9 ways to get your baby to sleep

I met Barbara and her daughter Celine at a party. Celine was only two, but she was so sincere, and had so much depth; I recognized an old soul. Barbara hadn’t slept much since she was born. Every single night Celine woke up about 30 times. Barbara had her examined by doctors, but no physical cause was found.

I felt blessed: at a ‘bad’ night my eleven-month year old ‘only’ wakes up 10 times. Plus: I was already aware of the fact that this nerve wrecking sleeping pattern could be caused by her sensitivity to energy. For my book Mijn vader lijkt op Barbapapa I interviewed 30 highly sensitive kids, and as babies many of them had trouble closing their eyes.

So, is your baby driving you mad too? Then you might want to try a few things. Together they may improve your rest. We haven’t found the ultimate solution yet, but we are making progress.

1. Put these babies to sleep during the day (in the stroller if you have to). They won’t sleep longer at night if they are extra tired. On the contrary. They are super alert, and don’t want to miss anything.
2. Help them back to sleep immediately as soon as they wake up. They may look totally awake, but are in a ‘in between state’. 

      3. Make sleep a priority. Structure is beneficial, as are sleep rituals and a minimum of stimuli.
4. Have lots of physical contact. They need an adult to help them discharge their energy surplus.  
5. Some stones, like Howlite, improve sleepiness. 
6.  Bach remedies may help. We use Star of Bethlehem. 
7. Play dolphin music.
8. Put a refuse bag under their mattress. It absorbs energy.
9. Switch off the wifi at night.

Yet, the best advice is: give up your resistance. Every time I dread getting up in the middle of the night, or very early in the morning, I am suffering. I benefit most from keeping my heart open and enjoying every minute of her existence.

More suggestions? Please let me know!