Why a Bedtime Routine is So Important, and How to Establish One for Your Baby

You CAN get your baby to fall asleep and stay asleep—and we can help.

It’s something most parents struggle with. When it comes time to teach your baby to fall asleep alone and sleep at night without your continued rocking, bottle feeding, etc. how is the “best” way to do it? When is the best age to start?

When sleep training is started too young, it is ineffective, and when it is started too late, it becomes more challenging and takes longer. Sleep is a somewhat individualized requirement but there are certainly guidelines to follow and better yet, results to consider. Often babies who develop good sleep habits and patterns turn into toddlers who have the same.

We always encourage starting early to establish healthy sleep habits and routines based on your baby’s natural rhythms, working with your infant to meet their sleep needs. Fortunately, Indy Night Nanny has years of experience helping hundreds of families establish healthy sleep habits for their infants.

Our process involves reading their cues, starting consistent routines before they get overtired, darkening the room, using noise machines, and swaddling, resulting in minimal crying and longer stretches of sleep. In fact, there are some infants who are able to fall asleep alone with NO CRYING after their parents have been taught a few sleep training tactics and commit to practicing them regularly.

Your baby’s bedtime routine should work with your family’s lifestyle. The routine should include a predictable sequence of events that all communicate to your baby that sleep comes next. Some families use this time to do a bath or warm wash cloth. Read a book with your baby or hum/sing the same song while you give the last feeding of the day. Bedtime routines don’t have to be long but they should take place in the baby’s sleeping area if possible and give your baby time to shift from daytime play mode into a relaxing nighttime sleep.

It’s common that I have moms of babies I have worked with tell me that their baby is like a new child after they implemented an age-appropriate nap and sleep schedule. Let Indy Night Nanny help your family achieve the same peace of mind.