When Will My Baby Sleep Through The Night?

With your baby in your arms, you couldn’t be any happier or more fortunate. But now a new question comes to mind. When will my baby sleep through the night?

This is the million-dollar question for first-time parents, who find that the first few months of their child’s life involve waking up multiple times a night.

Keep calm! It is absolutely normal for children to wake up several times a night for approximately the first six months. Around this time, many babies begin sleeping through the night. But when each child begins to do this will depend on their development.

How babies sleep

To find out when your baby will be able to sleep all night, there is some information you should know about how babies sleep. From birth, babies’ sleep has two phases. This means that they wake up often. When both phases are over, your baby awakes to eat and spend time with you, making them feel safe.

At six months of age, how babies sleep begins to change, as they develop the five-phase sleep pattern of adults. When this happens, your child will be able to sleep through the night. But although little ones will start to sleep longer, they will still wake up at night. Now, however, they will be able to get to sleep on their own.

Very few babies are able to sleep for six to eight hours in a row by three months, and some will take up to 12 months to do this. However, by nine months, over 70% of babies can sleep all night long without needing to nurse.

Some children take time to learn how to sleep through the night. In reality, one in five children aged two wakes up and cries most nights. This shows that every child is different, and the child’s personality can also be an influential factor.

Your baby will sleep through the night, but beware of myths

When you tell others about your nighttime struggles and ask when your baby will sleep through the night, you might hear that bigger children and those that eat solid food get to sleep more easily. Don’t follow this advice. The most important factor is your child’s age, not their size or what they eat.

You might have even heard that if you feed your baby cereal at night, they will sleep longer. This is not true, either. In fact, this practice could be dangerous. Giving your baby solid food when they have not yet reached the right age can stop them absorbing nutrients from breastmilk or formula.

A newborn baby’s digestive system is not ready to process food other than breastmilk or formula until halfway through their first year of life. At this stage, solid food can damage your baby’s stomach. This is why specialists recommend breastfeeding your baby for the first six months of life.

What can I do to get through the night?

Of course, if you are getting up several times a night, you will feel exhausted during the day. During the first few weeks it can be ideal to take a nap whenever your child sleeps. Forget about using your baby’s nap times to catch up on domestic chores.

Lying down while you are breastfeeding your baby is a way to get a little more rest. Another valid tactic is to ask for help from those around you. You can ask family and friends to help out by bringing you food, running errands or cleaning up.

Many mothers prefer to have their baby close to them all night long. They sleep better when they are near their child, and feel less tired. This makes co-sleeping a popular option. When your baby is in the bedroom with you, you can meet their needs during the night with fewer interruptions to your sleep.

Other experts, however, believe that parents should teach their babies to sleep alone, and get back to sleep on their own if they wake up. Some even suggest letting your child cry a while before responding. However, most parents choose to follow their instincts and console their baby.

Evidently, there is no one method that guarantees peaceful nights. Do what is best for your child. Be patient, and sooner or later your baby will sleep through the night. Then those sleepless nights will be nothing more than a good memory of everything you did for the child you always wanted and love with all your heart.