Teaching a child to sleep in a crib can be very difficult. Babies love to feel the closeness and warmth of their mother. But sleeping together also brings a lot of inconvenience, so parents can use tips for accustoming the child to their own sleeping place.
Of course, the child will not get used to the new regimen overnight. It will take patience.
Teaching a child to sleep in their crib is quite possible.
The following will help your baby to fall asleep easily separately from parents:
- You need to develop a daily ritual prior to going to bed. Determine strictly the time for lights out, choose beautiful pajamas, read every day before going to bed one chapter from your favorite book. This approach is disciplined, so it will be easier for the child to tune in to rest.
- An excellent solution is a side bed. It can be moved close to the parent’s bed by removing one of the side bars. So the child will have a complete illusion that he is in the same bed with his parents. And when he falls asleep, the crib can be gently rolled away and the side grill replaced.
- If the child is already a little older, you can entrust him with the choice of his own crib. Let him choose the furniture he likes in the store. At the age of 3-4 years, children show possessive instincts. Perhaps the child will like his bed so much that he no longer wants to share a sleeping place with his parents.
- Sometimes a confidential conversation helps. It is worth telling the baby that he is no longer a tiny baby, and may well sleep separately. Children love it when their parents give them the opportunity to show independence.
- It happens that the child categorically does not sleep in the crib because of fears. He is afraid of fictional monsters, or darkness. Then mom can sit next to him until he falls asleep, stroking him or holding his hand. Another option is to buy a night light so that the child is not intimidated by the surrounding darkness.
It is important that the parents themselves have a firm intention to teach their child to sleep separately. If they hesitate, feel sorry for the child, he will surely catch it and start to be capricious. Children intuitively read parenting, so a firm decision must be made.
It is also not recommended to rush to resettle the child for the whole night in his own crib, if he is behind in development, has just recovered from an illness, or his teeth are painfully teething.
The process of accustoming yourself to a separate sleep can take several months. This is the norm, so do not rush things.