Advice On Newborns And Sleeping

by jtrombetti

posted on 09/24/2009

If you have a newborn you may wonder how this tiny creature can sleep so much; yet, at the same time keep you wishing you could catch even a couple hours of solid sleep. While it is true that newborns sleep most of the time averaging 14 to 18 hours in the course of a day during the first couple of weeks and then 12 to 15 after a month or so, they only sleep for two or three hours at a time. This sleeping pattern applies to both night and day, which is why you are always so tired. Your schedule is completely thrown off and your life become devoted to keeping your little wonder clean, fed and happy.

Babies sleep in what is known as REM patterns; meaning while they sleep, they experience rapid eye movement (REM) behavior. This is thought to be because their little minds are developing rapidly and their sleep is lighter than normal.

When a baby reaches about two months old, you'll hopefully notice that sleeping during the day become less frequent and sleep during the night will last more than a couple of hours. The baby will be entering into the non-REM sleep stage -- thank goodness for you! By six months of age, your baby should be sleeping through most of the night, as long as he or she has developed good sleep habits.

Putting baby down when she appears restless and tired is essential to establishing good sleep habits. Telltale signs of a tired baby include eye rubbing, ear pulling or a general tired eye appearance. Make sure your baby knows the difference between night and day by interacting more during the day and keeping the room used for sleeping dark and quiet during the night. Follow a routine in the evening that includes changing baby into sleep wear and soothing baby with a lullaby before placing him into a crib or cradle. Put baby in bed before actual sleep has occurred. Usually, if a baby is tired enough sleep will come almost instantly, but if your darling cries a bit before drifting off, that's okay too.

Don't be afraid to leave your baby alone in his crib and room. Keep a baby monitor on hand and make sure that baby is on her back without covers or stuffed animals in the crib, which could cause suffocation.

Follow these words of advice, and you'll soon be sleeping like your baby the whole night through.

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