause more wind and give them more reasons to wake every night.

Using these techniques we managed to get our baby to sleep through the night from the age of 8 weeks. I still prefer to rock her to sleep before I put her down for her nap; it only take a few minutes and is a time for comfort and bonding for both of us. Ian is able to put her into her cot when she is tired and she will put herself to sleep without crying which still amazes me. My only advice is that if you do manage to get your baby to sleep through the night, don’t tell your friends – it is the easiest way to make enemies in your mothers group!

Toddler Interpreter teach Baby Signs and they offer the best Free Baby Sign Language Chart  available online and their Baby Sign Language Book is used by parents and childcare centres in the United Kingdom, USA, Canada, Australia and New Zealand to Teach Baby Sign Language. Sign Language for Babies is easy using Toddler Interpreter’s comprehensive Baby Sign Language Dictionary. Sign Language for Toddlers can help reduce frustration and Baby Sign Language has proved very beneficial for Premature Babies, children with Velo Cardio Facial Syndrome and other babies at risk of developing a speech delay.

Begin these techniques as early as possible. If you have a plan on how to manage sleep before you bring your baby home you should have better success.

- Teach your baby the difference between night and day by changing your behavior. During waking hours talk to her while you feed her, and include some play time after her feed. At night time, avoid talking and playing, keep the lighting dim and make sure that any interaction means business only. Do what you need to do and sooth back to sleep as soon as possible.

- Remember that your baby doesn’t know how to settle herself back to sleep. For new babies try a sleep settling technique called hands-on settling. This involves you offering comfort while the baby remains in their bed.

- Make sure you are not anxious about the baby getting to sleep. Make sure you are completely relaxed about where you are going to put her down for sleep. Show your baby through your body language that their bed is a comfy and cozy place to be. They will pick up on any anxiety you feel so if you are tense wondering if they will ever go down they will be feeding of this energy.

- Try to introduce a routine where the baby is fed as soon as she wakes. This gives her time to play and burp as much as possible. This helps in two ways, firstly she will be worn out and ready for a nap while she is still full and secondly the will have been thoroughly burped before going down. Babies with wind pain will not sleep soundly.

- Look out for signs that your baby is tired. They often rub their hand on their ears or rub their eyes when they get tired. By the stage your baby is yawning they are often overtired and more likely to become restless.

-Prepare your baby for sleep by making sure they have a clean diaper and are in comfortable clothing.

 Once you have found a routine or method that works for you stick to this to avoid unsettling the baby. Just remember that this phase doesn’t last forever and try to catch up on sleep whenever you can.

Toddler Interpreter teach Baby Signs and they offer the best Free Baby Sign Language Chart  available online and their Baby Sign Language Book is used by parents and childcare centres in the United Kingdom, USA, Canada, Australia and New Zealand to Teach Baby Sign Language. Sign Language for Babies is easy using Toddler Interpreter’s comprehensive Baby Sign Language Dictionary. Sign Language for Toddlers can help reduce frustration and Baby Sign Language has proved very beneficial for Premature Babies, children with Velo Cardio Facial Syndrome and other babies at risk of developing a speech delay.