Could using essential oils help my baby nap better?

Could using essential oils help my baby nap better?

Despite my blog being called Naptime Natter, neither of my children are very good at napping. Leo is 3 and a half now and can be forgiven for not wanting to sleep in the day anymore (not that he loved napping when he was younger anyway) but Alex’s lack of napping is a lot harder to accept. My baby boy is only 6 months old, he should be having 2 reasonably long naps a day but I am lucky if I can get one 20 minute snooze out of him these days. Naps in the house just do not happen unless I feed him to sleep and then I find myself trapped under my sleepy boy for ages, the pile of washing still untouched and the dirty dishes left to stew in the sink. The only way I can guarantee Alex to have a sleep without having him stuck to me is to go for a long pointless drive in the car or to walk him in the pram for longer than the amount of time he will eventually spend asleep. I have tried lots of ways to get my boy to just go for a sleep in his damn cot but no amount of back patting and shushing is working. I have recently read that using essential oils can help your baby to sleep better and I have reached the point now where I will try anything to get Alex to take a decent nap. I am not an expert when it comes to essential oils but, after doing my research, I am going to start using them in Alex’s bedtime and naptime routine (note to self: start naptime routine) to see if what I have read is true.

Our new baby sleep routine using essential oils

So, to help make mission Get Alex To Nap a success I am going to buy some essential oils and I will be using them during our bedtime routine as well as around the times of day where Alex normally gets sleepy but instead of just dropping off he fights sleep until he has a overtired breakdown about 5pm.  From doing some online reading on essential oils and sleep it looks like lavender oil may be my saviour in a tiny bottle; lavender has relaxing and calming properties that can help settle your baby ready for a peaceful sleep.

Once I have bought my lavender oil I am going to begin using it at bedtime so Alex associates it with sleep and, after a few nights, I am going to use it in the day too in the hope it will coax Alex into taking a nice long nap. If mission naptime is a success it means I will finally be able to put all the clean clothes away that have taken over the guest room, actually write my blog at naptime (this blog should be called After Kids Have Gone to Bed Natter these days!) and indulge in a hot cuppa and eat a sandwich without Alex trying to snatch it clean out of my hand – I am getting excited just thinking about it all!

essentail oils - lavendar oil

There are lots of ways to use lavender oil but I am going to stick to 3 simple methods to try and get Alex to sleep better:

  1. Put it in the bath – just a couple drops into his bath water is apparently all it will take to help Alex relax and unwind ready for a sleep.
  2. Baby massage – I have not taken Alex to baby massage classes but he does love it when I put cream on him after his baths. I am going to start giving him a little massage around naptime too, using lavender oil mixed with coconut oil in a hope it will help him sleep for longer than 20minutes.
  3. Diffuse it – I have a lovely little oil burner and I have never thought to use it in the kids rooms. About half an hour or so before Alex will be due a sleep (he’s usually tired by 11am and totally exhausted by 3pm) I am going to diffuse some lavender oil in his room while we play/feed and then hopefully when I put him down instead of his eyes springing open the second his back touches the cot he will actually stay fast asleep.

That’s my plan of action, what do you think? Only time will tell if using essential oils can really help my baby sleep better but, like I said, I am willing to give anything a try. I am off shopping tomorrow so I will make sure to pick up some lavender oil and I will report back in a couple weeks to let you know if mission Get Alex to Nap has been a success.

Do you use essential oils with your baby? Have you had any success helping your baby sleep by using lavender oil? Maybe you think it is all nonsense and nothing will help a baby sleep if they don’t want to? I would love to know your thoughts.

Disclaimer: This is a collaborative post.

You can find this post linked to some of these amazing blog link ups –

Maternity Mondays | Marvellous Mondays | Posts from the Heart | #MG | Big Pink Link | Twinkly Tuesday | Dream Team | Tried and Tested | Blogger Club UK | Best and Worst | Family Fun | Cool Mum Club | A Blogging Good Time | The List Linky | PoCoLo |For the Love of Blog | KCACOLS  …and of course #BlogCrush, the linky I co host every Friday.

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Could the use of essential oils really help your baby to sleep better? I am going to start using lavender oil in 3 simple ways to try and get my baby to nap for longer in the daytime.

 

 

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20 Comments

  1. April 24, 2017 / 10:53 am

    Really interested to see if the essential oils do the trick. Seems like they should, so look forward to the update x
    Amy @Arty apple recently posted…Middle NamesMy Profile

  2. April 24, 2017 / 1:32 pm

    I think this sounds like a great idea to me. Grace used to be the same about her naps and we used to go for long drives so I am hoping the next one is a little easier. I use essential oils for myself and am interested to see how it works out for you and little Alex. #MaternityMondays

  3. April 24, 2017 / 1:55 pm

    Wow! Fingers crossed for you – would love to know how you get on as I’m having the exact same problem with my 5 month old. I end up nursing him to sleep in our double bed through the day!

  4. April 24, 2017 / 9:42 pm

    This is such a great idea, I have two little ones that are both terrible at napping and sleeping too so could do with all the help I can get! I’ve come across a brand called This Works that do lavendar sprays for bed and reading your post reminded me that they do a version for little ones so I’m going to check it out! Great post, thanks for sharing it on #MarvMondays. Emily

  5. April 24, 2017 / 10:04 pm

    I am currently dousing my house in lavender ha ha thanks for linking up #maternitymondays

  6. April 27, 2017 / 12:43 pm

    I’ve been obsessed about essential oils for a while now. Although they don’t seem to have helped my (almost) 3 year old much, I am in love with a lavender blend I’m using to relax. I’m finding not all oils are created equal though. The stuff in the high street isn’t always the best quality. I recommend a ultrasonic diffuser over and oil burner, for one thing it’s safe to not have a flame in a kids room!

  7. April 28, 2017 / 2:56 pm

    I read a post around New Years time, suggesting we should all have a bedtime scent. I’ve never even thought about this. I’ve since been spraying a raspberry spray around my bedroom to set the mood for a restful sleep.

    I keep meaning to invest in lavender spray for my bedtime routine but didn’t even think about little one. This totally makes sense.
    Cassie recently posted…20 facts about me tag #20factsaboutmeMy Profile

  8. April 29, 2017 / 11:37 pm

    Great tips. I haven’t tried essential oils with the children but I bet it would be lovely for a bedtime massage. Thank you for linking up with #KCACOLS

  9. April 30, 2017 / 8:43 pm

    Such a good idea – please do report back as to whether it has made a difference or not! Thanks for linking up with #TwinklyTuesday

  10. April 30, 2017 / 9:42 pm

    I am a big fan of lavender oil. When Cygnet has a cold I tend to use a combination of lavender and tea tree oil. Lavender oil really works to relax me so I think it could help with your two. Good luck. Pen x #KCACOLS
    Pen recently posted…In defence of our broken homeMy Profile

  11. May 1, 2017 / 10:52 am

    Oh this is so interesting! I used to put 3 drops of lavender on Emma’s pillow at night…I’m never sure if it worked or not but love the smell. Thanks for linking up to #dreamteam x
    Bridie By The Sea recently posted…Hello May!My Profile

  12. May 1, 2017 / 10:04 pm

    This is a really interesting post! I’m very lucky as my children sleep through, however struggle to sleep myself so have been looking into using essential oils, I might have to finally take the plunge! #kcacols

  13. May 2, 2017 / 1:12 pm

    My daughter is 8 and struggles to settle at night, I bought her the Avon pillow spray (which is lavender) and it has really helped #kcacols
    Amy recently posted…Kaleidoscopic Kids RoomsMy Profile

  14. May 4, 2017 / 4:56 pm

    Yes, I absolutely LOVE essential oils! I’m an acupuncturist and use them with my patients all the time 🙂

  15. May 11, 2017 / 5:29 pm

    I think this might as well work a treat! I hope it does, for you and your sanity, anyway. A lot of people swear by the power of oils, and I do believe they work! I like your plan of action – let us know how you get on! #KCACOLS