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As parents, deciding whether you want to co-sleep or let your child sleep independently is one of the most challenging decisions you have to make. Many parents wait till their baby reaches the toddler phase to give them their individual crib to sleep in. However, the biggest disappointment is that kids hate sleeping alone, and the moment you leave them, they will cry their hearts out at the thought of being separated from you. This is when you must look into effective ways to train your little one to sleep in their own bed. Read on to know them all.
1. Begin Training Through The Day
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The trick is to maintain a regular bedtime routine and stick to it. It starts with brushing their teeth and helping them change into clean night clothes. You can even brush their hair gently to help them relax, and read them a good night story in bed. Be sure to congratulate your child every time they go to bed without any prompting from you.
2. Make It Fun
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Just treat bedtime like a game and have fun with it. You may play the role of the baby and have your kid take on the part of the parent. Have a stuffed animal by your side while you go off to sleep.
Here’s how to ease into the habit of getting tucked in:
For starters, your kid should look forward to bedtime. Perform this exercise many times each week during the day. The more frequently you engage in such training, the better the results will be. Perform this exercise at least a couple hours before night. Mornings and afternoons are ideal times to get this done.
3. Increase The Time They Spend By Themselves
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Before doing anything else, you should observe how long it takes your little one to fall asleep after you’ve turned out the lights. It won’t be hard to figure out if you’re with your infant right up until sleep time. There is a significant time and effort commitment involved with this method. Even if you’re feeling demotivated right now, you can be assured that your worries won’t keep you up at night for much longer.
That’s how it works:
Train your child’s sleep schedule throughout the day to anticipate the process at bedtime.
Perform the bedtime ritual of brushing teeth, changing into a night suit, and reading a book. Then cuddle up with your kid and hand them their favorite toy or a security blanket. Then switch to a nightlight which will help them get drowsy while you read them their favorite book.
If you put your child to bed at 8:00 p.m, it might take up to 15 minutes before they drift off to sleep. At 8:15, inform them that you need to take a 1-minute break and say you’ll be back shortly, and exit the room. In a minute, come back into the room and shower your kid with praises for being patient and tucked while you were away. This will help you win their trust that you will return and not abandon them. You can use phrases like “You are such a big kid now; you stayed put all by yourself like a brave baby”. Kisses and hugs are a part of this! Get into bed and stay there until your kid nods off.
Repeat this process the following night, only this time, enter the room for only two minutes, and the night after that, for three. As time goes on, your kid will be able to spend more and more time in their room at night. After a week of your child going to sleep without you or when you have a 30-minute break, you can cease doing this.
4. Utilize “Excuse-Me” Training
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This method differs somewhat from the standard procedures. The critical distinction is that it requires frequent, brief pauses. This is mainly for kids who become upset or act up when you have to leave them alone, even for a minute. This technique has been recommended by physicians, so have faith, and success will be yours in due time.
The procedure goes as follows:
In this situation, sleep training is also required once or twice throughout the day, alongside strict adherence to the established nighttime schedule.
When you need to get up, dim the lights and leave the room. You must excuse yourself and ask your little one to pardon your absence. Please leave the room for the next 30 seconds to a minute. The time frame will be based on how long your baby can stay in bed without getting up. Now go back to the bedroom & congratulate them on staying in bed alone.
You might have to repeat this process twenty or thirty times the first night. If you want your time outs to get longer every night, just spend more time away the second night. It’s a significant accomplishment when your kid learns to sleep peacefully without you every night.
Putting your child to bed in the nursery might be one of the most challenging things both parents and children go through. If the child is older, the separation might trigger them to cry all night, which is never good for your own rest. However, with these easy tactics, you can slowly wean them into a healthy nap time routine and reassure them that mommy and daddy are one cry away!
