Newborn babies and sleep usually don’t go hand in hand.  And there’s good reason for this- newborn babies wake frequently at night because they need to eat!  However, there is still lots you can do to maximize your newborn’s sleep, make everything as manageable as possible, and get your baby’s sleep habits off on the right foot.  You can definitely avoid future problems down the road!

Here are my top 3 sleep tips for newborn babies:

Tip #1- Pay close attention to your baby’s wake windows.

Newborn babies become overtired very easily because they need LOTS of sleep.  A 6 week-old baby might need to sleep every 60 minutes!  So if you haven’t already done so, download the following sleep chart that has my suggested wake windows and sleep totals for babies and toddlers of all ages.  This will give you a very good idea as to how often your baby needs to go to sleep.

Tip#2- Get yourself the right baby gear.

Newborn babies need to nap very frequently.  While you might enjoy holding your little baby all day long, it’s going to get exhausting after a while!  You want to be able to put your baby DOWN for at least a few naps a day.  The Fisher Price Cradle Swing is a fantastic product for this age range, as is a baby carrier with good back support.  Stroller and car naps at this age are just FINE!

Tip #3- Try to put your baby down drowsy but awake once a day.

Eventually, you want your baby to be able to put herself to sleep 100% of the way on her own.  At this age, she doesn’t need to be doing all the work just yet.  If you’re able to rock her until she’s drowsy before you place her in the crib, you’re doing great!  Getting your baby used to falling asleep somewhat on her own can often avoid huge sleep problems down the road, such as being reliant on feeding or rocking to fall asleep.

Now, if you try getting your baby down drowsy but awake and it just doesn’t work, don’t worry about it.  Try again the next night and eventually she’ll get it.