Posts tagged sleeping

Is it just me, or do all little angels suddenly get a whiff of the little devil about them as soon as the ‘bed time’ words are mentioned? In my experience, some children are nocturnal beings, coming alive the more tired mummy and daddy become! It may seem amusing right now, but the funny side soon sours as 9pm becomes 10pm, 11pm and so on. Many youngsters will happily trot off to bedfordshire at the required time, only to trot out again and again. We can’t all have Supernanny on speed dial, so here are a few lessons I have learned that may assist in a decent nights sleep for children and parents alike.

A child’s bedroom is the very first space of their own. They have all their toys and games and books in their room, yet it can still seem daunting, especially for those not long out of their cot, to be spending so much time apart from their parents. Making a big deal right from the start about how grown up they are in their first big bed in a room all of their very own, can help the transition from sleeping near mummy, to being an independent sleeper. Allowing them to have a say in choosing the wallpaper or paint colour, their duvet set and even their bed, will help to make them feel grown up and take a sense of ownership in their bedroom, for a wide choice of beds for the whole family click here. Even if you have a toddler that has no interest whatsoever in helping choose the design of their bedroom, lets face it, for one so young interior design is not really as interesting as Peppa Pig (oink oink), you may still like to suggest they arrange their toys on the shelves, the bed, or on top of the drawers for example. The main aim is to get the message across that this room is theirs, and that means they are very grown up!

Helping a child wind down at the end of the day, but well before bedtime will also help them relax and become a sleepy head as opposed to a mad head! Television, rowdy games, even music can stimulate your child to such a degree that their little minds are not relaxed enough for sleep at bedtime. A quiet hour before they head to bed, with nothing much happening, should make them less keen to stay up past bedtime. The old favourites of a warm drink, a story and a snuggle can work wonders, but do these all before bed, not in bed, this should help the relaxation process.

A regular bedtime and also waking up time, helps a child set their own body clock, try not to disturb this regular pattern if you can help it, that way, the body tells the child it’s sleepy time, not just the parent! This means, no late nights at the weekend. It will only undo any good work that has already been achieved throughout the week, sending their little body clock into overdrive and sending you back to square one!

If at all possible, try sparing a little time before bed to have a quality one to one chat with your child, especially if they are having trouble sleeping and are of school age, it may be that something is troubling them and preventing them from being able to fall asleep. Lots of cuddles while talking can help to get to the bottom of any little problems they may be having that you are unaware of.

When bedtime finally comes around, the milk has been drunk, the last trip to bathroom is over with and the last story has been read, tuck your little person into bed with a kiss and leave the room. Never have bright lights left on overnight, if your child doesn’t like the dark a dim night-light should suffice to banish the monsters that sometimes loom in the corners of the bedroom!

If, or should I say when, your child pops their little face round the living room door, take their hand gently, tell them it is bedtime and take them back to bed, do not get into conversation with them at this point, for the child is a cunning manipulator at this time of night and before you know it you will be in the middle of trying to explain why the sky is blue or why next door’s doggy sometimes licks it’s own…you get the picture!

Each time your child gets up, take their hand and lead them back to bed, no talking! No matter how many times you have to do it, if you are strong enough to ignore the pleas, the cries, the questions and sometimes even the tantrums, and repeatedly return them to their bed, without engaging with them, you should hopefully find that after several nights of this, your child will get the message and begin to spend the whole night in their own bed…which means you get to spend the whole night in yours too!

This is a sponsored guest post from Bedstar