Importance of a Routine for Baby
Before we even got pregnant my husband and I set our daily routine and we made sure to stick to it 99% of the time. Of course there is those few times when you stay out later or go somewhere that day but even on those days most of our routine was the same each day.
When I got pregnant we continued that routine. I heard from a lot of people that babies are actually pretty active in the womb during the night time but I didn’t experience that. Was that because of our routine? Not sure but possibly.
Once our daughter born we set her daily routine to match ours from day one. What is our daily routine? Why is it so important for you and especially your child to have one?
We wake up every morning naturally around 6 am - 7am. Occasionally she will sleep a little later and this gives me a little extra time to myself to get ready in the morning. We will either get breakfast started, go for a 10 min walk, get in the gym for our morning workout before it gets hot, another 10 min walk. These walks early in the morning exposes us to the morning sun which tells our circadian rhythms to get ready for the day and it’s awake hours. Eat breakfast and I get her down for her morning nap. After her morning nap we do some work or chores, get lunch started and after her lunch we play or do some work and down for her afternoon nap. If it’s cool enough outside we’ll take a walk after lunch.
After her nap we start dinner and play some more, get some chores done. She’ll have a snack while I cook and clean up. After we eat dinner we go for another walk and around 6-6:30 pm we start getting showered and ready for bed. We usually go to bed around 6:30-7 and she’s falls asleep around that time, usually no later than 7:40. And than we do it all again the next day.
She loves her daily routine and so do we! She knows what to expect each day, when bed time is, and she sleeps through the night. If we don’t follow this routine for the most part with our daughter she gets upset because she doesn’t have that comfort of knowing what’s going to happen. For example we went to Disneyland and she loved every minute of it but when it was close to her bedtime she started to get upset because we weren’t showering, getting on our Jammie’s and going to bed. Some babies can takes these occasional changes in routine just fine but some are very serious about their routines or certain parts like our daughter is with her bed time. She prioritizes sleep like we do haha.
Why is a daily routine so important? Having a routine you stick to each day creates stability, better sleep, reduce anxiety, boosting cognitive function, it can even reduce mental health issues like depression. This goes for babies also. When you set that routine and stick to it everyday you create structure and stability in their lives and they know what to expect each day creating less anxiety and less behavior issues.
When there is a big life changing coming like starting school for example you can create small changes each day leading up to it so it’s not so startling to them. All of these benefits baby gets from her daily routine you get also! Your body and brain love routines and habits and it creates safety in knowing what’s to come. If you don’t have a structured routine that you follow each day or want to start one for say bed time to make it easier it can be difficult at first but it only takes around 28 days for your brain and body to make this new routine a habit.
If you are interested in creating a new routine, a new healthy lifestyle and want personalized coaching send me a message and check out my Health Coaching pages to see which program would be right for you. Thank you for following my health journey and I look forward to supporting you with yours!
