During the first months of his life, the baby sleeps most of the day. He has no problems falling asleep at this time. Newborn wakes up to eat and look at outside world. He usually falls asleep quickly after breastfeeding. Time passes, the child grows and it becomes necessary to put him to sleep on his own. Children older than one year sleep restlessly, wake up and ask to be fed to calm them down. How to put your baby to sleep without breastfeeding? This article will discuss the reasons for the current situation and methods for solving it.

Should I wean my baby from falling asleep at the breast?

If the baby falls asleep immediately after feeding, then you should not retrain him while the baby is too small.

Per month? Some mothers deliberately do not allow the newborn to fall asleep under the breast, but resort to rocking. After all, this has its downsides. Until the age of 1-1.2 years, the sucking process itself is important for a child, because he has not yet completely switched to adult food, and alternative methods of falling asleep are not always suitable for the baby.

A child needs sound sleep for harmonious development. Improper sleep management and unsuccessful attempts to get him to sleep can lead to sleepless nights. This is fraught with serious health problems for both the child and the mother.

Chronic lack of sleep can lead to slower development of a child, deterioration of his memory and whims. The mother may experience nervous disorders.

You don’t need to wean yourself from falling asleep under your breasts right away; it’s important that this happens gradually.

Why is it necessary to gradually stop feeding before bedtime?

Why can't a baby sleep without breastfeeding? During pregnancy, mother and child feel complete unity with each other. When a baby is born, the connection does not disappear, but becomes stronger. The mother breastfeeds the baby, thereby showing her love and care. Many women get great pleasure from this process. The baby is growing and becoming more independent. His diet gradually changes, various mixtures and cereals appear in it. At the same time, one breastfeeding lasts longer than usual, because it is an opportunity for the child to receive the love and care of his mother. Such feelings are very important for the baby, but his constant attachment to the breast becomes a real problem for her.

Weaning can be accompanied by hysterics and tears for the baby, and for the mother - the inability to put her to sleep without breastfeeding during sleepless nights. A vicious circle arises.

How to put your baby to sleep without breastfeeding? It is important to help the baby fall asleep on his own, which will be the next stage in his development and will help the mother rest at night.

Why does a baby fall asleep at the breast?

How to teach a child to fall asleep on his own in a crib? During the first time after birth, the baby constantly falls asleep with the breast. This way he feels protected. Gradually, falling asleep with the breast turns into a ritual that the child cannot do without.

Why can't a baby sleep without breastfeeding? Sometimes sucking turns into an emotional need, which is caused not so much by hunger, but by other factors:

• After meeting many people, traveling and visiting.
• Changing your daily routine. Feeding and rest should be done at certain times.
• Colds or teething pain.
• Frequent conflicts in the family. After all, the baby is emotionally connected to the mother, so he feels all her mood swings.
• If there is a lack of mother’s attention (work, illness), the newborn tries to compensate for this by all available means.
• If a child is overtired, he begins to cry and be capricious, and cannot fall asleep without the breast.
• Discomfort arising from the operation of household appliances and extraneous noise.

All these reasons make the child need to breastfeed in order to feel protected. Parents need to understand this in order to teach their baby to sleep independently.

Why do you need a daily routine?

One of the most important steps is to organize the alternation of periods of sleep and wakefulness in the child. When a baby eats and goes to bed at the same time for a long time, he gets used to such a daily routine and is more inclined to the behavior expected from him.

How to put an infant to sleep? To do this, you need to start with the feeding regimen. Already at the age of one year, the child begins to eat food from the adult table. Therefore, the family can start eating at the same time. Having set meal times, you need to decide on sleep times. Gradually, the child’s body will ask to sleep itself, which will allow the mother to choose the right moment for this.

Following a daily routine will simplify the task of weaning your baby from the breast.

How to help your baby fall asleep on his own?

Before a night's rest, mom should create a kind of ritual. For example, you can put away the toys together with your baby; this will mean that playtime is over and it’s time for bed. At the same time, you can instill independence and discipline in the baby. During the day before going to bed, it is best to take a walk in the fresh air. Before resting at night, you can take a bath. Here the baby will spend his energy and enjoy water treatments.

How to put your baby to sleep without breastfeeding? Mom can sit next to the baby and use a few little tricks:

1. Motion sickness. This is not the most best way, because subsequently the baby will have to be weaned from the motion sickness process itself. If you stop doing this before deep sleep occurs and put the sleeping child in the crib, he will wake up and will need to be rocked in a new way.
2. Place the baby in the crib and stroke the head, avoiding the fontanel area.
3. You can pick up your baby, hold him to your chest and give him a pacifier. The baby will feel protected and will fall asleep peacefully.
4. White noise is an excellent way to help you fall asleep. This could be the sound of the surf, the rustling of leaves, etc.
5. You can tell your baby a story or sing a lullaby, which is more suitable for older children.
6. Sometimes the mother resorts to a calm conversation with the baby. The voice should be quiet and monotonous, you can communicate about everything in the world and even sometimes ask questions.

How to teach a child to fall asleep on his own in a crib? To teach your baby to sleep on his own, you can place a soft toy next to him. It is best when he falls asleep in his crib, which will allow him to get used to his room in the future. You should not entrust your loved ones to put your child to bed. This is best done by the mother herself, without leaving the baby. Then he will gain confidence that a loved one is nearby and will fall asleep peacefully.

Daytime nap

How to put your baby to sleep without breastfeeding during the day? It is best to feed your baby not in bed, but on a chair or armchair. The first attempts to put your baby to sleep on your own are best done during the day.

During daylight hours, the child is busy playing and walking, so you can catch the moment when the child wants to sleep and put him in the crib. Having fallen asleep like this once, the child will be able to do it independently again. Gradually, this process will become a habit and putting the baby to bed will no longer cause trouble for parents.

How to put a baby to sleep during the day? Parents must understand that the first time the baby will not sleep in his crib all the time. It will take a lot of effort and time to teach your child to sleep on his own.

How to deal with night sleep?

How to stop feeding your baby before bedtime? If the baby falls asleep on his own several times during the day, then parents can try to do this at night. It is important that the child is full before bed. Pediatricians advise feeding the baby a solid meal at 6 pm, and giving the baby kefir, milk or yogurt immediately before the night's rest. It can be not only a drink, but also porridge. It is important that your child does not go to bed with a full stomach.

Before going to bed, you need to take a bath, the temperature of which should be no more than 34-36 degrees. Cool water will help your baby fall asleep faster. You can add soothing herbs to the bath: chamomile, lemon balm, string or chamomile. This is done if the child is not allergic to these plants.

After all the procedures, you can put the child to bed, repeating the ritual used during the day. To do this, mom can sing a song or read a fairy tale.

To help your baby sleep soundly at night, consider the following tips:

• set exactly the time when the baby will go to bed;
• determine the place where his sleep will take place;
• if a child sleeps for a long time during the day, then it is better to prevent this and wake him up;
• the room temperature should not be more than 22 degrees, and the humidity above 70%;
• The child’s mattress should be hard and pillows should not be used until 2 years of age;
• for a sleeping baby you need to choose a high-quality night diaper;
• A baby's active day helps him fall asleep quickly.

Sometimes a child wakes up at night, what measures should parents take in this case? There are several simple recommendations.

Baby waking up at night

How to put your baby to sleep at night? If your baby wakes up late and doesn’t want to sleep:

1. When a child wakes up in the middle of the night and cries, he may have a stomach ache. You need to put him on the changing table and do exercises that relieve gas. You can give a special medicine for colic.
2. The body temperature has increased, sometimes it occurs when teeth appear or during a cold.
3. Often a stuffy nose prevents a baby from sleeping. It is necessary to clean it and drip a saline solution.
4. You can try to put the baby to sleep again by rocking him a little.
5. The baby can be fed, so there is no need to completely abandon night feedings.
6. If the child is not hungry, then you need to give him a pacifier.

Babies sometimes confuse day and night, so parents need to choose the right tactics to ensure that their baby sleeps soundly at night.

Night feedings

When the child learns to fall asleep on his own, the mother can stop breast-feeding fully. This is not prerequisite, every family has a choice. It is important to understand that stopping night feedings will result in a lack of milk. At this time, the mother's body receives information about how much milk her baby will need. Therefore, night feedings should be completed last. In this case, parents must make the right decision.

How to put your baby to sleep without breastfeeding? When the baby learns to fall asleep on his own, the need for breast milk will disappear completely. However, you need to understand that for young children, breastfeeding is not only an instinct, but a need for stronger contact with the mother. Therefore, having stopped night feedings, a woman should make up for what is missing by close communication with the baby.

How to put a newborn baby to sleep? This is quite difficult to do, but if you do everything calmly and consistently, you can achieve success. Parents should know what not to do so as not to harm the baby’s nervous system:

• Yell at the baby. After all, he himself is very upset because he is not given breastfeeding. Nothing in the world can replace this loss for a child.
• Say that he has already grown up, so he should not suckle. The baby will begin to think that when he grows up something else might be taken away from him. It is better to say that the mother does not have milk.
• Do not start weaning if the child is sick. After all, he’s already feeling bad, and the main method of consolation remains the mother’s breast. In addition, milk contains antibodies that will help the child cope with the disease.
• Leave him with strangers. After all, the child must understand that even if he does not suckle, his mother will always be with him.
• Give in to the baby's demands. For the first time after weaning, he will throw tantrums, hoping for the return of feedings. Mom should not make concessions, because in this case the child will understand that an alternative exists.

If the baby slept in his own crib before the night feedings stopped, then the mother should not transfer him to hers. Otherwise, you will have to go through such a complex procedure again as returning the child to the crib.

The main thing is that during this entire period the mother should be completely calm. Because children feel it emotional state, and anxiety can be passed on to the baby himself. A calm and friendly mother means to the child that the situation is normal and nothing bad is happening.

Teaching your baby to sleep without breastfeeding takes a lot of persistence and patience. The whole process must take place gradually and consistently. If you teach a baby to fall asleep without breast milk, then he will subsequently tolerate complete weaning from the breast calmly. During this period, parents, and especially the mother, should behave with restraint, which will also affect the child in the same way. As a result, the baby will quickly fall asleep on his own and will not wake up at night.

A calm and sound sleep is the key to the health of any child. But if in the first weeks and months of life parents are ready to sacrifice their own peace for this, then after six months they seriously think about teaching the baby to fall asleep on his own.

But is it possible to do this if the child is accustomed to constant sleep company and is not going to give it up? How to teach a child to fall asleep on his own? At what age is it best to start the training process and what to do if the baby refuses to obey the new rules?

What do the experts say?

Authoritative experts repeat in unison that a baby simply must learn to fall asleep on his own and without motion sickness, just like walking or crawling, and that sleeping together between parents and children deprives the latter of the opportunity to develop properly.

Why does a baby refuse to fall asleep without his parents?

There are many reasons for refusing to fall asleep in a warm and soft crib in your own room.

Here are the most common ones:

• the baby has been accustomed to sleeping with his parents since birth;
• the baby is often sick, so the mother tries to put him next to her;
• the child simply does not eat enough before going to bed and looks for “titya” at night;
• the child’s bedtime ritual is disrupted;
• the baby is constantly rocked to sleep before bedtime,
• the child is hot or cold;
• the baby is thirsty;
• he is in pain: he is teething or has gas in his stomach;
• the child is distracted by bright lights or loud sounds;
• the baby is tired and overtired.

Optimal age for training

Accustoming a child to sleep independently at 1 year old and, even more so, at 2 years old, will be incredibly difficult (if not impossible), because time will be lost. Ideally, it is better to begin the “relocation” process when the baby is 6 months old.

The fact is that this period favors learning to sleep independently due to two important factors:

• the number of feedings at night is reduced;
• the child sleeps much longer without waking up.

Teaching your baby to sleep alone: ​​developing independent sleep techniques

Having figured out the reasons for the baby’s reluctance to go to bed and the age at which educational process will be more favorable, it’s worth moving on to the most important thing: the training technique.

Rituals to help

It is best to start teaching a child to sleep with rituals: they are the ones that help any child switch correctly and painlessly from active games to sleep.

The choice of the most effective ritual remains up to the parents, because only they know what exactly will captivate the baby and help him tune in to nighttime dreams.

Good game

Not active, as you might think, but calm and measured. For example: the habit of kissing mom, dad, grandma and the rest of the family before bed, taking a bubble bath with your favorite toy, or putting your dear plush friend to bed.

"Sleepy" dishes

For this ritual, allocate a separate plate or sippy cup, which the baby will use immediately before bed: eat “sleepy” porridge from a cup and drink magic milk for sleep from a bottle.

Bedtime story

A reliable option, time-tested, which can be diversified not only with paper books, but also with audio recordings of fairy tales and listening to them.

The right night light

Not quite a ritual, but also an effective way to set your baby up for sleep. Moreover, if the mother tells the child that the night light will protect him from mosquitoes and protect his dreams.

At the same time!

Until the age of five, any child should go to bed at a certain time (with an error of half an hour). Thanks to this rule, a positive habit of falling asleep is developed, which we so often lack in our lives. adult life.

Mom or Dad?

It is believed that fathers are better able to handle the responsible task of resettlement, especially when it comes to boys.

Firstly, it strengthens the relationship, and secondly, dad will be able to explain to the child that only a strong and brave boy can sleep in bed by himself. Finally, thirdly, the father will be able to emphasize the baby’s strengths and not become overwhelmed by unnecessary emotions during the learning process, as the mother does.

9 important rules of training

1. After your child is ready for bed, lie down next to him and lie down for a while.
2. Give your little one a light massage, which can be accompanied by a lullaby or a fairy tale.
3. If your child spends most of his time with you, transfer the bedtime process to grandma or dad.
4. Place your favorite toy in the crib: it will calm the baby and protect him from night “monsters” invisible to parents.
5. Turn on a “soft” night light and, when leaving the room, do not close the door tightly.
6. If your baby calls you, go up to him and once again wish him a good sleep.
7. Turn the TV down, but don’t tiptoe around the house, as absolute and even “eerie” silence is detrimental to your child’s sound sleep.
8. While in another room, talk to someone in a low voice so that your baby can hear you until he falls asleep.
9. If the child persists and does not want to sleep on his own, postpone the training process and try again in a couple of weeks.

Stopwatch method

One of the most effective methods of teaching a baby to sleep independently in a crib is to “leave” the child in the room alone. It sounds scary, but in reality everything looks completely different.

How does it work?

After you've tucked your child into bed and kissed him goodnight, leave the room and close the door. In 90 and 100% of cases, the baby will immediately start crying and demanding you come back, throwing tantrums and kicking the bed with his feet. This is exactly what the loving heart of a mother, who runs into the room at the first call, cannot stand.

Let's reveal a secret: the child understands that the trick was a success, and from now on he will constantly practice this educational trick on you. To prevent this, use the stopwatch method.

Operating principle

Step One: Leave the Nursery for 3 Minutes

Look at the clock before you leave the nursery and mark three minutes. Has the child not calmed down during this time? Return to the room and just talk to him: wipe away your tears and kiss him, just don’t pick him up - this is important! Then leave the room again.

Step two: leave the baby alone for 4 minutes

You must now endure possible screams and hysterics for 4 minutes. Then repeat the procedure: come in, talk and leave.

The principle of the stopwatch is that by increasing the “absence” time by one minute each time and accompanying the calming of the child with a quiet and soft voice, you let him know that you are next to him, only in another room.

The first day is the main one

Statistics say that the most important thing in this method is the first day of training, because it can require you to do up to 12 similar approaches, and the “absence” interval will increase to 15 minutes! The main thing is to be consistent, serious and not deviate from the chosen methodology.

What if the method doesn’t help?

If after a week of stopwatch training the baby does not fall asleep on his own, you need to pull yourself together and take a longer break in the “absence”, increasing the time spent outside the door not by a minute, but by as much as 5 minutes.

Be sure that the method will still work and in a maximum of 2 weeks the child will fall asleep in bed on his own after just two similar approaches.

What should you not do during the training process?

Some children, while learning to fall asleep on their own, keep the “problem” inside themselves. They don’t call mom and dad, don’t scream, don’t kick the bed, but they have difficulty falling asleep and wake up several times a night.

In this case, a kind word and a hug can help the child adjust to a new way.

What you should not do during the training process is:

• overfeed the child before bedtime;
• get mad and play active games;
• rock the child in your arms;
• show him new toys or read new books before bed;
• sort things out and yell at the baby;
• not following a sleep schedule.

What to do if the baby does not want to learn?

If after a couple of weeks the baby is still crying and waking up several times a night, and the training process is not moving forward, you should show him to the pediatrician. Possible reasons for this behavior may not be the loneliness that you think the baby is experiencing, but diseases of the central nervous system.

Optimal conditions for children's sleep

Finally, we want to tell you about the conditions that accompany a child’s sound sleep and his or her ability to fall asleep independently:

• air temperature in the room from 18 to 20 °C;
• relative air humidity: 50-70%;
• regular ventilation, which must also be done before bedtime;
• wet cleaning (also regular);
• warm, clean and soft pajamas;
• lack of “dust collectors”: carpets, soft toys and furniture;
• a good diaper, not a wet and cold diaper.

Summing up

You should not think that you can teach any child to fall asleep on his own with the help of parental authority, threats or quarrels. Raising children is not an easy task, but only by strictly following the chosen methodology and showing patience can you achieve the desired result.

You may be nervous for a week or two, because at first the children will not be able to fall asleep “perfectly” and sleep all night long without interrupting their sleep.

However, your efforts will ultimately pay off with many years of healthy and peaceful independent sleep for your child, and most importantly, your personal “nighttime” freedom.

Children's sleep, or rather the lack thereof, is one of the main problems that parents face. Often babies do not want to sleep alone, have difficulty falling asleep, wake up quickly, whine and even throw tantrums. Young parents are forced to rock their baby in their arms half the night or take him to sleep in their bed. This makes them frantically search for an answer to the question of how to teach a child to fall asleep on his own.

Many books have been written about children's sleep, scientific articles, transmissions removed and documentaries. However, more and more parents are complaining about sleepless nights, constant rocking of the baby and the child’s reluctance to sleep. Let's try to rectify the situation. The main rule when teaching your baby to sleep independently is to act consistently and persistently.

What is independent sleep?

First, let’s define what “independent sleep” is. This is necessary in order to understand what to strive for. So, ideally, a child should:

• fall asleep on your own, without motion sickness;
• fall asleep quickly;
• sleep all night (or with a break for feeding - depends on age);
• sleep in your own crib.

When can you teach your child to fall asleep on his own?

Many parents do not understand the seriousness of the problem of children's sleep. It seems to them that there will always be time to retrain the baby and make him sleep alone. But the older the baby gets, the more difficult it is to do this.

Yes, if a baby does not sleep alone a year, this is quite normal, but by the age of three he must learn to sleep on his own. The critical age is 5 years. If by this time the child has not learned to sleep on his own, often wakes up and is capricious, then, most likely, a sleep disorder such as insomnia awaits him in adulthood.

A baby under 6-7 months can hardly fall asleep independently in his crib. This especially applies to infants, since they have a closer connection with their mother and they need to listen to her heartbeat and feel her presence nearby during sleep. It is for this reason that until the age of 9-10 months, it is better to put the baby to sleep in the parent’s bed. This will provide psychological comfort to the child, and parents will not need to run to the crib if the baby suddenly wakes up. But at what age can you start weaning your baby from the parental bed?

At 2 years old, you can start teaching your baby to sleep independently in his own bed. Closer to three years, the child develops an understanding of his own “I”, and he begins to separate from his mother (before that he inextricably connects himself with her).

But this does not mean at all that you need to deal with your baby’s sleep only at the age of 2 years. It is very important to teach your baby to fall asleep on his own and without rocking. This can be done as early as 2-3 months.

How to teach a child under one year old to fall asleep on his own?

The newborn sleeps almost all the time. He doesn't yet have clear boundaries between day and night, so he can (and most likely will) wake up in the dark. It is pointless to accustom him to a full night's sleep in the first month of his life, but the older he gets, the more attention should be paid to the bedtime ritual.

Baby 1-4 weeks old

At this age, there is no point in educating your child. It is necessary to develop methods that will help the baby fall asleep quickly and without crying. The authors of the book “Your Baby Week by Week from Birth to 6 Months” suggest the following methods.

• Swaddling

This calms the newborn baby, as a pleasant, comfortable temperature is created in the diapers. In addition, the baby, wrapped in a diaper, seems to be still in the mother’s womb. Nowadays, loose swaddling is practiced, which allows the baby to move his arms and legs in his sleep.

• Lullabies

Quiet singing has always had a calming effect on babies. If you combine it with motion sickness, you can ensure that the baby falls asleep almost instantly.

• White noise

You can use anything as “white noise”: hissing, a recording of a waterfall, an open tap, an untuned receiver. These sounds remind the baby of the blood flow that he listened to while in his mother’s tummy.

• Hugs and pats

Holding your one-month-old baby close to you and lightly patting his bottom will give your baby a sense of intrauterine life. Remember how well he fell asleep when you walked or just walked around the apartment. Try to create similar conditions, and the result will not be long in coming.

If you rock your baby while driving around the block or pushing him in a stroller around the yard, stop doing it. The baby will very quickly get used to this method of rocking and will not want to fall asleep at home. It’s better to suffer for three days (that’s how long a baby needs to break the habit), but teach the child to fall asleep on his own without outside help.

Child at 2-3 months

When the baby ceases to be a newborn and reaches the age of 2-4 months, it is necessary to wean him from rocking and singing. He should fall asleep on his own and quickly (this should be done before he is one year old). Here are some tips you can give to speed up and simplify teaching your baby to fall asleep on his own.

1. Before going to bed at night, the baby should be awake for at least an hour and a half. He should be tired, but not overtired, otherwise it will be even more difficult to put him to sleep.
2. Don't let your baby fall asleep at your breast during the day. This can turn into a habit, and then the baby will suck just for pleasure and comfort. In this case, it will be very difficult for him to fall asleep without a breast (or without a pacifier).
3. Dim the lights, don't turn on loud music or TV, but you can put on a CD with lullabies. Let your baby understand that it's time for bed.
4. Feed your baby before bed and change his diaper so nothing can bother him.
5. Before going to bed, give your child a tummy massage (this will reduce gas formation and relax the intestines) and give your baby a bath. After such activities, the baby will get tired and want to sleep.
6. It is important for the baby to constantly feel the presence of his mother, so you can use a trick and leave his mother’s robe or towel in his crib.

Spock's sleep technique

Back in the last century, a special technique was developed that explained how to teach a child to fall asleep on his own (up to a year). Its author is Benjamin Spock, a famous children's doctor. There can be a lot of debate about the admissibility of this method, but each parent decides for himself what is best for his child.

The essence of the technique is that the mother leaves the baby alone in the room and enters the baby only after a certain amount of time. The times are shown in the table:

Day	First time (minutes)	Second time (minutes)	Third time (minutes)	Subsequent times (minutes)
1st day	1	3	5	5
2nd day	3	5	7	7
3rd day	5	7	9	9
4th day	7	9	11	11
5th day	9	11	13	13
6th day	11	13	15	15
7th day	13	15	17	17

For example, if on the first day a child, left alone, begins to cry immediately, the mother may come to him only after a minute. Having consoled the baby, she leaves, and if the little one starts crying again, then the parent will come to him only after three minutes, etc.

For many parents, this method is unacceptable and cruel, but it teaches the baby to fall asleep on his own, and the results will appear within a week.

How to teach a child to fall asleep in his crib at 2-3 years old?

So, you have already taught your child to fall asleep on his own and quickly, but he still sleeps in your bed.

Experts believe that co-sleeping is beneficial for both baby and mother, but there comes a time when the baby needs to learn to sleep alone.

However, moving your baby to a separate crib can be difficult. A few tips below will help you simplify the process of accustoming your baby to his own crib.

Step 1. Create a schedule

The daily routine is very important for a baby who is already one year old, since it is important for him to be confident in the constancy and steadfastness of his life. It is not necessary to do everything according to the clock - it is enough to develop a clear order of events and actions.

A bedtime ritual may include the following:

• light massage;
• bathing;
• evening feeding or a glass of warm milk;
• reading aloud or listening to calm music;
• quiet conversation;
• kiss.

It will take several days, and maybe even weeks, for the child to get used to this ritual, but in the end he will understand that sleep should come after all these actions, and he will fall asleep easier and faster.

Step 2. Explain the reason

A common mistake young parents make is that they try to put their baby in a separate bed, but do not explain the reasons. What should I think little man, when his mother, with whom he slept in the same bed all his life, leaves and leaves him alone in a dark room? Right! Fright, bewilderment, confusion.

Try talking to your child and explaining to him that he is already an adult and therefore should sleep separately. If it is still difficult for him to fall asleep alone, sit next to him and wait until your child falls asleep.

Step 3. Create comfort

In order for the baby to fall asleep in his bed, it needs to be presented to the baby from the best side.

• Let mom, dad, grandma and all other family members “praise” the baby’s crib. “Oh, what a beautiful bed!”, “What a soft mattress!”, “How wonderful it is to sleep in such a warm crib!” Any enthusiastic phrases and expressions will do.
• Make your little one’s bed truly cozy: arrange toys, buy an airy light blanket, hang a small canopy - you can do everything to make sure your baby likes the bed.
• Turn on the night light. Many children find it easier to sleep in semi-darkness rather than in pitch darkness.
• Be sure to ventilate the room before going to bed. Turn on a humidifier to keep the room cool and not dry.

Step 4. Get rid of fears

Some children, although they fall asleep on their own, wake up in the middle of the night and come to their parents. It’s not surprising, because if you wake up alone in a dark room, your baby will almost certainly feel fear. Many fears are formed on the basis of programs watched on TV or heard of scary fairy tales.

Talk to your child and find out what is bothering him. Come up with a ritual to get rid of fears (burning a piece of paper with fear written on it, releasing balloons), and if this does not help, seek help from a child psychologist.

Little tricks

Toys are the best helpers

The role of plush friends in a child’s life cannot be underestimated. The baby perceives the toy as a living being, he talks to it, feels responsible for it, or, conversely, feels protected in the presence of a soft friend. You can take advantage of this by teaching your child to sleep separately.

For several nights in a row, when you go to bed with your baby, take your child’s favorite stuffed animal to bed. Tell the little one that the toy is his protector, and if anything happens, he will certainly stand up for the baby.

When the little one believes this, you can try putting him to sleep separately.

Trip to visit

This method is suitable for older children (2-3 years).

Go with your child to a sanatorium or on a visit. Any place where the baby can sleep separately from his parents is suitable. Before the trip, explain to your baby that due to the current circumstances, he will have to sleep alone.

During the day, play with your child and keep him busy in every possible way. The baby should not have a desire to go home as soon as possible. In the evening, do not give in to your little one’s persuasion to go to bed together.

If you do everything correctly, then within a week the child will get used to sleeping in his crib.

Literature about children's sleep problems

These and many other books will provide detailed information about sleep phases and problems that may arise in the first and subsequent months of a baby’s life, as well as options for overcoming difficulties.

1. “How to teach a baby to sleep” by Annette Kast-Zan, Dr. Hartmut Morgenroth
2. How to Put Your Baby to Sleep Without Crying by Elizabeth Pentley
3. "I Don't Want to Sleep at All" by Elizabeth Pentley
4. How to Help Your Baby Sleep Well at Night by Susie Giordano
5. “Healthy sleep means a happy child” Mark Weissbluth
6. “The health of the child and the common sense of his relatives” E. O. Komarovsky

Some books describe the problem of sleeping in infants, some - children who are one year old. Others help teach children as young as 3-4 years old to sleep separately.

Conclusion

The sooner you start teaching your baby to sleep independently, the better. But don’t overdo it - some children have a hard time being alone at night, so there will be nothing wrong if they get used to sleeping alone only at 2-3 years old.

When teaching yourself to sleep independently, do not forget the main rule: under no circumstances do anything that will negatively affect the health and psyche of the child. Don't scare him, don't swear or get angry when he starts being capricious and flatly refuses to sleep alone. There is no need to leave your baby when something hurts, when he is teething or when he is in a bad mood.

Sleeping together with your baby is a real benefit. Thanks to him, the mother feels better, as she stops running to the crib at night, always monitors the baby’s body temperature, and finally calms down next to him.

True, the pediatrician does not share these joys, and he has many reasons for this. Today we’ll talk about them, as well as how to teach a child to fall asleep on his own in a crib.

Already in the maternity hospital, gynecologists advocate separate sleeping. They justify their decision with facts: it is easy to injure or strangle a child in a dream. Most young women follow their advice. They prepare beautiful cribs, buy orthopedic mattresses, and arrange a place to sleep in the most in the best possible way, but it all ends with the newborn not sleeping there.

I remember my friend struggled with her baby, trying to put him to sleep separately for the first 3-4 months. Then she gave up, moved him to her place and... finally got some sleep. The experience of sleeping separately was repeated only a year later. It didn’t work out again, but the parents didn’t give up and returned to him when the baby was 2 years old. Since then he has been sleeping on his own and so far successfully.

WHO specialists, by the way, do not see anything surprising in this. According to them, co-sleeping has its benefits:

• In the first 1–2 months, it provides psychological comfort to the baby. Judge for yourself: during his life in the womb, he got used to the constant presence of his mother. He feels it in the beating of his heart and measured breathing, and this makes him calm.
• Mom, who no longer has to run to the crib, can now take a break. In addition, she has constant physical contact with the baby, which, according to doctors, also stimulates the production of breast milk.
• Tactile stimulation is also important for the normal development of the child’s central nervous system and the functioning of the respiratory center, which is confirmed by research results. It turns out that when you sleep together with your parents, the risk of sudden infant death from apnea decreases several times.
• In adulthood, at 1.5 years and older, sleeping with parents helps children fight fears.

Summarizing all of the above, I would like to note that in the first three months of life, sleeping with the mother is a necessity for the child. It does not go away even at the age of 5–6 months, since at this time some children begin to cut their teeth. They sleep worse, but their mother’s presence and constant access to the breast, if breastfeeding is practiced, help them feel good.

At 7–8 months, you can try again to wean yourself from co-sleeping, especially if it causes inconvenience to one of the parents. For example, because of it someone does not get enough sleep. By the way, not everyone succeeds: the child is still small, so it is impossible to explain to him why his parents should sleep separately from him.

By the way, it’s difficult to do this even at 9–10 months. If you agree with this, do not force yourself. It’s better to move the crib closer by removing one side so that the baby can find free space for himself in it, being at arm’s length from you. It is quite possible that you will have to sleep in this way even at 10–11 months.

Contrary to the popular belief that a one-year-old baby is more independent, teaching a child to fall asleep separately at one year of age is also difficult. Especially if we are talking about something that literally does not get off your hands. But at 2 years old you can and should try again. It is best to go together to buy children's bedding and arrange a sleeping place to suit the child's taste. Rest assured, he will appreciate it.

Finally, all experts are convinced that children can sleep separately at the age of 2.5 - 3 years. This is the time when babies need less maternal presence and are more understanding. If you weren’t able to put your baby in your crib from birth, then everything will definitely work out now. Try it, and you will most likely be convinced of this.

At what age is it best to teach yourself to fall asleep on your own?

Pay attention! The ability and readiness to fall asleep independently in a crib at the age of 2–3 years is simply a statement of fact, but not at all a recommendation for action. No need to wait for this age. To achieve the goal, having reached it, you should start working on the problem earlier. Most pediatricians, when asked at what age to accustom a child to sleeping separately, give the figure at 6 months.

As a rule, during this period, the number of night feedings is reduced to a minimum, as is the number of mothers walking at night. True, it is important to remember here that all children are different. You shouldn’t hope that everything will work out at once, or even twice. Some people need months of training.

By the way, in no case should you be categorical about choosing a place to sleep for your child. There is an opinion that his ability to get enough sleep and react correctly to stress in adulthood depends on how calm and comfortable he is at the age of 6–24 months.

How to teach yourself to fall asleep on your own without motion sickness

Perhaps many of us have encountered a situation when a newborn baby wanted to be cuddled and hugged before bed. Grandmothers then discouraged people from doing this, and for good reason. The child is growing, gradually turning into a one-year-old, large toddler who also loves to cuddle and fall asleep in his arms, but weighs a lot. Now it’s difficult to hold it, but it’s necessary.

For some, it is easy to get their baby to sleep without motion sickness, while for others it takes years. Why? The answer is again obvious: all children are different.

What can prevent you from falling asleep faster?

• Lack of regime. It’s not for nothing that pediatricians recommend feeding, walking and putting children to bed strictly at a certain time. This is not a whim, but a necessity, thanks to which they know what awaits them and are happy to do what is required of them.
• Unspent energy. It's easy to tire a one-month-old baby. A little wakefulness, even if it is playing while bathing, and he will be guaranteed a sound sleep. It's more difficult with older children. They are exhausted by massages, gymnastics, frequent lying on their stomachs or games. In a word, it is necessary to provide conditions under which energy will be effectively spent during the day, then at night there will be no problems with sleep.
• Errors in the mother’s menu if the child is on breastfeeding. Did you know that sweets and strong teas affect the quality of your sleep, even if you don’t notice it? To be convinced of this, it is enough to refuse them. It is also better to replace fatty and fried foods with fruits and vegetables, for example, “sleeping pills”. Prominent representatives of this group of products are bananas. Milk, chicken, barley and rice have similar properties.
• Ailments, poor health. During the period of colds and ARVI, the baby's sleep is disturbed. This also happens with colic, during teething. If they are observed, it is better to postpone training until better times.

When the above factors are excluded, it’s time to follow the advice. If the time has come for you when you need to accustom your baby to sleeping separately, adopt several effective methods:

• Choice of ritual. What does your child like most? A fairy tale, massages, swimming? Choose the one that suits you best and be sure to do it every night before going to bed.
• Nesting. Very young children, who have not yet forgotten how warm and comfortable it is in the womb, will appreciate the creation of a good sleeping place. Equip the walls of the crib with soft sides, place bolsters or a blanket around the perimeter, thus providing a cozy nest. Your baby will appreciate it.
• Native smell. Experienced mothers have this method in stock: they place their warm thing next to the child who is falling asleep. It exudes a maternal scent and soothes the baby.
• Falling asleep together. Let this be your key to sleeping separately without motion sickness. Do not immediately abandon your baby in the crib. Stay with him, stroke his back. The main thing is not to make eye contact or talk. This way he will fall asleep faster.

White noise helps infants fall into deep sleep: hissing or sounds of nature. At the same time, constantly sleeping in a car or in a stroller while walking only gets in the way. The child gets used to motion sickness and refuses to fall asleep without it.

How to train yourself to fall asleep without breastfeeding

It’s interesting that when asked when you can teach a child to go to bed without a breast in his mouth, experts call different ages. True, most of them are sure: the sooner, the better. What needs to be done for this?

Scientific literature advises to find another way to calm down, and this is exactly the effect that breasts produce. It will take days to rebuild. Moreover, at first, you may need to alternate between breastfeeding and a new hobby.

On forums, mothers offer more easy way: Feed babies only while sitting. It will suit them, however, only after they reach 6 months of age, but it will give results. Subsequently, you will be able to put them to sleep without breastfeeding.

How to teach yourself to fall asleep on your own at night and during the day

To make your eyes close easier during the day, close the curtains, ask your family to leave the room and not make noise.

Komarovsky and other pediatricians also advise:

• Use the crib only for sleeping. If they play and frolic in it, it will not evoke thoughts of relaxation.
• Put him to bed only when the child really wants it. And for this you need to wind it out first.
• Don't expect him to fall asleep instantly. It is important to provide the opportunity to choose your own bedtime. Let him lie quietly with his eyes open or closed. For older children, so as not to be afraid, you can leave a night light or give them a teddy bear in their crib.

The process of getting used to sleeping separately does not always go smoothly. Children react to change differently, but sometimes they really need it. According to psychologists, delaying weaning from the parental bed has a negative impact on both the relationship between the spouses and the future of the baby (he loses another opportunity to become independent).

Two years is the age of a restless child and often a headache for parents. After all, it is at two years old that a child runs around, tries to learn everything, is interested in everything around him, and parents need to keep up with this whole process. And when do you have time to rest here? Probably at night. But what to do when a child of this age does not want to fall asleep on his own? Let's learn this.

Most often, parents believe that the child is already old enough to sleep alone. But children of this age categorically do not want to let mom or dad go. Let's look at a few examples of how to negotiate?
Persuasion more expensive than money. The option to agree is the first one on our list. You should talk to your child and tell him how great it is to sleep in his own crib. When you achieve a result from your child in the form: “I want my own crib,” consider half the battle already in your pocket.

How to teach your child to fall asleep on his own

Then you go together or buy a crib separately and it’s done. The main thing is to remember that the crib should be in the shape of a cartoon character that your daughter or son loves, then he will quickly want to sleep separately.

Second option. Reduce the amount of time you spend falling asleep. For example, if you have to be with your child until he falls asleep, both at lunchtime and in the evening, then try to give up at least one “falling asleep together” thing. For example, at lunchtime, start putting your child to sleep on your own, but do not lie down yourself, but sit on the edge of the crib. Do this for a few days and you will succeed.

How to teach a child to fall asleep on his own at two years old

And then the turn will come that you will not fall asleep with your child in the evening. This model of teaching a child to fall asleep on his own takes a little time and will require patience from you. But the result is better, since there will be no stress for the child, since he will gradually understand that he will have to fall asleep separately from his parents.

Third option. Don't sit with the child, but talk to him. For example, you put your child to bed and say that you will come in a couple of minutes and see how the child behaves. When you come, praise him for the fact that for these few minutes he was independent, an adult, he is smart and smart. And then leave for another five minutes with the same condition. And after a couple of times the child will fall asleep on his own.

How to teach your child to fall asleep on his own video

A few days like this and your baby will sleep on his own. So consider this option too.

Fourth option. Always leave your child a favorite toy with which he can fall asleep. Remember that a child does not sleep on his own for two reasons - either you taught him that way, or he is afraid to be alone. Therefore, the option of having a toy nearby is a very good way out of any situation.

Also, when you teach your child to fall asleep on his own, pay attention to his health and mental state. Remember that the child must be healthy and not cry on this day because of any injury or resentment. Since the process of falling asleep is already a difficult psychological barrier for a child, and here you will add “fuel to the fire.” So be vigilant in this matter.