Mum & Baby
Welcome to Body Rebirth, where we believe in nurturing both mums and newborns for healthy sleep habits. Our carefully curated products are designed to support the unique needs of new mothers and their little ones, ensuring restful nights and rejuvenating mornings. Experience the best in quality, comfort, and care with Body Rebirth.
Becoming a new mum is a remarkable journey filled with love, challenges, and endless joy. From the moment you hold your little one in your arms, life takes on a whole new meaning. Amidst the sleepless nights and diaper changes, there's a profound sense of purpose and fulfillment. Every milestone, from the first smile to the first steps, is a celebration of motherhood. It's a journey where you learn as much as you teach, finding strength you never knew you had. Embrace the journey, cherish the moments, and remember, you're never alone. Welcome to the beautiful world of motherhood.
This page is set out in four sections, tips, advice, and recommended products to support healthy sleep for Mum and Baby:
🩷Mums and baby newborns
🩵Mum and baby 3-8 months
🩷Mums and baby 9-18 months
🩵Recommended products for you to get through Motherhood in one piece
Babies don't come with a manual, but at our store, we're here to provide guidance and solutions. From expert advice to carefully selected products, we aim to support parents on their journey. Let us help you navigate the beautiful chaos of parenthood with confidence and ease.
Mum and Newborns
You are probably feeling super overwhelmed at the moment, try not to be. It's probable that if you've just welcomed a newborn, fatigue and the process of recovering from childbirth are at the forefront of your mind. In these early months, I propose that you focus on four key priorities.
Babies don't come with a manual, but at our store, we're here to provide guidance and solutions. From expert advice to carefully selected products, we aim to support parents on their journey. Let us help you navigate the beautiful chaos of parenthood with confidence and ease.
Mum and Newborns
You are probably feeling super overwhelmed at the moment, try not to be. It's probable that if you've just welcomed a newborn, fatigue and the process of recovering from childbirth are at the forefront of your mind. In these early months, I propose that you focus on four key priorities.
🩷 Recover from Birth
🩷 Establish feeding and get confident with this
🩷Create that bond with baby and find your feet as a new mum
🩷 Establish healthy sleep habits and routine
There is a lot to consider before establishing routines and baby's sleep environment, such as understanding sleep cues; hunger cues, tired cues, over tiredness cues, pain cues, burping, and timing. We will delve into this later down the page but for now, let's talk about the tools to help make the perfect sleep environment.
What is a good Sleep Environment?
The next key aspect of healthy sleep is the environment in which you put your baby to sleep. By setting this up to be conducive for sleep, your baby will be able to settle easily, and safely. A good sleep environment from an early age sets up positive sleep associations that will last a lifetime.
What is a good Sleep Environment?
The next key aspect of healthy sleep is the environment in which you put your baby to sleep. By setting this up to be conducive for sleep, your baby will be able to settle easily, and safely. A good sleep environment from an early age sets up positive sleep associations that will last a lifetime.
Darkness
Darkness is essential for sleep to allow the production and release of the sleep hormone, melatonin, which is only produced when there is darkness.
As a baby’s circadian rhythm matures, a key factor in how their sleep is regulated is exposure to light or darkness.
The problem with light when we are teaching babies to settle and resettle is that it enters the eyes and triggers the release of hormones such as serotonin which tells baby it is time to wake up.
Sleep is definitely easier for baby when the room is dark, so please don’t under-estimate the effect this will have on successfully sleep coaching your baby.
Watch for excess light sneaking out the sides, below and above some curtains. If we put appropriate darkness for sleep on a scale of 0-10 (0 bright light, 10 pitch black) we need your baby’s room to be 8-9/10!
White Noise
White noise proves highly beneficial for creating optimal sleep conditions for babies aged up to 12 months, especially for those under 6 months.
This is primarily due to two key factors: firstly, it aids in soothing babies neurologically by limiting their focus to just 1-2 stimuli, thereby easily diverting their attention from crying when the noise level exceeds that of their cries.
Secondly, white noise reduces the likelihood of external disturbances disrupting the baby's sleep, maintaining a consistent environment throughout their nap and sleep cycles. This consistency fosters the linking of sleep cycles, resulting in longer and more restorative naps.
If you're facing challenges with your baby's sleep, we recommend incorporating white noise into their nightly routine and all nap times. Aim for a noise level similar to that of a vacuum cleaner. Once your baby settles into the routine, you can gradually decrease the volume over a few weeks until they no longer rely on it, although many find keeping it longer beneficial for future sleep regressions.
It also works well at blocking out unwanted noise in the house or noisy neighbours.
Bedding
For infants under 4 months old, swaddling serves as a valuable technique to mitigate the Moro reflex and promote longer periods of sleep, exceeding 45 minutes. Swaddling restricts arm movement, facilitating methods such as the shush pat technique, which aids in calming the baby to sleep more easily.
Numerous swaddle options are available, catering to individuals who struggle with traditional swaddling techniques. It's crucial to ensure that the swaddle keeps the baby's arms positioned downward, as raising them fails to adequately suppress the reflex, and the swaddle should not constrict around the hips.
Swaddling fosters a positive association with sleep for about 4-5 months. Transitioning to a sleeping bag afterward not only prevents the baby from kicking off covers and becoming cold but also serves as a non-verbal cue signaling sleep time. Babies begin to associate the sleeping bag with sleep, facilitating their settling process.
Safety is paramount when it comes to bedding, and using the appropriate sleeping bag eliminates the need for additional blankets, reducing the risk of suffocation or entanglement. Loose bedding becomes especially hazardous as babies become more mobile in the crib.
In a sleeping bag, babies can safely discover their own comfortable position without the risk of becoming entangled in blankets or waking up due to coldness caused by kicking off blankets.
Darkness is essential for sleep to allow the production and release of the sleep hormone, melatonin, which is only produced when there is darkness.
As a baby’s circadian rhythm matures, a key factor in how their sleep is regulated is exposure to light or darkness.
The problem with light when we are teaching babies to settle and resettle is that it enters the eyes and triggers the release of hormones such as serotonin which tells baby it is time to wake up.
Sleep is definitely easier for baby when the room is dark, so please don’t under-estimate the effect this will have on successfully sleep coaching your baby.
Watch for excess light sneaking out the sides, below and above some curtains. If we put appropriate darkness for sleep on a scale of 0-10 (0 bright light, 10 pitch black) we need your baby’s room to be 8-9/10!
White Noise
White noise proves highly beneficial for creating optimal sleep conditions for babies aged up to 12 months, especially for those under 6 months.
This is primarily due to two key factors: firstly, it aids in soothing babies neurologically by limiting their focus to just 1-2 stimuli, thereby easily diverting their attention from crying when the noise level exceeds that of their cries.
Secondly, white noise reduces the likelihood of external disturbances disrupting the baby's sleep, maintaining a consistent environment throughout their nap and sleep cycles. This consistency fosters the linking of sleep cycles, resulting in longer and more restorative naps.
If you're facing challenges with your baby's sleep, we recommend incorporating white noise into their nightly routine and all nap times. Aim for a noise level similar to that of a vacuum cleaner. Once your baby settles into the routine, you can gradually decrease the volume over a few weeks until they no longer rely on it, although many find keeping it longer beneficial for future sleep regressions.
It also works well at blocking out unwanted noise in the house or noisy neighbours.
Bedding
For infants under 4 months old, swaddling serves as a valuable technique to mitigate the Moro reflex and promote longer periods of sleep, exceeding 45 minutes. Swaddling restricts arm movement, facilitating methods such as the shush pat technique, which aids in calming the baby to sleep more easily.
Numerous swaddle options are available, catering to individuals who struggle with traditional swaddling techniques. It's crucial to ensure that the swaddle keeps the baby's arms positioned downward, as raising them fails to adequately suppress the reflex, and the swaddle should not constrict around the hips.
Swaddling fosters a positive association with sleep for about 4-5 months. Transitioning to a sleeping bag afterward not only prevents the baby from kicking off covers and becoming cold but also serves as a non-verbal cue signaling sleep time. Babies begin to associate the sleeping bag with sleep, facilitating their settling process.
Safety is paramount when it comes to bedding, and using the appropriate sleeping bag eliminates the need for additional blankets, reducing the risk of suffocation or entanglement. Loose bedding becomes especially hazardous as babies become more mobile in the crib.
In a sleeping bag, babies can safely discover their own comfortable position without the risk of becoming entangled in blankets or waking up due to coldness caused by kicking off blankets.
See below for a list with links to our recommended products for baby's room and travel to help with the factors talked about above:
Window Blackout Blinds
White Noise Machine & Night Light
Window Blackout Blinds
White Noise Machine & Night Light
Bedding - Sleep Sacks/Swaddle
Baby Awake Time Windows
Your newborn is likely to be quite sleepy during the initial three weeks after birth, primarily due to the influx of melatonin, the sleep hormone, passing through the placenta in the final stages of pregnancy. Consequently, your baby might tend to doze off soon after being fed. This is normal as long as they are feeding well, having an adequate number of wet and dirty diapers, showing no signs of jaundice, and not remaining awake excessively due to daytime naps.
However, this wakeful period will evolve rapidly from birth to six months, making it beneficial to understand average wake times for smoother management. You might have already noticed that if your baby stays awake beyond their usual sleepiness, it can be challenging to put them to sleep. This state of overtiredness activates their sympathetic nervous system, making it difficult for them to settle down.
Below are average wake times, but there's no need to worry if your baby doesn't match these exactly. If they are sleeping well at night and napping soundly, they may simply require more sleep than the average at this stage. If your baby remains awake for longer periods than the average, consider their temperament. If they are content and happy, there's no cause for concern!
If your baby is crying frequently, it's likely they're overtired, indicating a need to adjust their awake periods accordingly. If your baby was born prematurely, always consider using their corrected age for developmental milestones and expectations.
These awake times serve as a helpful guide for those who prefer a flexible approach to their baby's routine, relying on their cues to begin the day upon waking and conclude it after 3-4 naps. It's important to understand that the routines outlined below are designed to enhance night sleep and foster the establishment of a long midday nap by six months. Variations in awake times between naps may occur for various reasons. Remember, these routines and guidelines are simply that—guidelines. There's no need to panic; flexibility is key.
Your newborn is likely to be quite sleepy during the initial three weeks after birth, primarily due to the influx of melatonin, the sleep hormone, passing through the placenta in the final stages of pregnancy. Consequently, your baby might tend to doze off soon after being fed. This is normal as long as they are feeding well, having an adequate number of wet and dirty diapers, showing no signs of jaundice, and not remaining awake excessively due to daytime naps.
However, this wakeful period will evolve rapidly from birth to six months, making it beneficial to understand average wake times for smoother management. You might have already noticed that if your baby stays awake beyond their usual sleepiness, it can be challenging to put them to sleep. This state of overtiredness activates their sympathetic nervous system, making it difficult for them to settle down.
Below are average wake times, but there's no need to worry if your baby doesn't match these exactly. If they are sleeping well at night and napping soundly, they may simply require more sleep than the average at this stage. If your baby remains awake for longer periods than the average, consider their temperament. If they are content and happy, there's no cause for concern!
If your baby is crying frequently, it's likely they're overtired, indicating a need to adjust their awake periods accordingly. If your baby was born prematurely, always consider using their corrected age for developmental milestones and expectations.
| Babies Age | Minimum Awake Time | Maximum Awake Time |
| 0-3 weeks | 45 mins | 1 hour 10 mins |
| 3-6 weeks | 60 mins | 1 hour 30 mins |
| 6-9 weeks | 1 hour 10 mins | 1 hour 40 mins |
| 9-12 weeks | 1 hour 20 mins | 1 hour 45 mins |
| 12-16 weeks | 1 hour 45 mins | 2 hours |
These awake times serve as a helpful guide for those who prefer a flexible approach to their baby's routine, relying on their cues to begin the day upon waking and conclude it after 3-4 naps. It's important to understand that the routines outlined below are designed to enhance night sleep and foster the establishment of a long midday nap by six months. Variations in awake times between naps may occur for various reasons. Remember, these routines and guidelines are simply that—guidelines. There's no need to panic; flexibility is key.