The impact of sleep deprivation on parents: World Sleep Day Edition
Sleep deprivation is a real issue for many parents. It can have a serious impact on your health and wellbeing, not to mention the way your baby and toddler feels too. Ahead of World Sleep Day on Friday 18th March, let's take a look at the impact of sleep deprivation on parents. We'll explore the causes and effects, and offer some tips on how to get more rest.
For help and support with your baby and/or toddler sleep routines, join us live on Instagram on World Sleep Day - Friday 18th March - at 8pm. We’ll be joined by sleep and parenting coach, Lucy Shakespeare, to talk all things baby and toddler sleep. If by the time you’re reading this, that date has long gone, email us and we’ll send you a write up of all the questions and answers.
Lack of sleep can be tough, but you're not alone - let's support each other.
What is World Sleep Day and why should you care?
“Sleep is a human privilege that is often compromised by the habits of modern life”. Ooof - that hits home doesn’t it?
We all know that sleep is important, but do you really understand why it’s so important? And indeed that there is a special day dedicated to it? World Sleep Day is an annual event that aims to raise awareness of the importance of sleep.
Here’s what you need to know about it:
World Sleep Day is a global initiative organised by the World Sleep Society. Its primary aim is to raise awareness of sleep as a human privilege that is often compromised by the habits of modern life.
This year’s theme is Quality Sleep, Sound Mind, Happy World. Supporters worldwide will come together to help share the important message that sleep is a foundational pillar of human health.
It tackles important issues and drives positive action related to medicine, education, social aspects and driving - all of the things that have an impact on society today.
World Sleep Day has drawn attention from media and celebrities around the globe and has over 88 countries around the world getting involved.
Why isn’t sleep a priority when it comes to health and wellbeing?
The founders of World Sleep Day frequently came up against the belief that sleep wasn’t a priority when it came to health and wellbeing. Why is that so?
Let’s take a look at some of the reasons we don’t sleep.
Screen time. Not only does screen time affect sleep due to the amount of blue light and stimulation for your brain, but it can also be the reason you’re missing out on sleep as you are mindlessly scrolling your devices or binge-watching TV series for several minutes, even hours, on end.
Stress, anxiety and depression. When your mental health starts to dip, sleep is often one of the first things to go - and the last things to come back when you start to recover. Stress is one of the biggest causes of poor sleep.
Not feeling tired. Some people are genuinely night owls, and that’s great as long as you’re getting the recommended number of hours sleep in your day. But if you’re an early riser and still late to bed, it might be time to assess the reasons why.
Sensitivity to your environment. Some of us struggle to drift off if the room is too hot, too cold, too noisy, too bright or too cluttered.
Food and drink consumption. It’s widely known that caffeine and sugar can impact your quality of sleep, but lesser understood that alcohol can have a detrimental effect due to its sleep-inducing qualities. Alcohol causes your blood sugar to spike, which might be why you are waking up in the middle of the night and struggling to get back to sleep.
Pressures of work. Shift work and the need to work multiple jobs can have a severe impact on sleep routines and duration. Stress at work and bringing work home can lead to acute sleep deprivation too.
Sleep disorders and medical conditions. Conditions such as insomnia, sleep apnea and restless legs syndrome can lead to chronic sleep deficiency in adults.
The impact on our parental mental health
The National Sleep Foundation report that adults need between 7-9 hours of sleep per night.
Beginning in the brutal newborn days, sustained periods of sleep deprivation can have an extremely significant effect on parents. Acute sleep deprivation refers to poor sleep that occurs over just a few days, whereas chronic sleep deprivation can last for three months or more.
When a parent is fatigued, they’re often less patient with their toddler or baby and may become irritated more easily. Parent guilt comes into play here too.
This can lead to increased conflict between the parent and child, as well as decreased cooperation from the child. When a parent is exhausted, they’re less likely to be able to provide the necessary emotional support.
Sleep deprivation is also a contributing factor to post-natal depression which affects more than 1 in 10 women in the year after giving birth and 10% of new fathers.
Finally, chronic sleep deprivation can sometimes cause health problems in the parents, such as cardiovascular disease or obesity. It’s clear that it’s important for parents to get enough sleep in order to maintain a healthy relationship with their toddler or baby - and to be healthy themselves.
What can parents do to improve their sleep?
The World Sleep Day website cites the elements of good quality sleep as:
Duration: The length of sleep should be sufficient for the sleeper to be rested and alert the following day.
Continuity: Sleep periods should be seamless without fragmentation (ok, this is difficult for parents of young children, but you will get there).
Depth: Sleep should be deep enough to be restorative.
So let’s first work on points one and three and take a look at how you can improve duration and depth.
Focus on your bedtime routine as well as your child’s. A good bedtime routine where you allow yourself to wind down is so important. Read, meditate, take time over your skincare routine.
Be consciously aware of your screen time. Set limits on your devices or reminders to turn them off and head to bed. Try to have at least 50 minutes of device-free time before you close your eyes.
Review your caffeine and/or alcohol intake - try keeping a diary to track the impact these have on your quality of sleep.
Optimise your environment. Try taking a look at where you sleep and see what changes you can make, whether it be to bed linen, soundproofing, blackout blinds or a more comfortable mattress.
Get some fresh air. Movement and fresh air during the day will set you up nicely for a good night’s sleep.
What about sleep continuity?
Continuity is what all parents aim for. Sometimes, it feels completely out of reach, but there are ways that you can get help with your child’s sleep routine which will lead to improvements in the health and wellbeing of the whole household.
One way to get advice and support is to engage the services of a sleep consultant. There are many providers out there, and our tried and tested ones include Lucy Shakespeare, Lullaby Nannies and Nights and Naps.
How to create a bedtime routine for your family
Having a bedtime routine is important for both parents and kids. It can help promote healthy sleep habits and make bedtime a calm, relaxing experience for everyone involved. If you're wondering how to create a bedtime routine for your family, here are a few tips from Lucy:
Starting a bedtime routine for a baby
You can do this as early as 1-2 weeks but certainly, by 6 weeks it’s worth having a bedtime routine in place. A routine provides strong cues that sleep is coming. The idea is to do the same steps in the same order every evening. It becomes rhythmic and helps cue your baby for a longer stretch of sleep.
Be sure to complete the last stages of the routine in the room in which your baby will be sleeping and in low-level lighting. The process should flow, so it’s not ideal going from a bath and getting dressed for bed and back into the living area as this is stimulating.
Bath, PJ’s, book, sleepy sentence and cot/bed is perfect and no longer than 30 to 40 minutes from start to finish.
Your baby’s sleeping environment
This needs to be nice and dark, calm and quiet. No busy mobiles overhead, no light projectors on the ceiling or anything else that’s visually stimulating.
It’s very important to ensure that your baby doesn’t overheat at night. The Lullaby Trust’s Safer Sleep Advice recommends that the room your baby sleeps in should be maintained between 16 and 20 degrees Celsius.
Electronic, blue-based light is particularly disruptive to our sleep patterns and the production of natural hormones that regulate our sleep - so stick to red or amber based light. In addition, ditch those screens 1-2 hours before bedtime!
Consistency is key
It helps little ones know where they stand, where the boundaries are and what they can expect from you so that they feel secure. A consistent bedtime and response to waking are key.
However you respond at night to your little one - keep it consistent. If you do one thing at 9pm and another at 3am, it will send mixed signals and only confuse your little one, making it harder for them to settle.
Settling to sleep
How we fall asleep is important. The inability to self-settle is one of the main causes of sleep challenges. How your baby falls asleep at bedtime usually determines how well they fall back to sleep when they wake.
Assess how they first fall asleep and practice independent sleep skills to help them achieve longer, restorative periods of sleep. Practice putting baby down awake in their sleep space once a day.
Overtiredness
Sleep begets sleep! Overtiredness is the other main cause of sleep challenges. The quality of daytime sleep is directly linked to nighttime sleep. It’s a MYTH that keeping babies up longer during the day will make them sleep better at night! Overtiredness leads to more unsettled bedtimes, night waking and early rising.
Here for you
Join Parent List and The Go-To Nanny for a live Baby and Toddler sleep Q&A
On World Sleep Day - Friday 18th March - we’re going live on Instagram with Lucy Shakespeare. Join us for a live Q&A session for all questions about baby and toddler sleep - no judgement, no boundaries - just expert advice and some friendly parent-to-parent support.
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