Learning, genetics, habits and sleep.

Sleep is a complex thing. The sleep patterns we have as adults are composed in part of the sleep patterns of our parents, the sleep patterns we learned and the habits we have adopted.

Children are capable of learning sleep habits from as young as 60 days of life. We encourage them to sleep at regular intervals in infancy and we expect them to extend night sleep and reduce daytime sleep as they grow. Teaching a desirable sleep pattern is fairly easy, however children often pick up sleep associated habits which may be less desirable along the way.

Some professionals talk about "inappropriate sleep associations". What this really means, is that the child has learned that certain things are required to happen before they are comfortable and confident in being able to get themselves to sleep. Sometimes these are things that the child will grow out of. Sometimes one inappropriate association or habit is not eliminated but replaced with another just as inappropriate.

There are "recommended" lengths of sleep for different age groups but, these are not set in tablets of stone, they are guidelines only. Every one of us has a general sleep requirement, but how we have learned to sleep and the effects of previous generations on our genetic make up can, and does have some effect on our sleep pattern and on the sleep patterns of our children.

If your child has shorter sleep than the recommendation for his/her age and stage, look at the amount of sleep the parents need. Does your child generally wake in a positive happy cheerful mood? If so, the chances are that the sleep that they have had has been restful and restorative. A child who sleeps well in generally a child who is happy and copes well with the rest of the day.

Children need routines. These are there to act as touchstones. They help children understand the world and what is expected of them. As they grow these routines change slightly.
Every adult has at least three things which they do every night, regardless of holidays, before they are ready to go to sleep. The last routine of a child's day should consist of three things always completed in the same order, started at the same time of day and finishing in lying down to sleep.

Teaching good sleep habits is every bit as important as teaching good habits in other areas of life.

If you would like some help to teach your child good sleep habits, Contact us at;- info@Dream-Angus.com and we will help you.

Night Feeds

Newborn babies need regular feeds whether breast or formula. Some will look for feeds 2-3 hourly others will accept a regimen of 4 hourly feeds. In the first few months, waking to feed a baby is an expected part of infant care.
By the time an infant is six months old fewer will physically require a night time feed. Some will perisist through habit and, most mums, don't mind this too much if it is simply a case of feeding the infant and re settling. If this can be done within a few minutes it can almost be accomplished in mum's sleep.
Other infants are more awake. Through habit they have developed a lighter phase of sleep at this time and they may also associate a feed as being the thing that helps them to return to sleep. There may be no real hunger and the breast or bottle may only be a plaything, an opportunity to interact with mum.
At this point it is up to mum to decide whether or not she is happy to continue to have her night's sleep interrupted. There are a variety of ways of stopping this night waking behaviour. As this is a habit, once the infant has slept through the night for a few nights usually the behaviour stops completely.


If you need help to change your infant's sleep pattern contact www. Dream-Angus.com
Working with you to improve your child's sleep.