Oooh to Sleep…5 tips for Moms and Dads

Research tells us sleep is the healing balm. It calms the muscles and the nerves, rests the brain, renews the body. At least it should and it does in most cases. I know when I was growing up I would go as hard as I could because I knew when I went to sleep it would be good. I would wake up refreshed and ready to go again.

I guess as new mothers and fathers, this is what we aim for. A peaceful refreshing sleep that soothes the bumps in the muscles and renews the wish/need/intent to be there for that little tyke. And yet as we all know, sleep remains a precious, scarce commodity during the first few years of that little one.

I have been looking around to see what anyone is writing about mothers sleeping. There is an awful lot about mothers with babies. But I am here to tell you sleep remains a precious commodity long after babyhood. As mothers and fathers it is as if we can never get enough sleep especially when we see it stretching into their being one, one and a half, two, two and a half…. You see their sleep is affected by every life event and for some of us things are not as smooth as we expected them to be. Perhaps we just moved house and she is going to a new school or we bought new beds and now he or she has a different bed. Or the room got a face lift and things are not where they should be. So we might find them waking in the night for no special reason or being restless, or not wanting to go to bed at the regular time. Not to mention the endless short bouts of fevers, colds, stomach aches.

So let me offer 5 tips that I have thought about over the years

1                     If there are two caregivers, find a way to share the caring hours. Remember it’s no good if both of you are in a deep sleep all through the night.

2                     When you go to sleep, begin by relaxing intentionally. Breathe in deeply, exhale down through your limbs to your toes and away. You will find you are falling asleep. No thinking,  still conscious and asleep.

3                     As a single parent, you have heard so many times, sleep when the child is. Easier said than done as you have to clean, tidy, prepare in this break time. The tip is don’t anticipate all that you have to do. Don’t anticipate how much time you have to complete your tasks. Begin by sitting down, breathe slowly and consciously. Then start to do what you have to, knowing that you will get through what you need to. This will make you accomplish much more feeling less angry about the sleep you are not getting. In fact, I have found that your temperament affects the child even when they go to sleep. Your calm, your understanding that they need sleep to grow heal, develop, tells them that it’s alright to go to sleep. You will probably find that as they sleep more soundly, you are now able to work in a nap more often or sleep longer hours in the night.

4                     That spiked toddy before you go to sleep only attacks the liver. Certainly doesn’t help you to heal when you sleep, smell good when you wake up or keep you alert to hear when the little tyke wakes for some reason.

5                     Have you ever tried putting a pillow under your feet when going to sleep? It helps. Not too high and when your feet feel it’s enough, they will come off the pillow