Playlists For Life: Sleep Cycle

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New parents know that in the initial days, weeks, and months after bringing their newborn home, sleep becomes a persistent concern. This isn't just a worry for the baby; it extends to the parents and caregivers as well. Sleep arrives in inconvenient bursts, is constantly interrupted, and never seems sufficient to maintain the desired level of energy, calm, or alertness. To create a serene and comforting environment for all involved, you implement a few key practices, including maintaining an entirely dark room regardless of the time of day, ensuring an ample supply of bedding, clothing, and essential supplies and doing all you can to prepare for periods of long sleepless and frustrating nights ahead. Equally important however is the soundtrack to this environment.

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When my first child was born, one of the first gifts I received from a family member was a plush toy whale which they had bought in the hospital gift shop while we were still in the recovery room. This toy, designed for infants, played ambient sounds and emitted softly pulsing multicolor lighting. Its presence became a constant for our newborn during moments of settling down, napping, or the sporadic hours of deep sleep. The repetitive and engaging melodies played by the whale not only soothed my baby but also had a surprisingly calming effect on me. I found the music that played on loop from the whale to be strangely engaging, humming the simple melodies throughout my daily routine as if it were still playing in the background. After a while, I tried tracking down the manufacturer of the toy to see if the music was credited to anyone in particular or if it was something I could purchase. This was tougher than expected, so instead I found more music that provided the same calming feeling, texture, and aesthetic, and began to keep a running playlist for myself along the way. What emerged was an ever changing exploration into these atmospheric sounds, relaxing in their spatial awareness and calming in their composition. 

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You often hear what a profound impact that melodies can have on a baby's well-being. Recognizing this, I curated a collection that weaves together the soothing threads of new age, ambient, acoustic, electronic and instrumental music. This playlist can serve as a tranquil backdrop, fostering a calm environment, to engage their budding senses. It features minimalism from decades past, solo piano pieces and various mesmerizing electronic tracks that provide the texture, harmonic logic, and sense of wonder I associate with those early days of parenthood.