You have a baby and you've never been more tired in your life. Sure, you've heard the advice: Nap when the baby naps. Leave the dirty dishes, and don't worry about the laundry – you'll get to it eventually. But the reality is that most days you need those precious breaks when your baby is sleeping to take care of chores and other business.
Here are some sleep strategies to get a little more shut-eye at night and stave off the fatigue that hits during the day.
Pump and sleep
If you're breastfeeding, pump
at night before you go to bed and let your partner do the following feeding using your expressed milk in a bottle. If you're lucky, you'll get in a solid block of at least five hours of sleep, and hopefully wake up feeling like a new woman.
Rock-a-bye, baby
Keep your baby's bassinet within arm's reach of your bed. When your baby starts to fuss in the middle of the night, try gently rocking or jiggling the bassinet to see if you can lull your little one back to sleep for a little longer.
Midnight power-snacking
If you have to be up at night, make the most of it: Load up on a power snack like peanut butter and crackers, a glass of milk, or some yogurt. Even though you didn't get a full night's sleep, you won't wake up hungry and nutritionally depleted.
One night on, one night off
Instead of switching off with your partner each time the baby wakes up, try switching nights off. Even though you might be exhausted from getting up several times at night, you can rest assured knowing the following night you're off duty. Sadly, this method won't work if your baby breastfeeds several times a night, because you'll have to get up to nurse or pump anyway.
Diaper duty
If you're breastfeeding many times throughout the night, get your partner to help with other parts of the routine. For instance, have your partner change your baby's diaper if necessary and bring your baby to you so you don't have to get out of bed. This may seem counterproductive – since you'll both be tired in the morning – but it may give you a much-needed energy boost.
Separate rooms
If you aren't on wake-up duty, sleeping in a separate room can help guarantee an uninterrupted stretch of sleep. Even if you aren't getting out of bed to do the changing and feeding, just waking up during the night can make you more tired in the morning.
Shift work
Divide your night into shifts: For instance, one person has 10:30 p.m. to 2:30 a.m. and the other has 2:30 a.m. to 6:30 a.m. This way each person is guaranteed four hours of solid rest.
Early to bed
Sure, there's laundry to do and phone calls to make and email to check, but when you're really tired, just go to bed when your baby goes to bed. You're guaranteed some extra rest and your body will thank you in the morning.
Sleep-sharing
Some parents swear by having their babies sleep with them to ensure a good night's sleep. It can allow for quick and easy middle-of-the-night nursings without having to rock or sway your baby back to sleep. Get tips on how to do this more safely.
Crib time
Other parents say they never got a good night's sleep until their baby was sleeping in a crib in a different room, because otherwise they woke at every whimper or grunt. (Babies can be loud sleepers!) If this is the case, move your baby out of your room and use a baby monitor so you'll know when your baby wakes up and really needs you.