By Tamara Smith, Infant & Toddler Sleep Consultant, WeeSleep

1. Myth: You need to be held hostage to nap time. You do not need to be at home for every single nap. It is okay to leave the house and have the occasional nap on the go. Always aim to have your child’s first nap of the day at home, to ensure you start the day off strong. Then you can plan to have a nap on the go in the car seat or stroller.
2. Myth: Keep your baby’s room bright for naps and dark for night. Consistency is so important with babies. You want to be doing the same things for naps as you do for bedtime. A dark room is recommended for all sleep. Blackout curtains and blinds, and no night lights!
3. Myth: Playing music will help your little one fall asleep. Music is stimulating and will not help your baby fall asleep for naps or bedtime. If you have other children, a loud pet, or live on a noisy street, use a white noise machine. White noise does not have varying sound waves, therefore is not stimulating. If you are use it keep it on for all sleep, do not put it on a timer.
4. Myth: The longer I leave my baby up between naps, the better they will sleep. Depending on your baby’s age they can only be awake for a certain amount of time. If you keep them up too long they will become overtired or overstimulated, making it harder for them to fall asleep. This can also cause shorter naps. Watch for their tired signs – rubbing their eyes, yawning, pulling their ears, etc. When you see them, get them into bed.
5. Myth: When your baby wakes from their nap, go in and get them immediately. If you hear your baby has woken up, give them some time before you rush in to get them. They may fall back to sleep. Some babies will briefly wake between sleep cycles, and then fall back asleep. If you are rushing in, you are taking that opportunity away from them. Especially if your child has had a short nap. It may not be over.

Tamara is a pediatric sleep consultant working with families to overcome sleep issues, and help build healthy sleep habits. Using tried and true gentle, loving and guided strategies, Tamara will break down and analyze your child’s sleep challenges and develop a completely customized and easy-to-follow sleep plan that will have your child sleeping through the night (10-12 hours straight) in under 2 weeks. The blog post is a synopsis of the items covered in a complimentary workshop by Tamara at Chapter1 Daycare for our members and guests on March 10, 2016.

Tamara can be reached at tamara@weesleep.ca