When a new baby arrives in the world it is the first time that he's been out of physical contact with another human being. It is his first experience of being alone, the first experience of touching fabric rather than skin, the first experience of being dry rather than wet, the first experience of gravity without fluid to float in, and the first experience of being without the taste of mum's amniotic fluid, delivering onion, garlic, cumin, and all the other clues to mother's diet!
Additionally, it's his first experience of bright light. Although some light does filter through to the womb, bright light is something quite challenging to his not-fully-developed abilities of sight.
Crib Mobiles
Likewise with sound, which until now has been muffled, much like you might hear as background sounds in apartment living, apart from the whooshes and gurgles of mother's stomach and intestines, and the familiar thud, thud of her heartbeat.
With all of this extraordinary stimulation, it's equally extraordinary that our newborn baby will continue to sleep only a tiny bit less than he did at 32 weeks' gestation, around 85-90% of the time - 20-22 hours each day.
With mother needing only 8, you'd be excused for wondering what could possibly go wrong, but as most parents know, those precious 8 hours can seem painfully out of reach.
We already know that many babies are born with very disrupted sleep patterns (my second child arrived doing 15-minute catnaps and this lasted for months), and this can be an indication of an undeveloped nervous system, particularly where mother hasn't been able to eat adequately, or to hold food down during the pregnancy.
Professor Evelyn Thoman has shown that mums who eat 3 or more serves of cold water fish (like salmon, tuna, founder, haddock, herring and sardines) each week tend to have babies who are calmer and sleep better than mums with lower levels of the DHA (a fatty acid) found in those foods.
There is a lot we can do to rectify these sleep problems quite quickly (as you'll see in Chapter 6) but first let's look at the mistakes that many of us parents make in the beginning that actually train our babies NOT to sleep.
Common Mistakes
1 Overstimulation
In my years as a behavioural therapist, this is arguably the most commonly identified cause of not only sleep problems, but of behavioural problems generally in children. We've become a world where everything is a race, including developing and growing up, and it's sad to see some babies placed in that pressure cooker even before they're born.
Although I have little respect for mother nature, this is one area where I believe there is evidence that mother nature provides very well for the optimum development of the newborn and that our job is NOT to stimulate in the early days, but merely to love and nurture.
Now, this doesn't mean that you have to have a quiet and dark home, far from it! It also doesn't mean that you can't take your new baby out to the shops or the gym, or to have lunch or dinner with friends. All of THAT stuff is just familiarizing your brand new baby with the ebb and flow of your life, with the family environment that you've created for him.
What I'm talking about here are things like:
Special training programs for unborns or newborns, like music, sound or light shows Mobiles in the crib or cot Excessive handling by people other than the immediate family An overly noisy or busy environment
Your baby will do best if he's allowed to slowly acclimatize himself to an environment which is so different from the one he's enjoyed the last several months. That's how he'll learn to tell the difference between sleep time and wake time, and that's how his nervous system and brain will thrive the best. He needs to find the normal rhythms and patterns of a stress-free family environment.
One of the worst things you can do for your baby or toddler is to contrive an overly-stimulating environment - that is a recipe for mental ill health, and a young person who struggles to form healthy sleep patterns.
2 Under-stimulation
Some parents go too far the other way, keeping the new baby in a deathly quiet and dark room. This is all very nice because it does come fairly close to womb conditions, but it also doesn't allow the baby's body clock to respond to normal light and dark patterns and move into family-friendly sleep habits.
Have you ever taken a long flight Eastward at night, and then as you've flown into the rising sun, despite being dog tired, been unable to sleep? That's the effect of daylight on the hormones that govern sleep.
So you can appreciate that smart use of daylight and dark is one of the most powerful tools you can use to help your baby develop better sleep patterns! Get into the habit of placing baby in that quiet, darkened room from 7 pm to 7 am, and let him nap in the brighter, noisier area of the house during the day. Go on with your normal life, playing your usual background music, watching television, vacuuming, washing, enjoying normal conversation, just as you would normally and reasonably do.
Although there are lots more tips to help your baby, toddler or older child to move into much better sleep routines, these 2 tips will provide a lot of help!
Christmas Sales Tiny Love Tiny Princess Mobile 201
Dec 08, 2011 15:14:16
Click for larger image and other views
Christmas Sales Tiny Love Tiny Princess Mobile Feature
- Tranquil music and magical movement will engage any baby
- Baby will marvel at the movement of the characters as they rotate around
- Convenient remote control, calming night light and 20 minutes of music will help baby go to sleep
- includes remote control
- birth to 5 months
Christmas Sales Tiny Love Tiny Princess Mobile Overview
Tiny Love Tiny Princess Mobile
Part of Tiny Princess Collection. Innovative movement develops eye coordination. Converts to crib side music box and night light. Four types of music for 20 minutes of continuous play.
- Product Measures 27 x 22 x 16
- Recommended Ages: 0 months & up
Christmas Sales Tiny Love Tiny Princess Mobile Specifications
With multidimensional movement and tranquil music, the TINY LOVE Tiny Princess Mobile entertains your baby and encourages important developmental skills. The adorable pink mobile features bright, hanging animals to delight and mesmerize your baby. A music box with a remote control offers continuous sounds for a soothing experience that engages the imagination.
|
 Entertains your baby and encourages important developmental skills. View larger. |
 View detailed image. |
 |
 |
The eye-catching Tiny Princess Mobile features a charming theme with a pink tree at its center. Three puppet-like animal friends-- a butterfly, turtle, and "prince" frog--dangle from the branches and move to the music, captivating your baby's attention.
The interplay between the music and the mobile's movement will fascinate and calm your baby, becoming a soothing and familiar part of the day. The Tiny Princess Mobile will also help babies focus on objects, strengthen their eye muscles, and develop spatial perception.
Soothing Music Box with Nature Sounds and Night Light
Built to play 20 minutes of continuous music, the Tiny Princess Mobile keeps babies entertained and soothed while they fall asleep or play in their cribs. The tunes include three classical melodies and one nature-themed song, along with gentle nature sounds playing in the background.
The music box at the base of the mobile attaches securely to most standard cribs with an easy-to-install knob. The music box features four buttons to switch between the songs, helping babies discover the cause and effect associated with hitting the buttons. The music box also operates by remote control.
The sweet butterfly on the music box doubles as a glowing night light and can remain in place on the crib once the moving parts are removed.
About TINY LOVE: Quality Developmental Products
Trusted by parents worldwide, TINY LOVE creates toys and products for babies by pairing the latest breakthroughs in child development with quality materials and design. Each product is crafted after consultation with child development experts, quality assurance specialists, and parents. TINY LOVE is passionate about providing parents and caregivers with resources to better a child's early development. For example, the TINY LOVE Developmental Center, a virtual space to share knowledge about child development. TINY LOVE's 7 Elements System categorizes the specific facets of a baby's development that is at the heart of each TINY LOVE product.
Committed to excellence, all of TINY LOVE's products meet the standards of the American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM), the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) of the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), and the European EN-71 (CE) standards.
What's in the Box
TINY LOVE Tiny Princess Mobile, music box, remote control, and instruction guide.
 |
SAVE NOW on Christmas Sales Offers below!
Available In Stock. |
| This Christmas Tiny Love Tiny Princess Mobile ships for FREE with Super Saver Shipping. |
Price : Click to Check Update Prices Please. |
