Insomnia is a sleep disorder characterized most often by a lack of ability to fall asleep due to stress. As adults, most of understand stress. There are jobs to do, bills to pay, hungry mouths to feed. Some of us find we have more month than we do money, or that we constantly have to deal with a disagreeable co-worker or, worse, boss. We understand stress. Let’s face it, there’s plenty for an adult to worry about.
But, can an infant have insomnia, and, if so, what are some natural remedies for infant insomnia? It can be hard to fathom that an infant would feel enough stress to have difficulty sleeping. After all, besides eating, that’s pretty much all they do. While it’s true that infants can’t grasp the kinds of things that cause adults to stress out, it’s also true that there are things that cause a baby to feel stressed.
One of the things that can cause an infant to suffer from insomnia stems from her diet. If you start to give a baby cows milk too soon, the proteins can be a cause of sleeplessness for him. If your baby is having trouble sleeping, and you have been giving her cow’s milk, stop. Go back to feeding her formula, and eliminate milk from her diet.
Some things you can do to help your infant fall asleep include removing anything that may be causing him stress. Of course, this is a little tougher to do with an infant than an older child, because the older child has more ability to express what is bothering him. Still, an astute parent will begin to piece together what kinds of things may be bothering her infant child. Is the baby’s room sufficiently dark? Too much light can be stressful to babies when they’re trying to sleep. So can too much noise. Do what you can to make baby’s sleeping environment as quiet and peaceful as you can. If your living situation doesn’t allow you to eliminate the noise, consider using a white noise generator, or even a fan. While not technically “natural” remedies, these do help babies fall asleep, because it gives them a noise to focus on and drowns out much of the other sound.
Consider using relaxing aromas to help baby fall asleep. Certain smells, noticeably lavender, vanilla or jasmine, can help soothe not only babies, but moms and dads as well. Some people have found that this helps induce sleep. Evidence for this tends to be anecdotal, but it’s worth a try. Worst case scenario, the room will smell nice while the baby is still awake.