By Daily Press staff
When babies are new it seems they sleep all of the time, but they also wake frequently to eat — disrupting their parents’ normal sleep patterns. By about 3 months old, however, most babies will have developed a sleep routine that is manageable to parents.
By age 3 months, most sleep is being accomplished at night. Daytime sleeping has become more predictable, with increasingly longer periods of wakefulness. Naps and bedtimes are beginning to follow a schedule.
As babies mature, they sleep for longer periods at night. By 3 months, most babies can sleep for about five to six hours straight, and by 6 to 9 months, most infants are sleeping about nine hours at night without waking to be fed.
You can help your infant develop good nighttime sleep patterns by setting a bedtime routine as early as 3 months. The routine can be as simple as singing a nursery rhyme. Later, older children will enjoy being read a story, said Dr. Jeffrey Penso, a pediatrician with Saint John’s Health Center in Santa Monica. It is important to have the house quiet during bedtime and to keep the lights low, he added.
Try not to let your baby fall asleep anywhere but the crib. It’s important for babies to fall asleep on their own rather than in your arms. Falling asleep on their own teaches independence.
It’s normal for children and adults to wake up briefly during the night for a few minutes, but they should be able to fall back asleep without any trouble. If you hear your baby wake up at night, give them a few minutes to fall back asleep by themselves.
However, if your baby needs you to help them fall back asleep, go to your baby and pat them gently or sing a song. Keep the lights low and keep the noise down. It may be helpful to keep a night light in your child’s room. The low light will comfort them when they do wake up, and a night light will allow you to see without turning on the overhead lights. Make sure anything you need for a diaper change is easily accessible. It’s important not to wake the baby any more than necessary.
Most importantly, try to keep your child in his crib, said Dr. Penso. Sit in the room with your baby and give him reassurance, but do not take him out of the crib. You may want to hang a mobile over the crib or place a few safe toys in your baby’s crib. Some children like to play for a minute and then go back to sleep.
When they are new, babies take many naps each day. By 6 months, most babies are fine taking two naps daily. By about 1 years old, they need only a single nap. Referred to as a “power nap,” the single nap is usually two to three hours in duration. At this age, babies are usually sleeping 10 or more hours a night.
Even if it seems your baby won’t sleep, don’t despair. Children eventually adjust their own sleep needs to the routine you set.
Experts like Dr. Penso at Saint John’s Health Center in Santa Monica are on hand to help you learn how to care for your baby. To find a physician, log onto the Saint John’s Web site at www.stjohns.org. Select “Find a Physician” and respond to the computer prompts. Browsers can choose from a wide range of specialists, which are then sorted by location, gender and language.
To learn more about the Health Center’s state-of-the-art birthing suites or to take a tour of the McAlister Women’s Health Center and the Maria Shriver Nursery at Saint John’s, call (310) 829-8794.
Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on February 15, 2005. Read the original PDF.