One of the things I found hard when I became a new mum was knowing what my baby needed, and when. Was every cry a cry for food? How would I know if they needed to go to sleep? What should their routine look like?
Working with families now, I love to suggest a routine that will give some predictability to their day, and help them understand what their baby may need, and when. I’m not talking about a strict schedule of timed events, but more so implementing a series of predictable moments that will help provide a smooth flow throughout the day, allowing new mums to have some control over how the day evolves.
For this, I like to use the ‘EASY’ routine:
- EAT
- Activity
- Sleep
- YOU TIME
This can start from the moment your baby wakes in the morning, and repeat over and over again until they go to sleep at night. For example, when your baby wakes up, start their day with food or milk. After a full feed and some burping, your baby will be ready to have some awake time where they can be active and engage in play activities before they start to show signs of being ready for sleep. When they take a nap – this is your time!
‘You time’ is very important – it means you can refresh, relax and put some time into self care. Having this easy flow routine in place throughout the day will mean that if your child is grizzly or unsettled, you may be able to gauge what they need based on where they are in the ‘EASY’ cycle.
For example, if they have had a feed, been burped and are engaging in activity but start getting grizzly, it may be an indication that they are bored and need a change of activity, or perhaps are ready for a nap.
We all are learning every day and as a new parent, implementing the EASY routine can help give us an understanding of what our baby needs and when, and can lead to building our own confidence as a new parent. Babies are natural pattern seekers, and the EASY routine is just that – a pattern of events.
E.A.S.Y Routine
About the author
Lisa is the founder of Cherish Your Sleep, Co-Regional Director (Australia/Pacific) of The Association of Professional Sleep Consultants, an experienced certified baby/child sleep consultant and a mother to 3 young children.
She has always loved children and has worked in the industry for over 20 years as a qualified child care worker, working primarily with children aged 0 – 3yrs.
A successful outcome is not only good for the parents and children, but also giver Lisa a sense of satisfaction and happiness – there’s nothing better than hearing from a parent who finally got their first full night sleep since having a child.
Becoming a mum and meeting and seeing other mums struggle with their babies and children’s sleep made Lisa really want to reach out and help. She doesn’t see that there is a one size fits all to helping families – sleep is almost like a Puzzle – you need all the pieces in place to achieve the full picture and those pieces are what she shares with families.
Lisa uses a holistic approach to sleep, focusing on emotional wellbeing of families and ensuring the parent child connection in not only maintained, but enhanced. She knows how easy it is to become overwhelmed and frustrated, so it’s her passion to help find solutions that will work for you, your baby and the rest of your family.
Image by Daniela Dimitrova from PixabayStock Free Images
