Welcome to this wonderful phase where:
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you have a baby you love more than anything,
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but you’re not sleeping anymore,
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AND you don’t even know what day it is,
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AND you’ve already cried over a slice of bread.
It’s normal. But that doesn’t make it any less tough.
So no, this article won’t sell you THE no magic method to make baby sleep through the night in 3 days. But it will help you hold on by changing your perspective a bit. I’m sharing what saved my sanity for baby 2 and baby 3.
1/ Remember that everything passes ⏳
When you’re in it, it feels like it will never end. The mantra to keep in mind when you’re staring at the ceiling at 3:47 AM: “Every bad night passed is a bad night finished”. It seems simple, but it helps not to drown in the idea that it will be like this forever. No. It’s a phase. And a phase is temporary.
2/ Remember that broken nights = a national sport for babies😴
Nothing more NORMAL than a baby waking up at night! It’s physiological, and there are many reasons explaining these nighttime awakenings. Our role ? Meeting their needs. Not torturing your brain trying to figure out what you missed. You haven’t missed anything: you just have a baby. 🤍
3/ Stay positive: if they wake up, it means they’re doing well.😌
A mental exercise that’s not easy… but can change everything. Try to see the positive and tell yourself that if baby wakes up, it means you SUCCEEDED in having a baby… and that they are healthy enough GOOD HEALTH to wake up. So yes, it blows your mind. But it also means: baby is alive, well, and very much present (and very eager to remind you!!).
4/ Bury the night💤
The temptation is to do a debrief as if you were a professional sleep coach: “He woke up at 12:30 AM, 2 AM, 4 AM, 5:20 AM…” STOP. When the day is up, the night is over. We leave it in the graveyard of bad nights and we avoid counting the hours slept (or not slept). Apart from frustrating you, it won’t do you much good, so let’s forget it!
5/ 1 bad night = a little treat🎁
Probably the greatest ally anti-bad moodBecause let's be honest: surviving sleep deprivation also depends on little joys. So we can decide on a very simple rule: a tough night = a reward. 🎁
We go out for a drink with baby on the terrace, do some shopping to prepare a treat meal… And if you’re back at work: treat yourself to a restaurant (food solves all problems). Golden rule : the worse the night, the bigger the reward. Admit it, you’ve never been so happy to survive sleepless nights! 😉
6/ Pamper yourself🥰
No need for fancy makeup, professional blowouts, or skinny jeans. Looking good postpartum, sometimes it’s just putting on an outfit you feel good in that doesn’t constantly remind you that you’re in survival mode survival. Just looking at yourself in the mirror and telling yourself you’re pretty, it can change your day.✨
7/ Go outside for some fresh air🌞
When you’re sleep-deprived, it’s easy to stay shut in. And the more you stay inside, the more you go in circles. A walk around the block, a trip to the park, a stop at the bakery (and grab a croissant on the way), in short, 10 minutes of fresh air refreshes you and it’s good for baby too !
8/ Try to catch up with a contact nap (if you can)🥱
We try to take 1 or 2 hours during the day to rest with baby. They’re always up for a contact nap so go ahead and use that time to either sleep or unwind with Netflix!
9/ Don’t exhaust yourself even more trying to find miracle solutions💭
When you’re exhausted, you want answers. Clear things, plans, methods, and you can spend hours googling, comparing, and feeling guilty. Baby’s sleep, it’s neither an exact science, it’s nonlinear and above all: it’s unique to each baby ! You’re already carrying enough, don’t add more on yourself no ? Do what works best for you and your baby, as long as you find a solution that lets you catch your breath. The perfect methods, it looks nice on paper but in real life, it doesn’t work like that!
➡️The lack of sleep in the first months is a real challenge. It’s not “all in your head.” It’s not “you’re overreacting.” You’re doing something HUGE: you’re carrying your baby, feeding them, soothing them… while barely sleeping. So if today you just managed to hold on: that’s already a victory. Bravo Mama! 🎉❤️
