Babies need a consistent sleep routine, but the holiday celebrations will interrupt and disrupt everyone’s schedule. Here are some ways to help your baby cope with the necessary changes, and deal with stressful situations like unfamiliar surroundings or even jet lag.
How to help baby deal with an unfamiliar place
Bring something familiar, like a favorite book or toy. That way he feels safe even if he’s miles away from home. If your baby doesn’t have a routine yet, try to establish one even just a few days before.
You can also try to mimic at least some aspects of her routine at your new place. For example if you are spending a weekend at a relative’s house, try to get her down for a nap at the same time.
How to help baby deal with jetlag
Experts like Fawzia Rasheed de Francisco, author of ‘Travel with Babies and Young Children’ says its important for parents to allow the baby to adjust naturally to the new time zone by spending time outdoors and getting up and sleeping when most people do. It may help to slowly adjust his body clock starting a week before the trip. Move nap, feeding and sleep schedules to the new time zone. Take note of how many hours there are between wake and sleeping, and use this as a guide. Once at your destination, coax your baby to remain awake for longer hours during his normal sociable hours. His body clock will adjust eventually.
How to help baby deal with a hectic travel itinerary
It can seriously disrupt travel plans when you’re running back to the hotel each time your baby needs a nap. One thing that helps is to just find a quiet spot in a mall or tourist destination where he can get quiet time. Bring or rent a stroller that has a reclining back and a cover. You can also get baby used to napping in a stroller by bringing him out when you run errands. He gets used to two things here: staying in a stroller for a prolonged period and sleeping in public.
Photo from homeofficewoman.com
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