(Video uploaded 04/2013)

Transcript

When will my baby sleep through the night without needing a feed?

Some 3 month-old babies can sleep through the night. Most 6-month-old babies, as their bodies are getting maturer, have the ability to sleep through night without night feedings. However, the need to have night feedings is different for babies. If your baby wakes up in the middle of the night, and still need to take a considerable amount of milk, then you should not rush to “wean” him from night feedings. For a baby to sleep through the night, whether he has established a good sleep routine in his daily habits, also plays an important role.

What can I do to help my baby to sleep through night?!

Firstly, let your baby learn the differences between day and night. In the daytime, the light inside the house needs to be adequate. Try to play with your baby as much as you can. This will let the baby not sleep too much in the daytime. In the nighttime, keep the environment quiet and the light should be dimmed.

Secondly, help your baby learn to sleep by himself. Put him down on his own bed when he starts to look sleepy, but still awake. Let him fall asleep in his bed by himself, not to be carried in your arms. You can also stay close for a while to let him feel safe. This method let him associate sleep with his own bed easily, such that he can learn to sleep by himself.

Therefore, if your baby looks sleepy after he was full, you should stop feeding him. Put him to sleep in bed after burping him, avoid him to depend on feeding to fall asleep.

When my baby wakes up and cries in the night time, is he hungry?

When babies sleep in the night time, they may have short periods of brief wakening, move a bit, or even cry for a while. All these are part of normal sleep. When babies wake up and cry in the night time, they may have wet nappies, or wish parents to comfort them, not necessarily be hungry.

When your baby wakes up in the night time, you can first wait for a few minutes. See if he can fall back to sleep by himself. If you have waited for around five minutes and he still does not sleep, you can check his nappy, and check whether he feels too hot or too cold. You can also touch him to let him know that you are next to him. After you doing the above steps, most babies will be settled, then sleep again. If you want to know more about how to deal with baby's sleep problems, you can listen to “My baby is not willing to sleep, what can I do?” under the main theme of “Parenting and Development”.