While sleep is crucial for children's development, the environment in which it takes place is also paramount. Whether in a bedroom or any other room, the sleep environment is essential to allow your baby to rest as safely and optimally as possible. Stéphanie, founder of Ouatine & Cumulus, a mother and pediatric nurse, gives you her advice on creating an appropriate sleep environment.
Adjust the brightness according to the time of day.
Babies sleep a lot, both during the day and at night, and their sleeping environment should not be the same depending on the time of day. Therefore, while it's recommended to let your baby sleep in complete darkness without a nightlight and in their own bed or yours once night falls, it's very different for daytime.
Indeed, your child needs to get used to the passage of time and the different stages of the day. While very young, he will take several naps during the day to respect multiple sleep cycles and sleep between 17 and 22 hours a day; he will gradually learn to stay awake for increasingly longer periods . It is therefore important that he learns to distinguish day from night, particularly through the use of light.
To do this, adjust the brightness around your child's sleeping area by slightly closing the curtains. It's best to protect him/her from direct light, without plunging your baby into total darkness.
"In the moonlight, my friend Pierrot..."
The younger they are, the more children appreciate routine, which helps them feel calm and safe. Establishing a bedtime routine quickly therefore allows your newborn to understand that it's time to go to sleep. This could be a bath before bedtime, a story read by the parents, playing relaxing music that the parents listened to during pregnancy, or a softly sung lullaby .
Once your little one is asleep in your arms, don't put him down in his bed too quickly to leave the room. Make sure he is sound asleep (in what's called the light sleep phase ) and stay by his side for a few more minutes. The change in temperature between your arms and his crib, as well as the difference between the softness you provide and the firmness of his mattress, are factors that can cause the baby to wake up.
Don't panic, you don't have to immediately pick him up: babies self-soothe by gripping what they find around them, it can be a cuddly toy, a cloth or... your finger. So, make yourself comfortable! You can also practice continuous touch by caressing your newborn in different places on his body in a continuous motion. We're not talking about caresses, but rather the sensation of your touch on different parts of his body: his head, his arms, his chest, his feet...
The difference in temperature between your body and your baby's bedding can also disrupt your baby's sleep. Fortunately, there are flaxseed hot water bottles that you can place a few minutes before putting your baby to bed to warm them up, especially in winter, when the cold takes longer to disappear. While it's true that orange blossom and lavender are scents appreciated by children, they are not recommended before they reach three months old. In the meantime, opt for neutral hot water bottles!
Stephanie's advice
Children grab whatever they can find around them to reassure themselves: a piece of fabric, a cuddly toy, a piece of clothing, and sometimes their own face. Since their nails are soft for the first month after birth, it's inadvisable to cut them, and it's very common for babies to scratch their faces. While some advise putting mittens on them to prevent injury, this is actually very bad advice.
Indeed, while it's true that mittens prevent them from scratching themselves, they also prevent your child from self-soothing by putting their hands in their mouth, grasping at what surrounds them, or rubbing their face. However, you can naturally file your child's nails by gently rubbing them several times with your fingers. The damaged parts will easily come off, and your baby can continue to self-soothe by keeping their hands near their face, just like in mom's belly.
A reassuring sleep thanks to the cocoon and the pacifier.
The best position for a baby to fall asleep and spend their entire sleep time in is a flexed position. With their legs bent and their hands close to their face, they feel soothed by returning to the position they had in the womb. The Ouatine & Cumulus cocoons have been specially designed to allow your baby to maintain this position during the night and naps. Creating a cozy and secure space is the best way to help your child self-soothe.
When tired, your little one will start to show signs of fatigue , ranging from yawning to hyperactivity. Unfortunately, it's sometimes difficult to immediately put your baby to bed to rest. If he is too restless and the signs of sleep have been missed for too long, using a pacifier should be considered. Indeed, sucking releases endorphins that will help soothe him.
While pacifiers should be avoided during the first few weeks, they remain a solution for calming your child. Used cautiously to soothe the baby outside of mealtimes, they can prove useful.
“ If a baby is restless, it will feel the need to suckle to calm down. If it's close to feeding time, it's best to breastfeed. If, on the other hand, feeding isn't planned for a while, give your little one a pacifier so that it can release endorphins through sucking .”
Stéphanie, founder of Ouatine & Cumulus and pediatric nurse.
The cocoon, ideal for a proper sleep environment.
Cocoon-style sleeping bags are essential for young children's sleep . Comfortably nestled inside, they will spend their first weeks feeling like they're floating on a cloud, calm and safe. They define the space around the baby, reminding them of the sensations they knew in the womb.
These two sensations are essential for your baby to develop in an appropriate environment. At Ouatine & Cumulus, we recommend that children continue their sleep in a cocoon adapted to their needs, which is why we have created two sizes of cocoons, which follow the baby's development in an evolving way.
Cocoon sleeping bags are easy to transport and set up wherever you go, which helps create a proper sleeping environment.
