Children, Parenting

A Mom’s Guide To Helping Your Children Get A Good Night’s Sleep

Nobody likes dealing with a grouchy child, particularly if they’re grouchy and sleepy. In fact, there’s just something not right about a sleepy child. Children should be full of energy from the moment they wake up. So, if yours isn’t, then they’re probably not getting a good night’s sleep.

In which case, you need to read this little guide to helping out your little ones:

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Make Their Bed Comfortable

Children can be very fussy, and they’ll struggle to get to sleep if their bed isn’t comfortable enough. On the other hand, a comfy bed sends them to sleep in minutes. It’s all about finding ways to make your child’s bed as comfortable as possible, so they can’t help but close their eyes and nod off when their head hits the pillow.

There are three main concerns here; mattress, pillow, duvet. In my opinion, children sleep better on softer mattresses. Not too soft, but definitely leaning more to the soft side than the firm one. The best mattress for kids should give them enough support, but allow them to feel like they’re lying on a fluffy cloud. As for the pillow, it needs to follow suit. Don’t be too hard, try and keep it nice and soft. Finally, the duvet should be a really thick thing that they can lose themselves in. Now, you’ve created the perfect bed to elicit a good night’s sleep.

Get Them Into A Routine

Children have a much easier time getting to sleep when they’ve got a good routine. I used to hate it when my parents told me it was time for bed, but now I know the benefits of an actual bedtime!

Putting your child to bed at the same time every night gets their body into a particular rhythm. Slowly but surely, they adjust to the routine and feel tired at the same time every night. When it nears their bedtime, they’ll automatically feel drowsy, and be ready to sleep right away. Without a routine, their body clock is all over the place, and they could take ages to fall asleep.

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Stop Them From Drinking Before Bed

While you should try and keep your children hydrated, bedtime isn’t the right time for a glass of water. If your kids are drinking close to bedtime, they’ll end up waking up loads during the night to go to the toilet. Or worse, they’ll give you some bedsheets and pajamas to add to the washing basket!

All you have to do is stop your children from drinking around about an hour before they go to bed. This is when the last cup of water or hot chocolate should be given out. It should stop them from needing to pee during the night, meaning they don’t get a disrupted sleep. They should sleep all the way through to morning, which is the best way to sleep!

 

You don’t need me to tell you how important sleep is for your child’s health. It helps them grow, rest, re-energize – it’s just essential. Follow the advice above, and you will see improvements in their sleep pattern.

Disclosure: This is a contributed post.

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  1. Staying Sane During Motherhood - Here's How It's Possible - Candid Mama
    November 18, 2017 at 6:40 pm

    […] the case for those moms out there who have very young babies. You will rarely get a full night’s sleep, so you will have to try and get by on just a few hours of sleep each night. It can be all too easy […]

  2. Is Your Thermostat Setting Damaging Your Health? - Candid Mama
    November 19, 2017 at 11:18 am

    […] Sleep is one of the areas where you’re affected most by temperature. As a rule, you should sleep in slightly colder conditions but some people are taking it too far. When you go to sleep your brain is attempting to achieve a specific body temperature that is right for sleeping. If you’re making it too cold in the room it’ll struggle to get there. Equally, if you’re turning the heat up and making the room hot, your body will struggle to reduce its temperature. During the summer months, you need to make sure that you know how to keep the room cool. Visit topairquality.com for some great information about how to do it without wasting money. During the colder parts of the year, it can be tempting to put the heating on full and grab a load of blankets but this won’t do you any favors. Heat the room enough to be comfortable but if you find that you’re having trouble dozing off, play around with the temperature and find what works best for you. Lack of sleep has so many knock on effects on your health it’s vital that you get your 8 hours in. […]

  3. Bedtime Niggles That Could Leave You Wide Awake - Candid Mama
    November 24, 2017 at 8:34 am

    […] been suffering from an injury recently? If so, then the ache and pain from the injured area could keep you wide awake once you get into bed. It’s worth taking some painkillers before you go to bed as these can relieve […]

  4. Bianca
    April 4, 2019 at 12:07 am

    Yes, but this is applicable for certain ages. The very young ones tend to keep aware for the whole night.

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