Waking a Sleep Baby!

Yup! You read that right! Wake that Baby up, Mama!

I know this seems absolutely ridiculous to some mamas, however, there’s a good reason why waking your baby is so important!

Babies are often sleepy during the 1st week or so, and this is totally common and normal. However, this may lead to your baby not eating often enough. It’s very important that a newborn eats at least 8 times or more within a 24 hr period. Eating this often helps to ensure that your baby is getting what it needs, along with encouraging milk supply.

Here are some suggestions for waking your baby:

Stimulating all your baby’s senses can help

• Hold baby skin to skin for 15- 30 minutes

• Undress the baby to diaper

• Adjust lighting in the room. Open the window to allow in sunlight

• Change position of the baby. For example from cradle hold to football

• Talk to the baby. Babies loves their parents voices

• Blow gently in their faces

• Rub the bottom of the feet

• If baby falls asleep during a feeding you can start to pull the nipple from baby’s mouth, offering again when baby is ready

Note: These are just suggestions that may help. At the end of the day do what works for you and your baby. Always seek the advice of your doctor if you have any questions regarding your infant’s health.