Establishing a nighttime routine can help your child feel calm and safe, providing parents with an opportunity to spend quality time with their child and strengthen the parent-child bond.
Make an effort to maintain bedtime rituals as often as possible for maximum consistency and to improve settling issues, reduce night-time calls from your child, and build deeper family bonds.
1. Set the Scene
Bedtime rituals are practices designed to prepare you for restful restful slumber. From tea with honey or journal writing, to regular massage sessions – whatever suits your lifestyle best and relaxes you most is what constitutes an effective bedtime routine! No matter its length – be it short or long-standing – consistency is key!
Parenting infants and teens requires creating a regular bedtime routine, regardless of age. Doing this helps your children understand that it’s time for sleep while teaching them how to fall asleep without rocking, being held, watching TV or being given bottles – crucial skills when learning independent sleeping patterns! Establishing such a ritual early will enable children to build healthy sleep habits for life.
Bedtime routines provide parents and infants alike an invaluable opportunity to bond. From cuddling and talking with your infant, to reading a story or singing songs together – bedtime rituals provide parents with an ideal time and place to discuss the day, share feelings and unload any excess energy through dancing or bouncing in their bouncer!
Bedtime routines for older kids typically consist of bathing or showering, brushing teeth, dressing in pajamas and reading a book – providing them with time alone and independence development opportunities.
At bedtime rituals for both kids and adults can include practicing breathing exercises or meditating to help relax mind and body before going to sleep. Reading before bed can also help prepare one for better rest quality according to research; cuddling or kissing from loved ones before sleeptime may provide comforting support, helping one relax more easily into restful slumber while reminding of all of life’s positive moments throughout the day.
2. Relax
Focusing on relaxing both mind and body during your bedtime ritual will help ease you into restful slumber and prepare you for tomorrow. A few activities that can help unwind include reading (choosing non-page-turners is ideal), taking a hot shower/bath, wearing comfy clothing or snuggling under a weighted blanket.
Some suggestions for relaxing during bedtime routines include engaging in puzzles, colouring or drawing; listening to soothing music or an audiobook may also help. Keep in mind that certain activities may stimulate rather than soothe; experiment with various activities and see which work for both of you and your child. If bath time stimulates them instead of helping them sleep more soundly for example; switch to showering earlier or even earlier in the evening as alternatives may work better.
Meditation can be an excellent way to relax and unwind before heading off to bed. Meditation apps may be helpful, or listening to guided meditations can be equally effective; either way, take a few moments of silence with eyes closed before sleeping. Avoid watching TV, using your phone/tablet/reading social media (especially your uncle’s political posts on FB!) within an hour before bed.
Spending time with loved ones or pets is another effective way to unwind before bed. Physical contact or emotional bonding, this time spent will help calm and relax you prior to sleep. Also be sure that each night, your bedtime ritual ends the same way; this will signal to your brain it’s time for restful slumber!
3. Get Ready for Bed
Just as babies benefit from following a bedtime routine that signals to both their bodies and minds that it’s time for sleep, adults can use an unwind routine that sets their minds and bodies into relaxing mode. Whether it be sipping herbal tea, taking a warm bath/shower, listening to soothing music, writing in a journal, reading a book or watching TV series; any activity which gets your mind and body relaxed should work.
Though these activities may seem tedious or repetitive, they serve a very important function: signalling our brains that sleep is imminent. Furthermore, they allow our thoughts to settle as well as helping our bodies prepare for restful slumber – something which becomes increasingly important as we age! Unfortunately, however, our sleep habits become difficult or impossible to change over time.
Avoid activities that might interfere with sleep, such as drinking caffeine and alcohol or eating large meals, and ensure your bedtime ritual includes something you enjoy doing – listening to soothing music or reading a book might help, while others might prefer watching television or checking their phones/tablets before sleeping; just make sure that any stimulating blue light emitting devices are placed away or turned on a blue light filter beforehand in order to prevent stimulating blue light that might keep them awake at night.
Prioritizing comfort can also help. Wear soft pajamas, curl up under a blanket, and dim the lights; make it part of your nightly ritual so your brain associates it with sleep.
One last element of an effective bedtime ritual could include telling your family you love and respect them, showing how much you care and helping ease worries that could prevent restful restful sleep. For children, a goodnight hug is a wonderful way to show them you care while telling them it will all be okay when morning comes along – the world is their playground after all!
4. Get in Bed
No one disputes the importance of restful slumber, yet sometimes it can be challenging to drift off into dreamland after a long day. Establishing a bedtime ritual can help you relax and drift off more easily – such as turning off screens, meditating, reading, or adjusting your bedroom environment – to get you through to dreamland more easily.
Before heading off to sleep, take some deep breaths and clear your thoughts of anything cluttering up your mind. Writing things down may also help, easing anxieties and increasing confidence while you drift off into dreamland.
Before turning off the lights, slowly make your way to bed (especially if sharing a room). Keep socks or slippers on, especially on top bunks of bunk beds; for added coziness be sure to add in your favorite blanket or throw.
As an early riser, it may be tempting to stay in bed until your alarm goes off – however this could result in you waking up feeling disoriented and struggling to go back to sleep again. Furthermore, staying too long could disrupt your regular sleeping pattern and decrease its quality.
When it’s time to wake up, raise your free arm slowly and press your palm into the mattress directly beneath you; use this momentum to swing your legs upwards using just your free arm as support. If this proves challenging for you, tuck a piece of cloth or elastic band around ankles and knees for additional support.
Assist yourself when getting up by using manual handling aids such as leg lifters or crutches. Once your leg movements have become coordinated, reach for the bottom edge of your duvet cover and pull straight up; this will create a triangle-shaped corner of the bed, enabling you to tuck it under your mattress for a sleek finish.
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