It’s a nugget of advice that new parents hear over and over – don’t let your little one sleep in your arms.
Having them doze off on you means you’re shooting yourself in the foot, or so you’d hear, because they’ll struggle to soothe themselves and get to sleep on their own.
Still, not everyone agrees on this – plenty of experts reckon there’s nothing wrong with rocking your little one to help them to nod off, especially when they’re very young.
“Nobody puts a baby in a crib alone, especially awake, from day one,” child sleep consultant Alexis Dubief says in her book Precious Little Sleep.
“This is simply an unrealistic expectation for most new parents. Newborns need a lot of soothing, and being held by a parent or loved one is very soothing.”
“It’s always okay to hold an infant under four months old, to put them to sleep the way they need it,” says Satya Narisety, an assistant professor in paediatrics at Rutgers University in New Jersey.
“After three or four months, when baby is developing more regular sleep habits and is capable of sleeping longer stretches at night, reevaluate whether it’s still right for you. Every baby and every family is different.”
A key point to remember is to never hold a baby if you’re feeling very sleepy yourself as dropping off while holding your child can be extremely dangerous.
So where does sleep training come into it?
By around four months, most babies will have more of a sleep cycle and will be feeding a lot less at night, making it a good time to start training.
Don’t feel too worried if your little one doesn’t take to the routine straight away and you have to keep rocking them.
Babies all hit milestones, including a successful sleep routine, at different times. Keep at it.
