Soothe your Baby with a White Noise Machine
Author Name: Heidi Holvoet, PhD
A white noise machine can be a good sleep aid, soothe baby colic, improve self soothing and keep baby asleep for longer stretches. Let's examine why that is and how to go about using background noise in the bedroom.
Technically, white noise is actually a specific sound signal. Plain
background
noise really ...
These days we often use the term white noise for any
non-disturbing
background sounds. It is very good at blocking out disturbing
noises from
in or around the house. That's exactly why it is so good as a sleep
aid.
Magic? Not really.
Different distracting or exciting noises can make it hard for baby to
relax and go to sleep. And one rough noise can easily wake her up ...
So you will want to block those out. A gentle constant white noise
background can do exactly that.
Many babies are so distracted and soothed by the constant comforting
noise that they simply stop crying. That's why it is also such a good baby
colic soother. Of course, you wil want to try and relieve as
much as possible with other specific
colic soothing methods too.
As with any sleep accessory,
the noise is something you need to try before you'll know if it
works for your baby or not. Try it for a week or two at least. If no
results,
give it a break and come back to it later.
Choosing your white noise machine
Having a washing machine - a dryer, a hair dryer or a vacuum cleaner -
on may be all your baby needs to be soothed.
Try it when she's cranky
and fussy one night and you are at your wits' end of how to comfort her.
It's the simple fact of having the same noise, constantly, which
makes it so
comforting and relaxing.
To avoid running around with your vacuum cleaner all night ... ;) you
can
go for a dedicated white noise maker. These are truly practical and
much more pleasant.
Be sure to get one with a timer - one that you can choose to switch of
after some time. Also, you may want yours to do more than just play
white noise. A good machine will have options and many different sounds
that you can experiment with. Your baby may prefer a gentle swishing
sound, a soft nature
sound or even some gentle lullaby music, ...
My choice, the Graco
Sweet Slumber Sound Machine has all of these
requirements. At the same time it doubles as a soft
night light and an mp3 player so you can also play your own music, or
voice.
Finally, if you have an mp3 player or can burn CDs, you can also make
your
own white noise machine
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