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Infant Sleep Cycles

A healthy infant's sleep follows a cycle much like an adult's. According to the Lucile Packard Children's Hospital, a baby falls from lighter to deeper sleep and then cycle to lighter sleep into the dreaming stage several times throughout the night. This sleep pattern starts before babies are born.

  1. REM

    • REM refers to Rapid Eye Movement sleep. During REM, an infant is sleeping lightly, and his eyes are moving quickly under his closed lids. Eight of a baby's 16 hours of sleep a day are spent in REM sleep.

    Non-REM Stage 1

    • This stage occurs as the infant is initially falling asleep. He will be drowsy and begin nodding off.

    Non-REM Stage 2

    • This second stage is not heavy, and the baby may still wake up if he is jostled or hears a loud noise.

    Non-REM Stage 3

    • This third stage is the deepest thus far, and a baby sleeping in this stage will lay completely still and not wake as easily as before.

    Non-REM Stage 4

    • This final stage is the deepest, and the baby will continue to lay still and quiet.

    Cycling Through Sleep

    • According to the Lucile Packard Children's Hospital, "a baby enters stage 1 at the beginning of the sleep cycle, then moves into stage 2, then 3, then 4, then back to 3, then 2, then to REM." This entire cycle may repeat two or three times during a nap or at nighttime, or the infant may wake up when the cycle switches back to stage 2 from stage 3.

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