Sleep Requirements Of Newborn Babies: What Every Mother Should Know
As a parent, you may be wondering when your baby will sleep through the night. Getting up every couple of hours to feed your baby is very tiring even though the baby often sleeps. Newborns tend to sleep a lot, but not when you want them to. They need to feed every three to four hours and when they are hungry they will let you know.
All babies have different sleep cycles, so even if you have other children, their sleep patterns may be different. Newborns sleep about 16 hours a day. Babies sleep a lot, but they are very staggered dreams. The baby will wake up every few hours because she is hungry, even sooner if he is breastfed because babies digest breast milk more easily. Your baby needs about eight to 12 feeds a day.
As the baby gets older, the sleep cycle changes a bit. They will sleep a little less, but only for a few hours, and in large amounts. The baby will sleep all night, which will make the parents’ night easier. However, around six months of age, the baby may start waking up at night again. This will happen due to separation anxiety. Once they realize they are alone and transitioning to a nursery, they will start crying in the middle of the night or when you are putting them down to sleep. Both situations make any type of rest pointless. Once your child is comfortable again, she will begin to sleep through the night.
Around age two, your child will cut back on sleep for a few hours. His daytime sleep will be shorter, but your child will need a nap, possibly two short naps, during the day. The nap will probably last about two hours. She tries not to let him spend any more time. If they sleep too much during the day, it will be difficult for them to go back to sleep at night. Your child needs a nap to get through the day. You probably want your child to take this nap because a cranky baby is not fun to deal with. Try not to take these naps too late either. This could disrupt the child’s sleep pattern and they could have difficulty falling asleep at night.
Remember, all children are different. If one child liked to nap around 2 pm, but the other likes to go to sleep at noon, don’t fight it. Let the child sleep when he wants. Just watch them to make sure they don’t sleep too much during the day to help you both get a restful night’s sleep. However, if you notice severe disruptions in sleep patterns or inconsistent patterns, talk to your doctor.