The top 5

July 12, 2007 | Print

Music for Newborns

Music has a wonderful calming effect on newborns (and parents). We set up a portable CD player where the baby sleeps, and carry it with us if and as we change rooms in our journey for sleep.

Playing music relaxes us and our babies, and it does help soothe them to sleep.

Here are some of our standbys–at home and during those car rides.

1. The Great Mother. The Great Mother by Shawndeya includes heartbeats in beautiful, soft harp music that works wonders on newborns. A doula gave Kelly the CD seven years ago and now we all swear by its calming powers.

2. Sleepy Baby. Soothing classical music. Lyndsey has played Sleepy Baby for Elias since birth.

3. Transitions: Soothing Music for Crying Infants. Musicians developed Transitions with a physician specifically to calm newborns and parents. They combine womb sounds with soft music, and it works.

4. Ocean sounds offer a rhythmic white noise that can be calming. Echoes of Nature: Ocean Waves is one version we’ve used.

5. Sleep, Baby, Sleep. Kelly played Nicolette Larsen’s Sleep, Baby, Sleep lullabies for all of her babies to great sleep success (for Kelly too).

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