Surviving Baby Sleep Regressions: Understanding the Causes and Expert Tips to Help You Cope

The dreaded sleep regressions. You feel like baby is FINALLY on a good schedule, sleeping well, and then BAM it all suddenly falls apart. They start taking short naps, refusing naps, having more night wakings, wakes early in the morning…sleep just becomes a mess!

There are many potential sleep regressions. Not all babies will hit each one. Some babies may hit more than others. Sleep regressions typically last a couple of weeks. If it lasts longer than that, there may be something else going on.

Sleep regressions can happen at anytime, not just when it is “expected”. All babies develop differently, but this can give you an idea of when they can happen, and what may be the causing it.

The most important things to do to get through them are to:

1. Stay consistent.

2. Make sure baby has the right schedule.

3. Don’t get discouraged…you will get through it!

If you need more help getting through them, I'm here to help! Book a consult!

Age: (approx.)	What’s Happening?	What to do:
6 Weeks	Baby is becoming more alert, so they push through their sleepiness and become overtired.	1. Prevent Overtiredness: Get baby to sleep BEFORE they become tired. Watch those wake windows (60-90 min) and sleepy cues (staring off, subtle yawning, reddish around eyes) 2. Prevent Overstimulation: If baby has been awake for about 60 minutes and seems to be wide awake, take them to a quiet, dark space and help them calm down to fall asleep.
3 Months	Short naps happen	“Save” the nap. If the nap is less than 1 hour, rock or soothe baby back to sleep, until the nap has lasted an hour.
4 Months	Baby’s brain is changing to get a deeper, more restorative sleep, and learning to connect sleep cycles.	It’s time to teach baby independent sleep skills, so they can fall asleep on their own, and fall back asleep when they do wake up between sleep cycles.
6 Months	Baby is growing and developing and learning new skills, and may be getting ready to drop a nap. (~7 months)	If baby has independent sleep skills, let them hang out in their crib for a while and fall back asleep on their own. If they are awake for an hour, go in and help them get back to sleep. If baby does not have independent sleep skills, now is a good time to start teaching that.
8 Months	Teething, learning new skills	Make sure their schedule is appropriate for them (wake windows around 2-3 hours), getting 14-15 hours of sleep a day. If it is development related (they are learning sitting, crawling, etc) spend a lot of time through the day practicing that skill, so they can master it.
10 Months	Baby starts fighting naps. Don’t let them fool you, they are not yet ready to drop a nap just yet.	1. Be Consistent-Keep naptime the same, even if baby is not falling asleep during that hour. 2. Make sure their schedule is good for them. They still need 2 solid naps, lasting about 60-90 min each. 3. Make sure baby can initiate sleep on their own.
12 Months	Lots of development happening! Walking, talking, understanding more, and may be getting ready to drop a nap. (~14 months)	1. Be Consistent-Keep naptime the same, even if baby is not falling asleep during that hour. 2. Make sure their schedule is good for them. They still need 2 solid naps, lasting about 60-90 min each. (Around 14 months, they will drop to one nap, in the middle of the day, lasting about 90 min-2 hours). 3. Make sure baby can initiate sleep on their own.
15 Months	Toddler protesting naps and may need to drop to one nap.	If they have not dropped to one nap, they are probably ready to do it now. You may need to have a couple days a week with two naps still, to help with the transition to one nap and prevent overtiredness. It can take a few weeks to figure out the new schedule.
18 Months	FOMO (Fear of missing out) and separation anxiety.	1. Be Consistent. Toddlers thrive on consistency, so keep the bedtime routine the same, so they don’t have to guess what is or is not going to happen. 2. Give choices. Toddlers love feeling in control. Have them choose everything possible before bed. (what pjs to wear, what color cup to use, what flavor of toothpaste, what book to read) 3. Have clear boundaries. Toddlers need predictability. Have a plan for how to meet their needs. (ex. You can sit by their bed, but they have to stay in bed)
2 Years	FOMO, and asserting independence	-If a nap isn’t happening, make it “quiet time”. -If early morning wakings are happening, use an “ok to wake” clock. -If they are waking in the middle of the night, be responsive to their fears, add a nightlight if needed, but maintain your boundaries so they do not start the habit of sleeping in your bed, if you do not want that.