Putting baby down to sleep independently

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Would you like to put your baby down so that they sleep independently?

Now this doesn't work for every baby but here's a couple of techniques you can try:

The first is putting your baby down when they are drowsy but not asleep, this means you do the majority of the work getting them close to sleep and them put them down so that they can drift off on their own.

Now this can work for some babies, however for others they can wake almost immediately or shortly afterwards and start crying. Now this is more than likely due to them thinking 'where am I? Where's mum? I didn't fall asleep in here' and they haven't learnt the technique to be able to make themselves go back into the drowsy stage.

The second technique is to put your baby down awake but relaxed. Now this is going to take a little bit of getting used to, by both you and your baby. Remain close by to offer reassurance with your voice, perhaps a gentle touch if needs be. This teaches your baby to fall asleep on their own so they have those skills to self settle if they wake again later.

Independent sleep is the ultimate goal for most parents, but if what you're doing at the moment is working for you, don't feel pressured to change it, you should do what works best for your family.