Autumn is here, although it’s nearly and feels like Winter! As beautiful as the yellow and brown golden leaves and snuggling up on the sofa may be – with the change of season, many parents ask themselves: Is there anything we should keep in mind now when it comes to our baby’s sleep? To ensure that your nights together with your child remain (or become) as pleasant as possible, we have summarised the best sleeping tips for the cold season.
Our baby sleep guide for winter
1. Be careful with the heating
When you switch on the heating again after the summer months, you may experience cracking noises, loud hissing or clanking in the first few days – depending on how old your heating pipes are. Therefore, make sure that you do not necessarily switch on the heating for the first time during your baby’s nap. The noise can be enough to wake your baby.
2. Finding the ideal room temperature
During the winter months, the room temperature can fluctuate greatly with the outside temperature, so you may wonder if you should heat your bedroom or nursery at night as well. Generally, a sleeping temperature of 16 to 20 degrees is ideal for your baby to minimise the risks of sudden infant death syndrome. With the right sleeping bag and the appropriate clothing, you can therefore prepare your child optimally for the night – depending on the temperature.
3. Use the right sleeping bag
Your baby’s hands may feel cool at night, but they should never be freezing cold. Being cold can also be a common reason for waking up at night, it is best to dress your baby according to the sleeping TOG chart and to match the sleeping bag you have chosen. As a general rule, if the temperature in your baby’s room is between 18 and 20 degrees at night, you can get by with a TOG 2.5 sleeping bag and pyjamas/sleepsuit. If the temperature drops below 18 degrees, you should put an extra layer on your baby or use a sleeping bag with a higher filling. By the way, our Ergobaby baby sleeping bag is available in three great new designs: Aegean Fish, Silver Waves and Pink Sand. Why not take a look at our new collection online right now?
4. Discover the benefits of darker nights
The earlier, darker evenings have huge benefits: You no longer have to worry about early morning sunlight creeping into your room and waking your babies up as early as 5am. However, the darkness can cause your baby to get tired earlier in the evening, which makes them want to go to bed earlier and possibly wake up earlier if they’ve had enough sleep. What helps then? Leave the lights on as brightly as possible in the early evening to simulate that it is still daytime. When you’re ready for that final rest before bed, just dim the lights down.
5. Reduce excitement on festive days
Especially in winter, there are more exciting gatherings and celebrations such as seeing the Christmas lights, Christmas or New Year’s Eve celebrations. Travelling to see friends and family and opening presents can be a very busy experience, especially for babies and young children. There is a risk of overtiredness. You can avoid this by scheduling a nap or extra cuddle time on the sofa or in the baby carrier – always with enough distance from the evening sleep. Also, try to keep the bedroom as free of Christmas decorations and fairy lights as much as possible to keep it a quiet, peaceful space to retreat to.
Baby Sleep Guide for Winter – Bonus Tip:
If the nap or night sleep for baby doesn’t quite go to plan (which is perfectly normal): Dress warmly, grab your pram or baby carrier and go out into the fresh air, and take a walk together. Fresh air and exercise are so good for our physical and mental wellbeing and can help us turn the corner after a long, difficult night.
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For more baby sleep tips, feel free to check out our other sleep blogs.
