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How much sleep do children need? - Baby sleep time

There is no simple answer, because a baby is not a simple algorithm. Every baby, just like every adult, is different and has its own needs. However, the most important thing is that your toddler should sleep for as many hours as his or her body needs for proper development.

How much does a newborn sleep? Can a baby sleep too much?

Before the baby comes into the world, it seems to us that for the first week he or she will only eat and sleep, and we will be watching the sweet little face with awe. And theoretically, a newborn baby sleeps the vast majority of a day - up to 20 hours! This time is interrupted only for changing diapers, feeding, bathing and brief activities of the baby. How much a two-week-old newborn sleeps depends on how much time nursing and food takes, but it will take 16 to 20 hours of sleep a day to support proper development.

In the following sections of the article we will answer the important questions of like sleep schedule for 3 month old, bedtime routine for 3 month old or bedtime routine for 6 week old baby as well as other baby development stages..

What are the possible time intervals between eating time? When to wake a baby for feeding?

Same newborns are real sleepyheads and it's hard to wake them up even for feeding. Especially babies with low birth weight and premature babies - they have less strength and need even more sleep. They will not signal that they are hungry with loud crying as they are sleeping so soundly. In such situations, parents must remember to wake the baby up for feeding. It is very important that newborns receive food regularly and that they gain weight with each passing week. Sometimes a baby sleeps so soundly that it is difficult to wake him up and even harder to force him to the effort of eating, but it is necessary for him/her to develop properly. Newborns should eat at least 10 times a day, i.e. approximately every 3-4 hours. So, although we are happy that the toddler wants to sleep through the night, we have to set the alarm clock and feed him/her regularly.

What’s proper baby sleep time? What to do if your baby sleeps too much?

Babies grow quickly and their needs change over time - they do not want to sleep all day long, they prefer to look around a bit and observe the world. They notice faces of the loved ones, the first shapes and colors, they need activities. Hence, less and less sleep. Don't get used to how much a 2-week-old baby sleeps, because that will change in a moment. So, don't be surprised that after 6 weeks your little one won't be napping for hours. In the following months, the baby's sleep time is shortened and the time of being active extends.

See how much, on average babies sleep at specific age:

- 6 weeks-old: 15-16 hours a day

- 4-6 months-old: 9-12 hours with 2 additional naps

- 9-12 months-old: 11-12 hours with 2 additional naps

- 1-year-old: 10-11 hours with 2 additional naps

Child's sleep phases. Bedtime routine for baby.

Although newborns sleep most of the day, their sleep looks completely different than that of adults. It is also divided into REM (light sleep) and NREM (deep sleep) phases. But while in adults, deep sleep lasts as much as 1.5 hours and is intertwined with a dozen or so minutes of light sleep several times a night, newborns and infants spend as much as 80% of the time sleeping in the light sleep phase! Why? Because that's when their brain develops most intensively. During REM sleep, the baby may move the eyeballs, spin around in bed, and even groan or cry suddenly. This is perfectly normal - the nervous system is still immature in the first weeks after birth and the baby may awake many times during sleep.

Over time, these proportions change and the little one learns to sleep through the night. 

How much does the newborn sleep? How to establish a bedtime routine for baby?

Sometimes it seems to us that our baby cannot fall asleep properly, but constantly takes short naps. This is also perfectly normal and depends on a child. Some children fall asleep for only a few dozen minutes, waking up quickly and many times a day. Others have less naps, but they last several hours. We have to accept that our toddler already has individual routine and wait for his /her daily rhythm to stabilize over time. From the first days at home, it is worth trying to develop a constant daily rhythm - eating, bathing and sleeping, so that your child quickly gets used to it and begins to distinguish daytime naps from night sleep.

How to tuck a newborn baby to sleep? How much should newborns sleep

Remember that a newborn baby is just learning the rhythm of the day and it will take some time. The day passed completely differently in mum's belly. When a woman is active during the day, the baby moves in her belly and, lulled by the motion, most often falls asleep peacefully. And when the expectant mother goes to bed, the baby begins its activity and playtime.

After birth, everything changes - instead of a warm, cozy tummy and rocking, there is a crib and a blanket. Everything is new and different. It takes time to get used to a new place, new smells, voices and rituals. Each baby also needs a lot of closeness and love of his family to get used to the new world faster.

It is important for the first weeks of life to provide your baby with conditions that are as similar as possible to those in the mother's belly. This will help him/her adapt more easily to new environment. The toddler's tummy is warm and quite tight, so it is worth wrapping the baby in a swaddle – the baby feels safe then and wakes up less often while sleeping.

Babies also love to fall asleep to the white noise, because they heard similar sounds in their mother's tummy. myHummy humming teddy bears come to the rescue here. They hum as many as 5 types of white and pink noises to adjust to the preferences of your baby. myHummy teddy bears are certified and safe from the first day of life. The noises soothe the baby and help fall asleep faster.