My baby does not sleep during the day
Good sleep is the basis for a nice rhythm for you and your baby. A baby who has slept well, drinks, cries less, and sleeps better.
Moreover, sleep is essential for your baby's development: he grows and develops his brain during sleep. At the same time, sleeping is not always easy: many babies sleep little or only have short cat naps during the day. Do you want to get started with this? Then read this blog!
How much sleep does a baby need?
To answer this question, you should not only look at the amount of sleep, but also at the quality of sleep. Both are regulated by two systems in your baby's body: the sleep drive and the sleep hormones.
The sleep urge builds when your baby is awake and immediately plummets as soon as he has slept - even if only for a short time. If your child wakes up after a short nap, it is therefore difficult to fall asleep again.
It is important that your child does not wake up completely at such a moment, but can continue to sleep on its own.
That is only possible if he feels safe and secure. A familiar place to sleep is essential here.
The sleep hormones start to play a role from the age of six weeks: cortisol (the wake-up hormone) ensures that your baby can stay awake longer and melatonin (sleep hormone) ensures that your child can sleep well.
To properly adjust these hormones, predictability is important.
Predictability provides so-called 'zeitgebers' that the body recognizes and that adjusts the hormones properly.
Number of hours of sleep per day
A newborn baby needs a lot of sleep: 16-20 hours a day in the first two weeks and then 14-16 hours a day.
Is your baby sleeping less? Then he gets too few hours of sleep, he becomes overtired, it is more difficult for him to fall asleep and he also wakes up earlier. You enter a downward spiral and it is difficult to get a rhythm in the day.
If your baby sleeps well at night but not during the day, you have a shaky balance.
There is no good basis for sleep and that eventually also translates to the night.
Sleep quality
Good sleep quality occurs when a sleep cycle is completed. That's right. A baby's sleep cycle lasts 45 minutes and consists of several sleep stages of lighter (REM) and deeper sleep. If a baby completes a sleep cycle, then there is sufficient deep and REM sleep.
Does a nap take less than 45 minutes? Then we call that a nap and your little one is not sufficiently rested. It is therefore possible that your baby sleeps enough hours a day, but that he is still tired: the sleep quality is then insufficient.
We see that today's babies have a lot more trouble completing a sleep cycle than they used to.
That is not surprising, because our lives are now much busier and your baby is included in this. That affects your little one's sleep.
Rest, rhythm and regularity are often lacking. You can see this in the different sleeping places of a baby: the playpen, the cradle, the stroller, on the lap of mom/dad, the baby carrier, with grandpa and grandma, on holiday, at daycare, etc.
All these different sleeping places make sleeping restless and unpredictable for a baby.
As a result, it does not feel familiar, he sleeps more restlessly and wakes up faster.
Sleep more during the day
If your child sleeps few hours and/or has short naps during the day, you can help him to sleep more/longer. You do this by putting him to bed at the right time and by offering him predictability.
Put to bed at the right time
How well your baby falls asleep is determined by the sleep urge and the sleep hormones. If the urge to sleep is high (your baby is tired) and the cortisol level is low (your baby is not kept awake by this hormone), then it is the ideal time to put your child to bed.
We also call this the optimal 'sleep window'. Do you put your little one to bed earlier? Then there is still not enough sleep urge. Will you put him to bed later? Then cortisol is produced again and your little one is over his sleep.
The optimal sleep window increases if you offer your child predictability with a familiar bedtime ritual and a fixed place to sleep.
Because of this predictability, the body knows what is coming and the hormones adjust to this.
When is the right time to put your baby to bed? For this you can pay attention to your baby's sleeping signals (looking away, yawning). Do you doubt the sleep signals? Then use the waking time as a guideline. The waking time is the time between when your baby wakes up and goes back to sleep.
later 75-90 minutes
Bedtime ritual
With a fixed bedtime ritual, your child knows what's coming. That feels safe and familiar and ensures that your child can easily 'let go' and fall asleep.
Such a ritual does not have to be very complicated, as long as you always do the same thing so that it feels familiar to your child.
So make sure you always have the same order, always the same sound/music, always the same place to sleep.
A bedtime ritual can look like this: changing and sleeping bag on -> closed curtains -> cuddle -> put in his own bed -> put on his own sleep music and say good night.
In the evening the ritual can be a bit longer than during the day, as long as it remains recognizable.
The ritual doesn't have to be long (preferably not, because then your baby gets overstimulated). However, it is important to do it with all your attention and to do the same thing over and over again. This way it feels very familiar and safe for your baby.
Fixed sleeping place
A fixed place to sleep, just like a bedtime ritual, provides predictability.
Turn a sleeping environment into a permanent sleeping place where your baby always sleeps.
With a fixed sleeping place, the environment becomes recognizable for your baby and he knows what is coming. Habits are more easily absorbed, your baby will make its own sleep associations, fall asleep more easily and sleep longer.
How do you do that? Let your baby sleep in his own bed from birth. Is there unrest? Then you can alternate his own bed with the baby carrier or stroller. In this case, choose one or the other, so that you don't get more than two places to sleep.
As your child grows, this can become more difficult. You also want to go away (visit, weekend away, vacation, shelter) and a fixed place to sleep is then difficult to realize. But no less important! Try to give your baby a fixed place to sleep as much as possible.
Conclusion
Good sleep is the basis for a nice rhythm and important for the development of your baby.
Sleeping well means not only getting enough hours of sleep, but also completing the sleep cycle completely. Both during the day and at night.
In order to sleep well, it is important to create peace, rhythm and regularity for your baby. You do this by putting him to bed on time and offering him predictability with a familiar bedtime ritual and a fixed place to sleep.
That is not always easy: your 'ordinary' life is quite busy. You work, want to visit and go on holiday or a weekend away.
We have developed the PIKO to give your baby peace, rhythm and regularity without completely putting your own life aside.
PIKO helps
The PIKO gives your baby peace, rhythm and regularity.
The PIKO is a sleeping cocoon for your baby that ensures that your baby gets a nice rhythm. You can use it anywhere (in bed, in the crib, in the playpen, with grandpa/grandma, on vacation) so your baby has one dependable sleeping place. As such, PIKO provides your baby with the reassurance of a single, familiar sleeping space, making sleeping easier.
It dampens the light by 95% and provides a low-stimulus and dependable sleeping environment so your baby can sleep better. It also provides a familiar sound wherever your baby is, so your baby feels safe and can sleep well. This sound even turns on when your baby cries, making him sleep longer.
And you will also receive tailored advice from a certified sleep coach so that you no longer have to doubt whether you are doing it right. Instead, you find a rhythm that suits you and your baby.
The PIKO helps your baby to sleep better so you can enjoy this lovely period again.
Frequently Asked Questions
Below we answer a number of frequently asked questions about the PIKO. If you have a question that is not listed here, do not hesitate to contact us.
You can use the PIKO from birth. We recommend starting this as early as possible, so that your baby immediately has a low-stimulus and secure sleeping environment and gets used to his own familiar sleeping environment.
You can adjust the length of the PIKO and use it for up to 12 months. However, for safety reasons, we recommend that you stop using the PIKO when your baby can sit up independently. This is usually around 9-10 months.
When your child starts to pull up and can sit independently, it is time to phase out the use of the PIKO. This is usually around 9-10 months. Of course you can continue to use the PIKO POD. The best way to finish the PIKO is explained in the PIKO App.
We see that babies have little difficulty with the reduction, because they have established a good sleeping base with the PIKO.
When you buy the PIKO, you get a complete package that helps you find a nice rhythm for you and your baby. This package consists of:
- PIKO CAP (adjustable in two sizes)
- PIKO sheets (two sizes)
- PIKO POD
- PIKO App
- PIKO bag
- PIKO mattress (optional)
Yes, you can also rent the PIKO! This can be done via Tinylibrary or Borntorent . Especially if your child is a bit older, it will be cheaper if you rent.
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