As a new parent, one of your priorities will be to establish good sleeping habits with your newborn. Your baby needs to learn to sleep on his own; the transition from sleeping with his mother to sleeping by himself takes some time. Of course, as add added bonus, if you get your baby to learn to sleep on his own you will also get some much needed rest yourself. To instill good sleeping habits in your baby, research and try to employ different baby sleep tips: try a lot of things and see what works for you, and don’t be afraid to trust your instincts.
Many baby sleep tips center on the idea of establishing routines and associations for your child between nighttime and sleep. The sooner you child begins to associate bedtime with sleep, the more likely he is to be able to go to sleep without a fuss. A period that is often overlooked, however, in establishing day vs. night associations, is the period of “transition” – that is, the one between being awake and falling asleep. Here are some transitioning techniques to try:
Try what is sometimes called “fathering down.” Just before placing the baby into bed, the father should cradle the...