3 Reasons Baby Won’t Sleep!

After a hustling, bustling day, there’s nothing more rewarding than those beautiful words, “it’s bedtime.” You gather the baby(ies) and start your routine. A nice warm bath with some lavender bath soap, warm milk, a bedtime story or two, a few lullabies, and nighty night, right? Wrong! What may have been a simple routine is now a hostage negotiation. What happened?!

1. They’re about to hit a milestone

Right now, my 9 month old is so busy trying to stand, walk, teeth, babble, all at the same time. He used to go to bed by 8 wake around 11 for a feeding session then back to bed until 5 or 6. Now he’s up until 1 am doing baby push ups, pull ups, Superman’s and bananas! As they reach developmental milestones their minds are hyper focused on their tasks and may resist going to bed and show signs of anxiety or fussiness. Rest assured, it’s temporary and it will pass. Keep at your routine for consistency’s sake.

2. Baby is too tired

Sometimes is hard to stick to your day time routine that includes a nap especially as the baby(ies) get older. My toddler sometimes skips naps altogether but, boy, does he pay for it. By the end of the night, sometimes he starts rubbing his eyes well before bath-time. Days like that, I improvise. Don’t wait until they are overwhelmingly tired and inconsolable. If you reach that point, putting them to bed could be harder than cold peanut butter. Try moving bed time up by 30 – 60 minutes or even shortening the routine so you can get them down faster.

3. Baby wants to be with you

Isn’t that the sweetest?! But, of course, when you’re exhausted and had a long day yourself, you may not be in the sentimental mood. As the littles grow, they are developing emotionally and now can understand that although you appear to be fused at the hip, you’re not and that’s scary! But, again, you can manage this, too. Try being loving, patient, and most of all, consistent, with your bedtime routine.

Initiate or maintain a clear and distinct bedtime routine throughout all phases knowing that there will be periods of sleep regressions like described above. During these temporary flare ups, be patient with baby, even try adjusting the schedule incrementally.

Have you had trouble putting baby to sleep? Let me know down in the comments how you put your littles down to sleep at night.