Help Your Baby Sleep by Popping in Your Earbuds
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Photo: The Cleveland Kid / Creative Commons
When our daughter fussed at night as a baby, we were having a hard time being consistent with our reactions. Should we go in there and cuddle her? Should we feed her? Do we go pat her back?
Each time she made the slightest noise at night, we tried to figure out what was wrong: Hungry? Maybe. Teething? Could be. Lonely? Probably. We doled out plenty of snuggles in the deep, dark night. There was nothing ever actually wrong that we could help her with. She just wanted help falling back to sleep rather than figuring it out on her own.
The truth is, our attentiveness wasn't giving her a whole lot of space to learn how to cope on her own at night. When she felt like it, she was quite good at getting herself to sleep by herself. However, she wasn't often given the chance to soothe herself back to sleep, and it was beginning to have negative consequences for everyone, her included. No one in the house was as well-rested as they should have been. It was time to back off at night and let her figure some things out for herself.
Fear of Toddler Tantrums Loomed Large
One thing I've noticed about kids is that as they grow, so do their vocal chords. Those tiny infant baby cries that sound like irresistible kitty mews when you're a first time parent only get louder and louder as that tiny kid grows up until you suspect that your child has somehow gotten hold of a bullhorn. You either become desensitized or develop a twitch. I was barreling down the path of the twitch.
I had to get over my need to leap out of bed every single time Alex made a peep at night. I began thinking about how willful she could become as a toddler and eventually a terrible-two-er, and how my coddling was setting me up for some serious nighttime battles down the road. I realized that if I'm going to create good sleep habits, I had better start right then and there.
So one night, when Alex woke up in her crib and started her familiar crying-for-no-real-reason routine, I knew she didn't feel like putting herself back to sleep and was looking for her mama to do the work. That that was the night we would let her get back to sleep quickly and easily - without parental intervention.
Music Reduces Stress and Anxiety
That night, I was going to stand my ground and tell her keep all her cuteness and her tears to herself. I wanted to give her that opportunity to become a total pro at getting herself back to sleep without me.
When she started to whine, I had to steel myself in order to give her the chance to compose herself and pop a binky in her mouth, which she is adept at doing. She also has her Softie Bear and her Cuddle Bunny, which she likes to pet while she's maxing and relaxing in her crib.
I was quickly losing my mind at hearing her fussiness. I felt panicked and sweaty. As a distraction, I popped in my earbuds and fired up Far East Movement's Like a G6. My heart stopped pounding, and I could breathe easier. I daresay I felt relaxed.
Some Doctors Already Know About This
Surprised by how relaxed I felt, I did some research and found a study that demonstrated patients who listened to music before surgery reported lower levels of anxiety than the control group, which did not listen to music. I also read about some cardiologists who let patients listen to music pre-surgery for stress-relief, and dentists who encourage patients to listen to music during treatment to lessen dental angst.
Music Worked and My Daughter Sleeps Through the Night
That experience taught me that for the length of a song or three, I can sit on my hands while my daughter rolls around and fusses a little while she gets comfortable.
Along with an adjustment in her daytime schedule, that night was the start of our daughter's ability to sleep uninterrupted for twelve hours a night. She knew mom wasn't coming in for nighttime visits anymore, and I knew she didn't need me to. And now we all sleep, all night every night. Well, for the most part, anyway.
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