Sleep deprivation

This is my little man Lukas! He woke last night with a bout of croup. No pre-warning, just screaming at 1am and coughing like a sick dog or cranky seal! Off to the hospital to get the steroids. Around 3.30am we arrived home. I laid in bed, for what seemed another hour starring at the ceiling. I was grateful we were home in our beds and Lu was sleeping peacefully after his medication.

Today, the sleep deprivation reminded me of the days when I had arrived home with my second prem, Kye. I forgot how hard it is to function on minimal and disrupted sleep.

As a prem mum, we are usually up every couple of hours feeding our babies or expressing milk or trying to sleep to fit in sleep in around waking hours.

Here is a reminder of what you need to do to keep your energy at a level in which you can function and get through the day.

• Make sure you hydrate. Drink as much water as possible and then some more.
• Rest when you can. Sleep when the baby is sleeping.
• Don't fall to the temptation of eating. When we are tired, we feel like all the junk food and sugar available. Have a choc or two, but also incorporate healthy food for energy.
• Keep your activity low. If you feeling really, really, really tired - accept it! Don't put too much pressure on yourself to do everything on your to do list. Would anyone notice if you postpone your list till tomorrow
• Try some meditation - its like a power nap. My trainer and our fitness expert on our web, Colleen, has a fantastic CD to help you through a 15 minute meditation. You will feel like you have slept for 12 hours

Sleep is such a wonderful thing! We all just need more off it.

Wishing you all a restful night, I know I will be snoring by 8pm!