By this point, your baby needs from 12 to 16 hours of sleep, including daytime naps [1]. But what is the best way to make this happen?
Stick to a routine
Children love predictability, so try to put your baby to bed at the same time every day. How can you determine their bedtime? Your baby will give you hints, they will start rubbing their eyes and winding down, or they may also cry or act up. It’s important not to let the baby become overly tired [2].
The most significant sleep for a baby happens between 10 pm and 6 am [3]. But putting them to bed too early or too late or having an irregular schedule can lead to frequent night wakings.
Put your baby in the crib before they fall into a deep sleep
It helps your baby learn how to fall asleep on their own. Your baby may suffer from separation anxiety when they realize you are not with them [4]. You can soothe them by talking in a calm voice, rubbing their tummy, the bridge of their nose, and between the eyebrows. Try to avoid taking them out of the crib.
Always keep in mind that babies under one year old should be put to sleep on their backs [5].
Help them ease into sleep with:
- A dark room (try using blackout curtains).
- White noise (you will find it in our app ).
- Nightly bedtime rituals like reading to them.
What about daytime naps?
By five to six months, most babies sleep three times a day. However, their third nap only lasts 30 to 45 minutes and will soon disappear from their sleep schedule [6]. To find out if your baby is ready to switch from three daytime naps to two, answer the following questions [6]:
Is the baby sleeping less than ten hours during the night?
- Does the baby stay awake at night for two or three hours several times a week?
- Is the baby skipping one of their three naps at least four times a week?
- Are all three naps suddenly shorter, even though they used to last for at least an hour?
If you answered "yes" to a few of these questions, start increasing your child's waking time to two or two and a half hours in the morning and then to two and a half to three hours before the second nap. You can extend the window of wakefulness by 15 minutes every day or every other day until the last nap is eliminated [6].
