In the newborn phase, many conflicting emotions occur simultaneously. You’re excited about finally meeting your bundle of joy while also battling to get enough sleep each night—and not let the sleep deprivation take away from the happiness you know you should be feeling. After all, the newborn phase will be gone in the blink of an eye, and you want to relish it as much as you can.
However, with newborns learning to settle into life outside the womb, sleep can be difficult for them and, as a result, for you as well.
No matter how much you prepare, it’s all too easy to find yourself becoming a glassy-eyed zombie as you try to slog through these first few months with your child. All hope is not lost, though—there are strategies for surviving these days and rediscovering the joys of the newborn phase.
Sleep Strategies for the Newborn Phase
Maybe you’re in the midst of the newborn phase and are reading this through bleary eyes in the hope of regaining some hours of sleep, or perhaps you’re expecting your baby any day now and want to know how to stay ahead of the game.
Whatever stage you’re in, these tips can help you survive the newborn phase and ease the exhaustion.
Make Good Sleep Hygiene the Priority
In the early days of parenthood, when you feel like you’re hanging on by a thread, if there’s one extra thing to start focusing on besides caring for your baby, make it your sleep hygiene. These habits promote a good night of sleep, and they can help you fall asleep more easily and have better, more restful sleep in the opportunities you get to close your eyes.
Since the first portion of the night is often your baby’s longest stretch of sleep, your goal should be to go to bed just after your baby does, and having a wind-down routine can help you in this endeavor.
For your pre-bed routine, focus on relaxing by taking a warm bath or getting lost in the pages of a book before going to bed. Additionally, steer clear of electronics at least an hour before bed—the blue light given off by screens has been proven to suppress melatonin production, which is what cues the body in to bedtime.
Create An Ideal Sleep Environment
Once you have a bedtime routine in place, it’s time to make sure that your sleep environment is somewhere that helps to ease you into sleep. Keeping it clutter-free is the biggest step, as knowing that there’s a mess can keep you up with nagging thoughts of what needs to be done.
Additionally, keeping your bedroom dark and at a cooler temperature can help you fall asleep.
Your baby can benefit from an ideal sleep environment, as well—the better their environment, the longer they’ll sleep, and, as a result, the more sleep you can get. For your baby, consider white noise machines, swaddling, and dark bedrooms to help them sleep better.
Eat Healthy and Exercise
Two daytime habits that can influence how well you sleep at night and how energized you feel during the day are exercise and diet. Eating healthy foods can help you feel better, while exercise not only gives you a boost of energy and good mood hormones but can also help you sleep better at night.
Exercising may look different than before your baby; for example, instead of hitting the gym, you may go for a brisk walk around your neighborhood with your baby in the stroller. Both forms of exercise are valid, and as long as you’re moving, your body will thank you.
As a bonus, exercise will help reduce your stress level and improve your mood so that you can enjoy the newborn days more.
Accept (and Ask For) Help
You may feel like you need to do it all alone, but there’s no award for pushing through in this way, especially if you’re sleep-deprived and struggling to hold it together. Instead, approach the newborn phase with the mindset that whenever help is offered, in whatever capacity, you’ll accept it. Maybe it’s to watch your baby for 20 minutes while you shower or even a friend offering to tidy up your place while you sit and breastfeed.
Whenever help is offered, don’t feel ashamed to accept it; it’s only being offered by those who care about you and want to help you during this time—and perhaps score some baby snuggles. Every little bit will help, so learn to say yes.
Even more, establish a close circle of support, and don’t be afraid to reach out to them for help. You’ll be a much better carer for your baby when you’ve got a bit more rest.
Find Other Ways to Refresh
While sleeping is the best form of revitalization for your body, there are other ways to get a refresher when the standard 7 to 9 hours isn’t possible. Consider reading, working on a hobby, or taking an extra-long shower—anything that brings you joy and helps to reduce your stress levels.
Consider A Power Nap
Power naps, as well, can help when your nighttime sleep isn’t as long as your body needs. Just 20 minutes of sleep is all it takes to improve your alertness.
Be careful, though; sleeping for any longer increases the risk of sleep inertia, which is the grogginess when you wake up that can come with a poor mood. So, cap it at 20 minutes to see the greatest results.
New Parents: Watch For Sleep Deprivation
Many mistake the newborn phase as being synonymous with sleep deprivation, and while some poor sleep is common, having continual sleep deprivation can become dangerous, especially as you care for a baby. Sleep deprivation can negatively affect your cognitive function to the point that you appear drunk, which is not an ideal state to be in when caring for a child.
Additionally, ongoing sleep deprivation can be hazardous for your health, with it being associated with obesity, diabetes, hypertension, cardiovascular disease, depression, and kidney disease.
To protect your health and ensure you’re in the best state to care for your baby, make sure to prioritize your sleep during the newborn phase. By focusing on good sleep hygiene, creating an ideal sleep environment, exercising, eating healthy, accepting help, and finding other ways to refresh, you can better handle the challenges of the newborn phase to make the highs all the more joyful.
