Sleeping Habits of Babies

Babies are notorious for disrupting the sleep cycles of adults. But recognizing and identifying a baby's sleeping habits helps parents understand their newborn's needs, and encouraging good sleeping habits can ensure a baby learns to sleep in the healthiest way possible.

Early Development

• Right after birth, most newborns will sleep almost 20 hours a day. Unfortunately, this sleep will come in intervals of no more than three hours at a time, so Mom or Dad will have to be awake and feeding often. After about two months, however, the newborn will begin to sleep a little longer at night as she begins to acclimate to life in the world.

Later Development

• At 3 or 4 months, a baby's total daily sleep will fall to around 15 hours, and a more regular sleep pattern will develop. The baby may even begin to sleep regularly through the night, though for a baby that consists of around five hours. They may still wake up looking for company or practicing motor skills, but this is normal. By around 6 months, they may sleep from 11 to 15 hours a day, and their daytime sleep may have split into two larger naps, one in the morning and one in the afternoon.

Habits

• Before they fall asleep, babies may indicate their tiredness by rubbing their eyes or pulling their ears. While asleep, it is most often normal for the baby to engage in irregular, periodic breathing--their extremities may even turn blue. They may snore or experience excessive sweating. Even stranger habits such as rocking, headbanging, or teeth-grinding are regular habits babies develop to soothe themselves or distract themselves from pain of teething or earaches.

Warning

• Even though those habits may be normal, sometimes they can in some instances indicate more serious problems. For example, if the breathing is so irregular that the forehead or torso turn blue, a doctor should be consulted. Likewise, there may be a problem if the snoring, most often due to congestion or allergies, consistently disrupts breathing. If the baby sweats even in a relatively cool room--60 to 70 degrees--while wearing lighter clothing, it is best to inform a doctor.

Building Good Habits

• Developing good sleeping habits in babies is a matter of regularity and ritual. For example, putting a baby to sleep at a regular time and waking them regularly helps them to develop a steady sleep cycle. Putting a baby to bed when he or she is still awake encourages falling asleep independently, a habit that comes in handy if the baby wakes up in the middle of the night. An arranged activity right before bedtime, like a lullaby or bedtime story, can wind a baby down and prepare her for sleep.