Managing Sleeping (yours!)

There are a million books (so it seems!) on getting baby to sleep but what about mummy?

My tips are:

1. Go to bed early – you don’t win any prizes for staying up late. I go to bed between 8:45pm and 9:30pm. Yes, you might feel like a 12 year old but it’s worth it. Even if you think you could not possibly be tired at that hour, try it out.


2. Get yourself into a bedtime routine – a standard time for bed and some kind of ritual, such as a shower or reading a book prior to sleep.


3. If you cannot get to sleep, try using some lavender oil on your pillow. I also find going through a relaxation routine is very helpful. Concentrate on your breathing and then move through each muscle group in your body (starting from your feet) tensing and then relaxing. Imagine a golden light coming through your body from your feet and your whole body becoming very heavy.


4. Let go of the feeling “what’s the point of sleeping when I will be up in an hour to feed?” Instead think, “I have an hour – I choose to use that hour to rest”


5. Have a nanna nap in the afternoon between feeds.


6. Babies make all sorts of snuffly sounds as they sleep – don’t strain to hear those sounds (particularly after a feed). Instead train yourself to sleep through these – if your baby genuinely needs you their cry will wake you.


7. Aim to have at least one hour to yourself each day where you concentrate on you. Try not to be thinking about the baby, the house work or the list of things to do. During that hour or so, be selfish, live in that moment and think only of yourself. This might mean a bath, reading a book or watching a DVD - whatever you find relaxing. A refreshed mother makes for a happier baby so don’t feel guilty about thinking of yourself for a little while.