Child’s Sleep Solution – The Right Sleep Position
While we sleep, our basic bodily functions continue. Although our breathing takes on a different rhythm when we sleep, our need to breathe is just as vital. Certain sleeping positions promote good breathing, while others can hinder breathing. As they reach maturity, children will find their preferred sleeping position, or at least their preferred position for falling asleep, but for infants, only one sleeping position seems to be entirely safe.
Infants should sleep on their backs in the so-called “supine position.” Sleeping on the abdomen (“prone sleeping”) is associated with SIDS. In fact, the dramatic reduction in the rate of SIDS in recent years is attributed to the worldwide medical campaign to educate parents about the dangers of prone sleeping.
The problem with prone sleeping seems to be that it can lead to difficulties with breathing. A baby can smother himself under his own weight, especially if sleeping on a soft mattress or a waterbed, or on any nonfirm surface. One of the many great benefits of sleeping with your baby is that it allows you to monitor the infant’s sleeping position.
A mother who finds that her baby unconsciously turns onto his abdomen during the night can gently return her baby to the supine position. Sleeping on the back is also better for the child’s posture, as it encourages a straight back with correct curves for a strong healthy body Also, sleeping on the back enables the small infant to awaken and still be able to look around at the environment.
If an infant awakens on his abdomen, he will rub his head into the sheet with every movement. Many a rash on a baby’s cheeks is resolve simply by changing to the supine position, especially when the infant is drooling and the sheet under his head becomes wet.
In summary, help your child get a good night’s sleep by making your child sleeping environment a sanctuary from the distractions of life and a bastion of comfort and safety Our internal environment is a reflection of our external environment, and vice versa. Foster the feelings of security and confidence that will help your child sleep by making his bedroom clean, neat, peaceful, and safe from all perils and dangers.
