#newmoms

Gripe Water & Simethicone Gas drops Before Bed.     Some babies wake often during the night due to gripe pains which is trapped gas the baby's tummy and intestines. These gripe pains can be painful and can hinder their sleep. Luckily, Gripe Water, like Mommy's Bliss Gripe Water is safe to use every night as early as 2 weeks old! Give your baby the suggested dose for his age every night, right before his bedtime feed.     Another helpful and safe-to-use trick are simethicone gas drops such as Infant's Mylicon Drops. Add these drops to your baby's bedtime bottle for added gas relief.

Swaddle Baby's Arms Not His Feet.     You have probably heard, time after time, that swaddling is crucial for a better sleeping baby. Newborn babies are born with a startle reflex, which causes their bodies to jolt and flare their arms, which... of course, causes them to wake up. But swaddling your baby too tight, may actually cause him or her discomfort. I suggest swaddling your baby's arms, but not his or her feet. Here's why: If your baby has gas in his or her tummy during the night, it can be painful. Of course the gripe water and gas drops may help, but sometimes your baby may need to pass gas. If this is the case, and your baby' legs are swaddled tightly, he or she may have a harder time doing so. By leaving your baby's legs loosely swaddled and their arms swaddled snug, they are able to stretch their legs allowing them to pass gas more easily, but also preventing them from startling themselves awake. I recommend using a swaddler wrap such as SwaddleMe Original Swaddler.

Extra Feed Before You Go To Sleep.     Newborns usually have about 1 long sleep stretch during the night, so obviously you want them to have it when you sleep. If you've put your baby to bed for the night at 8pm, but you don't make it to bed by 10:30 and your baby is still sleeping, gently pick him or her up (without fully waking them or unswaddling them) feed him, burp him, and put him back in his crib. You want to make this easy on yourself, so try not to let your baby cry. You don't want him or her to be wide awake, but you do want them to be nice and full. This way, your baby wont need to wake up to feed for another few hours, and you can get some sleep!

White Noise Is A MUST!     This one is a no-brainer, but weather its a fan or a sound machine, white noise will help your baby sleep more soundly. When your baby was in the womb, he or she could hear a constant soft noise, and having something similar could be comforting and help him or her to sleep. Also, having a background noise could actually prevent your baby from being startled awake by other loud noises.

Dark At Night, Bright During The Day.      This trick I swear by! Newborn babies will sometimes get their days and nights mixed up, and you definitely DON'T want this to happen! Make sure to keep the room where your baby sleeps very dark during the night. Try to have as little light as possible. (Also, make sure the room isn't too warm for your baby. Keep him warm, not hot.) During the day, make sure your house is nice and BRIGHT. I like to keep my son's swing nearby a window, so he can get lots of natural sunlight. Even if he is asleep, it still works wonders. I also make an effort to take him outside at least once a day if the weather permits. Being outside in the bright natural light can help your baby distinguish day from night... And give him or her a little extra vitamin D!

    I hope these tips and tricks will help your baby (and YOU!) get some extra ZZZZs like they have for me!

Kristen Billings