New-born’s Unraveled 

New-born’s are welcomed into the world with their wee systems in a disorganized state, and don’t we know it

when they are night owls in those early hours! 

During the new-born stage their sleep/wake cycles, day/night and bodily functions – are all here there and everywhere. This is due to their immature neurological and digestive systems, which slowly mature with time and nurturing. 

It can be a shock for parents just how disorganized these wee darlings are, with their 1 am ‘I’m awake parties’ or hours of unsettledness in the evening. What is reassuring is that new-born’s are very responsive and as their brains mature, they move from disorganized to organized as their Circadian Rhythm develops.

A Circadian Rhythm, or biological processes, is a cycle that occurs about once every 24-hours and is well developed in older children and adults. You can think of these rhythms as an internal clock, but there’s a catch! The clock doesn’t arrive pre-programmed when a baby is born.

When babies are born, their internal clocks aren’t synchronized with our 24-hour cycle of daylight and darkness. It takes time for babies to get in sync, thankfully we don’t have to wait passively for that to happen. In fact, we shouldn’t be passive, babies depend on us to introduce some structure into their days and nights and a sleep environment that will help their Circadian Rhythm develop. 

Studies show that babies adapt more quickly when parents provide them with the right “zeitgebers,” or environmental cues about the time of day. (Custodio et al 2007; Lohr et al 1999; Tsai et al 2012). 

• While it takes two to three months for the infant brain to develop the ability to produce melatonin in levels needed for inducing sleep, supportive environmental and social cues will help.
• Steps to achieve this is exactly what our Baby & Beyond New-born team can provide, together we will create a much smoother transition through these early months for you and your new-born.  

Baby & Beyond offers a New-born Package which is tailor made for you and your baby’s needs in these early weeks. 

Case Study with Missy

This can be seen in the Case Study with Missy, who along with her mum, was coached from her early weeks right through to the 12-week mark. As an experienced Nurse/educator Janferie will guide you with developing your settling skills, breastfeeding and sleep plus troubleshooting problems and providing age appropriate activities for your little one. Giving mum’s a much-needed break and rest time knowing your baby is safe and being expertly cared for.

Recently Janferie has spent 10 weeks alongside a mum with her daughter ‘Missy’ who was born at 38 weeks by caesarean section. While an experienced mum with older children, it had been a ten-year gap since having a new-born in the house, so mum has benefited from Janferie providing advice on settling techniques and age appropriate sleep patterns.

With an existing condition and following a complicated delivery she needed practical help with all aspects of baby care until she recovered. While immediate family members were generally close by to assist, Janferie was able to fill in the gaps by assisting 5-10 hours a week.

When in the home Janferie provided all aspects of new-born care, nappies, bathing, winding, settling, and the ever-changing developmental stages Missy was growing through. Janferie has been a kind and supportive presence and listening ear for mum, and as a practicing nurse provided advice around wound and pain management and early intervention with mastitis to prevent it progressing to an infection.

The outcome of journeying alongside this family is that Missy has very naturally developed a 3-4 hour feeding routine in the day, and sleeping a regular 8-9 hours in a solid block of sleep (and sometimes 10-11 hours) overnight by 3 months. This has been so beneficial for mum as she has been able to get more rest than she imagined and this has supported a faster physical recovery. Missy has quickly responded to a settling routine for naps and bedtime, and is generally very easy to put down or leave in the care of daddy or nana.

Mum’s Testimonial

“I highly recommend Janferie from the team at Baby and Beyond. She provided assistance for us during our daughter’s new-born stage.

Recovering physically postpartum has been really tough for me so I have GREATLY appreciated the rest I was able to have while Janferie looked after our precious new-born. Knowing our baby was with someone who absolutely adores babies and has such an interest in their development was very reassuring. The fact that she is also a Registered Nurse was the icing on the cake, I was able to benefit from this with my postpartum complications.

Initially we had a very wakeful baby who became inconsolable because of lack of sleep. Having an expert tweak her sleep routine and provide information on successful settling techniques produced a happy contented baby who was no longer as wakeful.

Having someone in your home during these first few weeks can be daunting when hormones are surging and you are coming to grips with your new life of sleep deprivation. Janferie was an absolute ease to have in the home, always positive and cheerful and respectful of the family dynamics”

Madelyn, Waikato

Compiled by Janferie Dewar – Baby & Beyond Sleep Consultant, Registered Nurse and Breastfeeding Educator

Contact Janferie: 027 310 3563