Baby Sleep & Navigating Sick Season
Navigating sick season while you have a little one is so tough— and even harder when they’re not sleeping well!
First, we have to establish that there are no rules when your kid is sick! but— I’m always curious about how much support they need vs how much they can continue doing on their own. I start with less and work my way up essentially! Remember, you know your kid and what they’re capable of doing.
When we are approaching sick season (outside of a global pandemic), I try to stay as proactive as possible. I want my kids to stay healthy and control what I can (while also accepting that children are walking germs and an illness isn’t always avoidable).
Priorities for our family include:
Staying away from sick people… obviously. And so easy right? Hahaha
Teach our little ones to cover their nose and mouth when they cough/sneeze and wash hands afterwards
Wash hands often with soap and water, use hand sanitizer in a pinch
Clean and disinfect regularly use and touched surfaces
Remove shoes inside and consider changing clothes before being around your kids when you’ve come home from work or an errand
I also focus on immune boosting things:
Getting enough sleep; sleep is closely tied to maintaining health
Whole plant foods
Healthy fats
Probiotics
So the next step is to MANAGE EXPECTATIONS. Yes, you will likely lose some sleep when your little one is sick. This is totally normal. They may sleep more OVERALL, but in smaller chunks of time because they’re uncomfortable. Remember, it’s short lived.
How do you get any sleep or rest when your child is sick?
Maintain your routines around nap and bedtime. Everything doesn’t just fly out the window. These routines are helpful ALL THE TIME.
Keep them comfortable. Follow your physician’s recommendations for medications if needed.
More sleep is great, longer naps, etc BUT respect their hydration and nutrition needs to make sure they’re eating and drinking in regular intervals.
Sleep in their room! When our daughter had RSV at 2, she slept in our bed because we were concerned about her breathing. We all slept awful and she didn’t start feeling better until she slept in her bed. Next time, we will camp out in the sick kids room for sure.
The things we use to survive sick season include:
Nose frida
Saline spray or drops
Cold mist humidifier
Chest rub
Sleep & snuggles
Obviously it depends on the type of illness your child has but ours are almost always cold/congestion type illnesses!
So, you’re on the other side of the cold or whatever was going on with your little one and some habits may have crept in that you don’t necessarily want to maintain. First, it’s okay that you supported your child more when they needed it!!! Say it louder for the people feeling guilty.
Now, if you have habits in place that are working for your family, then you can keep on keeping on. If you’re struggling though, then my best tips are really to just get back to it!
Tangibly, that looks like:
Back to the routines you had before
Back to your timing/schedule
Back to your sleep training method and putting down wide awake at bedtime
Yes, the first few nights may feel hard, but I promise they catch on quicker than when you initially sleep trained them!
Sleep doesn’t have to go out the window or stay derailed forever, promise. <3
If illness or teething feels like it’s constantly throwing off your sleep, take the mini course to do some damage control and help you get back on track!
