You don’t know tired until you have a child of your own – new research has unveiled how much sleep new parents are getting (clue: not much)
Simba, the sleep technology brand who sell those ever-so-comfy mattresses, has commissioned a survey to discover the sleeping habits of new parents to coincide with the launch of its new cot bed.
On average, new parents get four hours and 44 minutes of sleep every night during baby’s first year. They spend almost an hour every day trying to lull them to sleep, and pace the equivalent of two miles every day until baby drops off. That’s the equivalent of 730 miles over a whole year!
We all know sleep deprivation can have a detrimental impact on our health, but it can especially affect memory, relationships and general functioning. More than two thirds believe arguments have been caused by excessive tiredness.
Of those questioned, 11% have hallucinated something that wasn’t there and 44% forgot what they were saying mid-sentence. And with the average newborn waking up three times every night, it’s no surprise that it’s having a profound affect on mum and dad during waking hours.
But, don’t despair – there’s some things you can do to encourage baby to drift off into the land of nod. According to British parents, the following 20 things should do the trick:
- Warm milk
- Sticking to routines
- Gentle rocking motion
- Dummy/pacifier
- Give them a warm bath
- Comfort blanket
- Reading
- Gentle bouncing
- Singing
- Give them a favourite toy
- Play with my baby as much as possible during the day to tire them out
- Calming music
- Ambient noise – e.g. hairdryers, washing machines, turning on the hoover
- Driving them around
- Baby massage
- Children’s TV
- Putting them in hiking pack or pram and walking for miles
- Reducing eye contact before bed
- Putting them outside in the fresh air
- Scenting a tissue/fabric with fragrance near the bed
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