How Soothing Sounds Can Help Your Newborn Sleep Better?

Music can be used to enhance focus, alleviate stress, and lift spirits, so why can’t it be used to aid good sleep? We’re breaking down how to use soothing baby music as a part of your little one’s comprehensive nighttime routine.

It’s important to choose wisely when incorporating music into your baby’s bedtime routine, because the wrong type of music or timing can actually impede your baby’s sleep. Used correctly, music can become a cue for baby to begin winding down for a good night's rest. Here we dive into what type of music to choose and when’s the right time to say; “Alexa, play our baby lullaby music playlist.”

The Right Music for Good Sleep

The key to lulling baby to sleep is to reduce stimulation as much as possible. To get your child to sleep, you want to try and decrease their cortisol level (the stress hormone), which often correlates with their level of stimulation, so definitely avoid music intended to stimulate such as EDM or high tempo pop.

Soft, tranquil music or sounds are your best bet to help your baby get to sleep. From good, old-fashioned lullabies to soft instrumentals, there are plenty of good options if you’re looking for soothing music options for your baby.

Pro-Tip:

Zen Sleepwear™ can also help baby get a good night’s rest. Gently weighted in key areas, Zen Sleepwear™ is designed to have the soothing effects of a parent’s touch and could also help reduce your little one’s cortisol level at night.

Dad playing music for baby before bed.

When to Cue Up the Tunes

A consistent bedtime routine can be enormously helpful when sleep training your baby. If you are consistent enough, once you begin going through the motions of your little one’s nightly routine, they’ll naturally begin to feel sleepy. And music can be a steadfast part of this routine! So, the next time you’re ready for baby to start thinking about sleep, dim the lights and cue the soothing baby music for some pre-bedtime zen.

Once your baby is in their bassinet or crib ready to start drifting off to sleep, be sure to turn off the music. While music is a wonderful part of a nightly routine and can help relax your baby before bed, you don’t want it to become a crutch for them. If they become dependent on music to actually fall asleep your little one will need music to be playing anytime they’re trying to fall asleep anywhere.

Pro-Tip

Make sure you have all phone and TV screens off. Screens are very stimulating and will certainly hurt your efforts to calm your little one. Try to play music off speakers only and leave the screens out of the nursery.