The Ideal Newborn Bedtime Routine

Jan 12

A bedtime routine for a newborn can look a lot different than it does for an older child. One of the main reasons is that newborns need to eat a lot more frequently than an older baby or a toddler does. The ideal bedtime for newborns starts around 9pm. If we try to get them to bed any time before that, they are likely going to treat it as a nap. Newborns don’t have a steady melatonin production; it’s basically non-existent. We need to help them into sleep, so their ideal timing is between 9-10pm. Earlier bedtime comes closer to 3 months old.

What the perfect bedtime routine for a newborn would look like is:

Feeding. You would give them a full feeding; breastfeeding session or a bottle. I want you to make sure that this is a full, efficient feeding. If breastfeeding, offer both sides. If feeding formula, give them a full bottle.
Put them in the bath. It doesn’t have to be long, it’s simply just a warm, soothing way for them to get ready for sleep. I wouldn’t worry about them getting excited in the bath or energized. This isn’t a concern for “hyping” them up before bedtime at all.
Lotion massage. This is to make sure that your newborn doesn’t dry out, and to make sure their skin is moisturized. Newborns also love skin-to-skin contact, so the more of that, the better.
Nighttime Clothes. Put their diaper on, get their jammies on, and then put them in a swaddle or a sleep sack. Having them in a swaddle is important because babies having something called the “Moro reflex.” This is an involuntary reflex (otherwise known as the startle reflex) that happens to them while they’re sleeping. If their arms are free, they will generally startle themselves awake. Try to make the swaddle as cozy as possible even if they seem like they aren’t loving it. If your child is showing signs of rolling, then we want to get rid of the swaddle because it becomes a safety hazard in the bassinet. We also want to transition over to a sleep sack by 11 weeks old - if you need more info on that, read here!
Sing them a song – I recommend singing the same song every night. The reason I recommend this is because repetition makes babies smart. The song also acts as a bedtime cue to signal that sleep-time is coming – they’re going to start to recognize their sleep song. Almost everything we do within sleep training is a cue for our children.
Top them up with a bottle or a breastfeeding session. This is called a top up. The reason we offer this is because the time in between their feeding stretches is not that long. A breastfed baby can often go 2.5-3 hours in between nursing session whereas a formula-fed baby can often go 3-4 hour stretches in between feedings. We want to maximize their sleep-time by ensuring they aren’t hungry soon after they go down to sleep. One thing that can be helpful during this time is to rub the bridge of their nose, or even rub their eyebrows. This is so soothing for them and really helps get them relaxed and ready for sleep.

You can start implementing this routine as early on as you want! I started around 2 weeks with both of my kids and they took to it beautifully. The more consistent of a routine that you have, the better your newborn will be able to sleep - and you can possibly avoid sleep training in the future!

If newborn sleep is feeling a little too overwhelming for you, please don’t hesitate to reach out. I have a specific certification just for newborn sleep, so I am confident I can help you manage!