Self-Settling vs Self-Soothing

Self-settling and self-soothing

 Are these different concepts?

 Soothing and settling seem like the same thing, and in day to day speak,

we probably use them interchangeably without even realizing it! 

When I started learning about sleep science and how our brains work

I realized they are different and I’ll tell you why ⤵️

Self-settling is the physical act of your body putting itself back to sleep.

The capability of the body to fall back asleep.

Self-soothing is something that happens after an emotional outburst or event.

To be able to soothe, you need to be able to regulate your emotions. Be able to calm yourself.

 Can you see how making a distinction between these two concepts is important when we talk about infant sleep???

A baby from the moment they are born, has the capability to self-settle.

They come into this world ready to get right back to sleep 😛

However...

A baby is not able to soothe themselves straight from birth.

The part of their brain that regulates emotions isn't developed enough to do so until approximately 6 months of age.

 So this is important when we talk about expectations in a child's sleep.

You see this time and time again how newborns can be incredible sleepers. 

 Then they start to get a little older and their sleep starts to get wonky.

There are a million other things happening as they develop that interfere with them sleeping like they used to. 

 (Such as growth spurts, teething, becoming more aware of their surroundings to name a few)

 But one of those things is the capacity to regulate their emotions. 

So!

Keeping realistic expectations in mind is key as we go through the many stages of sleep development. 

 Understanding a difference between what an infant can accomplish

because their brain is developed enough to do so - versus what an infant can

accomplish because they have the capacity to learn it.

On top of that, we have each child developing on their own time so a child

ready to regulate their emotions at 6 months whereas another may not be ready till they are at 7 months. 

 So maybe I’ve just brought up something you’ve never thought about before,

or maybe you knew this already! Let me know your thoughts in the comments below :)

Best

-Marina