You want help getting newborn baby to sleep longer overnight. I hear you Mama, and you have come to the right place! The newborn stage can be tough, which is exactly why I created my Newborn Sleep Program. In it you will learn everything I know about newborn sleep, which is a lot!
Through my decade of sleep consulting, I know how much help families need in that first, brief portion of their baby’s life. And I also know there is a lot of contradictory information out there. Further, I acutely recall that when I had my first child people would tell me, “Don’t worry, things get so much better after week 12.” They may as well have said after year 12! That’s how it felt to hear that I’d need to endure another several weeks of the newborn stage. So, without further ado, here is a sneak peek of some of my best newborn sleep tips for the first 12 weeks of life.
Last Updated .
Photo Credit: Rene Asmussen
#1: Have realistic expectations.
I feel the need to put this at the top. Let’s remember, newborns are busy learning how to keep their bodies at the right temperature and HOW TO BREATHE. So give them, and yourself, a little break when it comes to expectations.
Before I gave birth, I read a certain popular baby sleep book that made me feel like if I did A + B, then my 8-week-old should definitely be doing C. If she wasn’t doing C, it was because I was doing something wrong. That’s crap. If your newborn isn’t sleeping well DO NOT SWEAT IT! Please. Just don’t. Even if you’re doing everything you’re supposed to there are a myriad of other factors at play.
Over half of all newborns suffer from painful reflux. Others lack the gut bacteria to properly digest many of the trace amounts of common foods found in breast milk, and thus have excruciating gas. And many are just unhappy being newborns. (This is just a personal theory here, but I SWEAR some children just hate being helpless newborns. I don’t blame them! Being a baby sucks sometimes.) Anyway, do your best (which I know you are since you’re here right now!), and then just let the rest go.
#2: Set up a proper sleeping environment.
The proper sleep environment will matter more and more as baby gets past the 6-week mark. Set up a room for your baby to sleep for naps and bedtime. The sooner your baby starts to associate darkness and loud white noise with sleep, the easier his or her life will be.
People always worry their baby will become addicted to or dependent on darkness and white noise, and then won’t be able to sleep without it. Newsflash: adults have sleep preferences too! I don’t like to sleep on planes, trains, or automobiles. I prefer sleeping in my bed, with my pillow, etc. Many adults swear they sleep just fine through any errant noise, but studies show that constant pink (what we think of as white) noise helps the brain go into more stable levels of sleep. You can also just not use white noise or darkness, and then see how that goes.
Most (not necessarily all) babies sleep better with loud white noise, and as-dark-as-possible darkness. This is a post about how to get your kiddo to sleep better, after all…
#3: Do not let your baby sleep longer than 2 hours at a time from 7 am to 7 pm.
This has got to be the single most effective thing you can do encourage your newborn to have longer stretches of sleep at night. Granted, this will literally be impossible to accomplish for most babies before 4 to 6 weeks. When those new newborns want to sleep, try as you might, they will not wake up. But, as soon as you see that you’re able to wake them up a bit, do so! Take off their clothes, expose them to cooler air, take them outside/expose them to sunlight, put them in a baby tub filled with lukewarm water… Simply put, do anything you can to wake them up if they’ve been asleep for longer than 2 hours.
Trust me on this one.
#4: Keep wake times to a minimum.
Wake times matter much less after the age of about 4 to 5 months, but they mean everything to a newborn. Keep those newborns awake for about 50 to 60 minutes (including feeding and changing time if they’re awake during the feeding), and then start to get them ready for a nap. A great routine: swaddle baby, take them to their room with darkness and white noise, and actively try to get them down for a nap.
Ideal wake times range depending on the age of your newborn and time of day. In a nutshell, the younger they are, the less time they’ll be able to stay comfortably awake (ie. 30-60 mins). And as they get older, awake time can stretch to as long as 90 minutes.
#5: Perfect your swaddle technique.
I can’t tell you how many parents tell me their kid hates the swaddle. But nothing could be further from the truth. In my experience, while there are a few babies that truly hate the swaddle, most parents mistake their child’s fussing for hate. Try to implement use of the swaddle for naps and at bedtime. Try it for several weeks for each sleep period before writing it off.
#6: Feed your baby every 2.5 to 3.5 hours during the day.
If possible, try to establish a cycle where your baby wakes up and eats immediately (while staying as awake as humanly possible). Then baby would remain awake to complete the 60 minutes of wake time. Followed by sleep for some amount of time. Then, of course, waking and eating again. This is a great way to ensure your kiddo gets as many calories during the day as possible, and hopefully sleeps longer stretches at night.
And there you have it mamas. I hope these quick tips help. And if you’d like more like this — sign up for my free newsletter with a free bedroom guide and tips! Also use the coupon code NewbornBlog10 at checkout for 10% off The Newborn Sleep Program.
Thank you Natalie! What do you recommend in terms of swaddling during the summer on hot days? It’s pretty warm in our apartment I can’t imagine bundling her during the day. Thanks!!
Hi Sigta,
If it’s especially warm a diaper and a very, very thin muslin swaddle should be okay. Always, always make it as cool as possible in the babies room as they’re worse off sleeping in a room that’s too warm over a room that’s too cold.
My almost 3 week old is cluster feeding from 9p-3a. Stays up almost the entire time. Then heavily sleeps from 5a-11a. She’s so backwards with her daytime/night time! We’ve been working on it and doing everything we can to switch it up. But no matter how often I wake her during the day, feed her during the day.. it doesn’t seem to matter! They say cluster feeding tends to be between 5p-11p. But she pushed hers way further into the night! I find myself only getting 20 minute increments of sleep sometimes. But she’s usually tossing and turning with gas in those increments! It’s been a rough 2nd time around the block!
Hi Alyssa,
She’s still quite little, so give both yourself and her a bit of grace as I suspect helping her adjust her schedule will get easier with time. Having said that, I’d suggest you essentially do EVERYTHING you can to wake her up all the way at 7 am (a bath may help as well as exposure to a lot of direct sunlight). Feed her while doing what you can to keep her alert. She’ll probably be ready to go to sleep again at 8 am.. Let her nap for no longer than 90 mins again, the wake her all the way up again. Once she’s fully awake, feed her and help her remain awake during the feed. Try your best to keep her up for about 45-60 mins, till she shows a tired sign, then allow her to nap again for no longer than 90 mins. After about 5-8 days, you may find her shifting her cluster feeding pattern to 7 pm to midnight.
I have tried a sleeping pattern with baby, when he was 3 weeks old, we only got ONE day where he slept for four hours at night, then it flew out the window the next day.
It does work, but you have to be consistent.
After this all failed, we went back to sleepless nights for a few days until, my baby automatically just done this himself without us using the steps
So glad to hear baby is sleeping better!
My one month old will NOT nap and I’ve finally caved and some days feed her to sleep so I can get some rest myself. She’s also started waking up every 2 hours at night again. When she does nap and I cap her naps at 2 hours she just seems so fussy and overtired from when she wakes up to when I’m finally able to get her down for another nap (sometimes well beyond the wake window). How do I get her to nap AND not be cranky when I cap her nap?
I’m doing all of these things and my 12 week old’s nighttime sleep is getting worse, not better. 🙁
This is TOTALLY a thing! Sometimes you do *everything* “right”, and newborns struggle at night. They may just REALLY want and need to be able to fall asleep on their own, in order to be able to sleep better overnight. Thankfully, once baby hits 16 weeks and you can officially sleep train, things will get a lot better.
Hi Natalie,our baby is 1 week old today and has started to reject and drink very little of the new formula particularly at night,this is a new shaped bottle and a new bottle nipple than she previously used.the previous formula she was using were pre made hospital formulas. A lot of the milk coming back up also. She seems to fall asleep while being fed at night and then as soon as she is put into her cot she wakes back up and begins to cry. It also seems she has her days and nights mixed up. Have you any advice.thanks in advance
Hi Aine,
I would call the pediatrician immediately and let them know about this feeding issue and follow whatever advice they give you to deal with the problem <3 Hang in there!!
My 10 week old was doing pretty well on the baby Why is scheduled for a while and was giving me long stretches up to eight hours occasionally. She gave me a 9 1/2 hour stretch one night and since then for the past 2 1/2 three weeks she has been waking up twice and has stopped with longer stretches. During the day she doesn’t like to sleep any longer than 30 minutes so I tend to hold her for a couple of those naps just to say to make sure she gets longer sleep and at night if I only hold her for a half hour she’s super fussy and doesn’t really want to nurse and it takes about two hours to put her down but she does seem to sleep longer when that happens. If I if I hold her for longer than 30 minutes and then nurse her she still kind of sleepy and goes right down after I nursed her but she’s also taking longer stretches when I’ve done that before so I have no idea what’s wrong
Hi Rebecca,
Nothing is wrong at all <3 she's just acting like a normal newborn. I'd do your best to get her and you as much sleep as possible in the safest way possible, then address these sleep issues when she's at least 16 weeks old counting from her due date by sleep training her.
Natalie
My 6.5 week old has started refusing naps. Or taking ridiculous short naps where last week he was going 2 hours per nap. The minute I put him down he wakes up or wakes up 20 minutes after being put down. Swaddled, dark room, white noise all being done. What’s happening?!?
Hi Kelsey,
He’s acting like a 100% normal newborn <3 I would simply keep trying each day to get him to nap in the crib. Honestly just because he's fighting it now does not mean he'll fight it tomorrow. He may struggle to sleep anywhere other than being held, but if you keep trying to have him sleep in the crib you may find he eventually accepts it and begins to sleep there. The worst case scenario is you'll struggle with this until it's time to sleep train him anytime 16 weeks of age or older counting from due date (and with approval from your pediatrician).
Hi Jen,
Remember my first point?? There will be lots of babies that simply are not great at sleeping regardless of what you do. What’s important to keep in mind is that while things may get worse, they CAN get better, too! Just hold tight until about month four, then tackle full blown sleep training then.
You have no idea how helpful this is. It’s exactly what I needed to read with my 4-week old! He has great 3-4 hour stretches from midnight to 10 a.m. with that hour feeding in the middle of the night, but 8 p.m. to midnight is KILLING ME!
Overall, I can’t complain too much. He’s actually a really good sleeper. Probably because he eats like a 3-4 month old… That’s a different blog post though.
My 8-week old is overall a good sleeper. Previously she would go to bed 10p-11p and give us stretches till 6am. I recently started her bedtime routine 7-8 and usually down by 830p with a dream feed (she’s normal half asleep/half awake) at 10:30p and if I didn’t wake her to dream feed she would sleep till about 2a-3a but then up every 3 hrs after that. She now will give us her long stretches from the time she went to sleep until 3a but then gets up every three hours so again at 6a. Should I be putting her down later? I really wish that long stretch was 11p-6am on not 8p-3a.
The pattern you’re describing is very biologically normal for her age. You can certainly attempt to move her bedtime later, but frankly what her body prefers is probably an earlier bedtime. You may see that she fights a later bedtime and is miserable at having to be awake at all after 6/7 pm.
Hi Anna,
Those first days/weeks are crazy!! Just hang in there and SURVIVE!!! 😉
I think my 6 week old son has his day and night flipped. How do I correct it?
Hi Lisa,
If you follow what you see above – forcing him to wake every 2 hours during the day and keep him awake for an hour – it shouldn’t take too long before his days and nights are flipped properly 🙂
My 5 week old hates to be swaddled but sleeps best when swaddled. She literally screams as we try to get her swaddled tight and it takes a good 5 minutes just to calm her back down, then more time to get her to sleep, and God forbid she wakes up to discover she’s swaddled. She grunts and fights it until she starts crying again. We’ve started using the Amazing Baby Arms Up swaddle sack instead. She does fairly well in it but we/she still hasn’t found a way to soothe herself to sleep. She hasn’t taken to a pacifier and she doesn’t suck her thumb because she can’t get to it at night in the swaddles.
We are stuck in an awful rocking/shushing/bouncing rut that gets old at night. She wakes up again as soon as we put her down. Any advice?
Hi Heather,
This is so, so common. I’d ask the pediatrician if it’s still a good idea to keep using one despite how upset she gets at first.
This cycle will likely be the way things are for the time being <3 You can resolve these issues with sleep training once she's 16 weeks old, but for now you may want to check out my newborn course to see if the resources there help you resolve the struggles you're currently having.
https://www.babysleeptrainer.com/purchase-newborn-program/
My 8 week old take pretty much only 40 minute naps during the day. How can I achieve the 2.5 to 3 hour cycle if I keep her up only am hour and then feeding her right when she wake up? Another question I have is that I have been going in to rock her after she wants up to try to extend the naps. Am I creating some bad habits for down the road? Thanks for your help. I really appreciate your blog.
In regards to how to stretch her cycle, first you could spend the 15-20 minutes after she wakes early from her nap trying to get her to fall back to sleep. You can try giving her the paci, or holding her in her dark room for a few minutes and see if she’ll go back down. Then, once you get her “up”, you can wait to feed her for about 15 minutes, then she’s on a 2 hr 15 minute cycle, and that’s just fine. The real goal is simply not to feed her to sleep – it doesn’t matter all that much how often you feed her as long as you’re not nursing her to sleep.
In regards to rocking her, I think you need to do the best you can 🙂 It’s always best to try to extend her naps other ways, perhaps using the paci or the swing, but she’s still a newborn, so don’t stress that much about it.
My 2 month old sleeps 4-6 hours when he goes to sleep at night (usually around 7-8pm) but is up every 1-2 hours after that. He just wants to be held or fed to sleep from that point. How can I get him to have longer stretches of sleep after that initial long stretch?
HI Michelle,
This is a super normal pattern for a newborn. It likely won’t resolve until they get a bit older <3
Hi Natalie,
Just wondering if you can elaborate on “ actively try to get them down for a nap” please. I have a 6 week old and it’s like pulling teeth to get him to sleep at night. He naps great in the daytime! We have a bedtime routine and have played around with his “bed time” but nothing seems to work.
Thank you!
Hi Shireen,
“Actively try to get them down for a nap” simply means to get your baby to fall asleep however they seem to most prefer (rocking. holding, bouncing, etc).
Hi Natalie!! Thank you for these tips, I’ve implemented them as best as I can for my 3.5week old – I swaddle for sleep time/naps, have a dark environment with white noise for bed time, and am working on limiting naps to 2 hrs during the day.
My current issue is keeping him awake long enough at night for a full feed. He falls asleep so soundly even wearing just a diaper I can’t get him to feed more! This means he’s up every 2 hours to feed, which means, by the time he falls asleep, I sleep about one hour at a time.
Can you recommend what I can do to get him to stay awake for night feeds, and sleep longer at night? Thanks so much!
I would just give it time. As baby grows older, it’ll be easier to keep them awake during overnight feeds <3 You may also want to check out my newborn course to see if there is anything else you could be doing during the day to help baby sleep better overnight.
https://www.babysleeptrainer.com/purchase-newborn-program/
can you start sleep training a 8 week old? she seems ti be sleeping less than before
Hi Nancy,
Technically you *can* start to train an 8 week old to fall asleep unassisted, but, it’s very hard and often requires a lot of emotional support. It’s more than okay to wait until closer to 14-16 weeks of age since at that time your baby will be better able tor regulate their daytime sleep into more substantive naps.
Hi Natalie~
I have a 8 wk old and was wondering if we should keep it dark with white noise even for naps.
Thank you!
Hi Kay,
Yes!! Definitely darkness and white noise for ALL sleep periods.
Hi Natalie,
Great website, what a wonderful resource! Have been sleep training my almost 8 week old since 6 weeks. If wake times are correct, he can go down with minimal to moderate fussing. Sometimes his naps are 1.5hr, sometimes 45minutes. If he wakes up after 45 minutes from a nap is it advisable to help him get back to sleep via rocking/paci, or will helping him undo and make him unlearn what he has accomplished so far in sleep training? Thank you!
Forgot to include: Will helping him back to sleep after a short nap create a habit of waking after 45 minutes? Thank you!
What’s your advice if you can’t get the baby to nap in the crib? Ours will nap only in the soft carrier or if lying with me post-nursing. Even if he is in deep sleep, he wakes up within 5-10 minutes of being transferred to the crib. 🙁 Makes it hard to get anything done.
Hi Clementine,
It purely depends on the age. If your baby is over the age of 14-16 weeks feel free to explore some different sleep training options and get started. Make a plan for yourself starting with bedtime then throughout the whole night and next day. That will help him start to learn to fall asleep unassisted.
My 8 week old will not nap in his crib. I’ve tried and he screams bloody murder. I go in and shush him ever couple of minutes but nothing is working. He won’t sleep unless on me 🙁 help!
Hi Sarah,
This is a REALLY common issue for newborns. The only things you can do is 1. keep trying, and 2. wait it out <3
I'd figure out which nap is the one each day baby seems to down easiest for, then try to make that one happen in the crib. It's possible the more used to it they get, the more time they'll tolerate napping there. Then, once baby is 16 weeks or older you can officially sleep train to remedy this issue.
https://www.babysleeptrainer.com/what-is-baby-sleep-training/
Hi Natalie, should the 2.5-3 hours in between feeding be from the BEGINNINGofbone feeding to the beginning of next? My 8 week takes 45min to eat and additional 30-40min to fall asleep and he cat naps. So then essentially I’m feeding him every hour from his last feeding ended. Can you kindly clarify? Thank you!
Geena yes, 2.5-3 hrs from the START of one feeding until the START of the next feeding. Now, in your case you can go up to 3.5 hrs if that works better for you, but 2.5-3 hrs is the sweet spot for a lot of babies.
My 3 week old only falls asleep while feeding and otherwise fights sleep. He will stay awake closely exhausted for hours unless I feed him to sleep. Any tips?
Thanks! Claire
I think you’ve found the thing that he loves for sleep <3 My Newborn program goes into details on other ways you might try to get him to fall asleep outside of nursing, but, keep in mind that nursing to sleep is 100% normal and something you can transition out of if/when you choose to formally sleep train.
https://www.babysleeptrainer.com/purchase-newborn-program/
https://www.babysleeptrainer.com/what-is-baby-sleep-training/
My son is 4 weeks old and can only fall asleep after nursing him . He has only one stretch of long sleep from 10-2pm but is up to feed every hour after that and also struggles to stay asleep before 10pm as well. He struggles with day time a sleeping as well unless he is held sleeping on my chest or if we are in car seat moving. Whenever we put him down in crib, swing andthing, he wakes himself up (startles) and cries. But I can’t get him to like his swaddle either which I know would help him, he screams his head off, night time sleep is kind of possible by the love to dream swaddle that has his hands up . Its so hard. Any suggestions or pointers?
Hey my baby has the exact same problems ! At 4 weeks old too. Any pointers ? He loves having his arms beside his head when he falls asleep so hates swaddling.
Also , is sleepy after i feed him during the day then super awake and doesn’t settle if I wake him up after feeding during the day.
Oh yes SO many!! I’d check out my Newborn Program – all my tips are included there <3 https://www.babysleeptrainer.com/purchase-newborn-program/
Hi Natalie. I’m a new member here! I have an 8 week old and since we have brought her home from the hospital, she shouldn’t sleep in her halo bassinet. We put her in a dock a tot in our bed and have taken all precautions to make it safe. She sleeps fine in it, but I don’t! I’m constantly checking on her. Also, I’m starting to freak out about her getting use to this so last night I tried to put her in her bassinet and she didn’t sleep at all! From 11-4am I tried and tried. I finally gave in and put her back in the dock a tot and she fell asleep. I’m literally lethargic and need to start sleeping more. I’m going crazy. Please help! Any advice on transitioning her!?
Hi menaa116! So glad you found me! And so sorry you’re so tired! Have you checked out my Newborn Sleep Program yet (under my Pricing tab)? It’s packed full with all of my newborn sleep tips and tools to get better sleep for baby at night and during the day. <3
How do I get my eight week old to go longer than two hours betwwwn feeds at night?
Hi Lindsay! I think you would really love my Newborn Sleep Series (https://www.babysleeptrainer.com/purchase-newborn-program/)! In this program I give you ALL of my tips and tools for elongating nighttime sleep. Please check it out! <3
Hi, my 8 week old hates day sleeps! (Night time is great)
He is awake around 7am, has bottle and awake time for about 1hour-1.5hours) then once he starts showing tired signs I take him into his room, close the blinds, white noise on, swaddle and put him down… to the second within 45mins he is awake, I’ve tried resettling him etc but nothing works… if I get him up he is just tired and cranky… I’m aiming for him to have 2 2-3hour sleeps a day with a nap of an afternoon as he goes to sleep by 6:30/7 at night… what am I doing wrong??
Hi Tamika!!
45 mins is actually a great length nap. it’s unlikely they’ll get much longer (consistently) until he’s over 6/7 months of age. Many/most newborns don’t sleep 2 hours for naps.
Hi Natalie
Looking for some advise. I have a 2.5 month old who will only sleep on me at night. I have tried everything to get her in her own bassinet, Rock n play, swing etc. she will catnap for about 30 minutes and instantly wakes and cries and cries. It seems she is only happy and will sleep through the night only waking for one feeding between 2-4am. I’ve started having a bath time and feed afterwards and then put her down when she is dead asleep and she wakes instantly. I’ve tried pacifiers and swaddles – it is hit or miss with her with the swaddle and the pacifier she will lose after a few minutes and can’t put it back in her mouth so she roots for it and eventually gets frustrated waking herself up all over again. She seems to young to cry it out and I’ve tried letting her cry for 2 minutes and then going in to comfort her but that doesn’t seem to help. How can I get her to sleep in the bassinet we have in our room? Any guidance or suggestions are appreciated!
*shes really happy only sleeping on me! (Just realized I left that part out)
I think you would really benefit from my Newborn Sleep Program!: https://www.babysleeptrainer.com/purchase-newborn-program/ – it has ALL of my tips, tricks, and knowledge on newborn sleep (0-16 weeks). She sounds like a pretty typical newborn though, and employing some of my methods could help you and her get a bit more sleep at night at throughout the day! <3
My 4 almost 5 weeks old stays awake for around 2-3 hours during the day and when she falls asleep she will nap for over 2 hours – should I wake her up or catch up on her sleep?
It’s your call, but waking her at the two hour mark may help her push her longer stretch of sleep to happen overnight instead of during the day.
Hi Natalie,
What are the cons with nursing baby to sleep?
Hi!! Nothing really in the newborn stage, other than that it’s a hard habit to break when they’re a bit older <3
Natalie,
I’ve been waking my newborn every 2 hours during the day but she’s still waking every 1-2 hours during the night… HELP! Any suggestions?
Hi Natalie,
My baby does not nap a lot and has long wake times (he plays happily) than the “normal” amount. His is now 6 weeks. His wake times are sometimes 2.5-3 hrs and this is from when he was 2 weeks old! Is this normal?
Also now he is falling into a pattern, but it includes a 4:30 am poop and the. He is wide awake after that and may just take a 10 min nap after… Is there anyway to change this?
If he’s happy, healthy, and thriving/growing, then yes assume this is normal. The early morning waking is tough and you may not be able to resolve it until you choose to sleep train anytime 16 weeks of age or older.
Hi Natalie,
You said 60 minutes of wake time should include if they’re awake for feeding. What does “awake” during feeding really mean? Ha. My 4 week old will often times have her eyes closed but she’s actively sucking so must be awake right? So even if her eyes are close would the 60 minutes include that feed time?
Also you said, up to 90 minutes of awake time as they get older. At what age would that start?
Thanks!
Leslie
Hi Leslie,
I would count awake as eyes open 🙂 And the 90 mins sort of happens gradually. You’ll see that baby doesn’t show tired signs anymore around 60 mins and gradually it just gets longer and longer.
Thanks Natalie!!
Hi Natalie,
My 6 week old has been sleeping for only 45 minute stretches during the day! Night sleeps are about 2 hours from 10pm – 2am…. then shes up sqirming constantly until 7am. It looks like she sleeps about 15 minutes and then sqirms/wiggles/makes all kinds of noises, then sleeps another 15 minutes. It doesn’t seem like shes getting good sleep at all. HELP!
Hi,
Every time my 5 week old wakes up he thinks it’s time for a feed and cries until he’s fed no matter if he’s been asleep for 10 minutes (directly after a feed) or 3 hours so I don’t know how I would wake him up after two hours without having to feed him. Can you help?!?
Thank you!
Hello Suzanne,
This is so, so normal for newborns. I would encourage you to feed on demand around this age – if you deem that crying means baby is hungry, feed him. If it has not yet been 90 minutes since baby last ate, you may find using a pacifier is helpful, but it is very possible at this age that baby may simply need to eat quite often and that his cries denote genuine hunger. The idea of waking baby after two hours applies if the baby himself sleeps for two hours. Many newborns sleep for far shorter periods, thus eating frequently, and that’s just fine.
Hi Natalie, How do you deal with timing when baby only naps 30 minutes? If I feed upon waking, it’s usually only 2 hrs and breasts would only offer a smaller feed. This starts a terrible 2 hr cycle of eating! Also, our 11 week old has no self soothing skills, he’s almost found his thumb, and we have to rock, shush, sway to sleep EVERY time. Do we just continue doing this until we’re ready for sleep training in a couple of months?
Hi Jessica, if you feel baby needs to eat more often, feed him more often
And yes, keep doing whatever baby needs in order to fall asleep until you formally sleep train him any time you feel ready after 16 weeks of age.
Hi Natalie!
At what age do you suggest implementing putting baby in crib drowsy but awake? My baby is 4.5 weeks and will not do this on his own. Does your newborn class cover how to get them down for naps easier? Sometimes it takes 30+ minutes and then I get into an overtired baby situation.
Also, he refuses the last nap of the day and is generally up from 6-9, nursing about every 70 minutes but then is hard to get down, have to rock about an hour. Do I keep trying to add in a nap??
Hi Lily,
I never recommend putting baby down drowsy but awake. As a newborn you can *try* to put baby down awake and see if they can fall asleep on their own, but that’s basically what sleep training is. Baby will most likely cry when left alone and there’s no reason to do that at the newborn stage.
Yes, the newborn class goes into extreme detail on how to get baby (and by extension, you) as much sleep as possible within those first 16 weeks of life.
“Also, he refuses the last nap of the day and is generally up from 6-9, nursing about every 70 minutes but then is hard to get down, have to rock about an hour. Do I keep trying to add in a nap??”
He’s likely cluster feeding/tanking up for the night. This is 100% a normal biological behavior and you’ll want to feed him as often as he desires during this (and all other times) of the day.
Natalie
I just signed up for your program! My 11 week old has been great with naps this past week — goes down on his own in a swaddle in the bassinet and sleeps 1-2 hours throughout the day. The problem is his nights are very similar. Eat, sleep, eat, sleep about every 2 hours. It’s like he’s napping at night without the Wake part. How can I stretch this out? I’m going to try a dream feed but how does it work if we’re sharing a room? Can I go straight to sleep or should I leav
Hi Emily,
Welcome to the newborn course. I’d try limiting all naps from 7 am to 7 pm (or whatever “daytime” is for baby) to no more than 60-75 minutes. Ideally reducing daytime sleep will increase nighttime sleep stretches.
Hi, my baby is 3 and a half weeks old. Only in the last few days she has had trouble napping during the day. She will only fall asleep when we hold her. As soon as I put her in the Moses basket she wakes up. When we do eventually get her to sleep in the basket it’s only for less than an hour.
We use a swaddle, we turn the noise level in the house right down and I’ve tried making the room darker.
Hi Talitha,
What you’re describing is so, so normal. You’re doing everything right – just keep trying and with time it may improve. Some newborns truly will refuse to sleep anywhere but in someone’s arms. In my Newborn program you may find additional tips that will help with this issue.
https://www.babysleeptrainer.com/purchase-newborn-program/
Hang in there!!
My 5 week old baby wakes up in the middle of the night for several hours and won’t go back to sleep. I try everything. I mean, I’m as desperate as a mother who has other children to wake up to and their newborn is awake from 4 am-8 am. It feels like I’m living on dumb luck if she actually sleeps at night and it suuuucks because I have other kids and none of them slept (or didn’t sleep ) this horribly. I’ve done most of everything you recommended before I found this and I’m really hoping trying the rest of these works because I’m so desperate.
Hi Cece,
I’m so sorry you’re struggling through this. I think you might find the info found in the Newborn course especially helpful as it will give you all the guidance I have for how to help newborns sleep as well as they can overnight.
https://www.babysleeptrainer.com/purchase-newborn-program/
Hi,
My little on is 6 weeks old. He sleeps ok during the night but will not still during the day unless his in the pram or sling. I can tell he’s really tired. If I do manage to get him to sleep, he will wake up after 10-20 minutes and he would only sleep on me.
Hi Katrina,
This is totally normal (thought obviously very tiring for you). I have a newborn course you may find especially helpful right now.
Hang in there!!
https://www.babysleeptrainer.com/purchase/
Hi Natalie
I have a 2 month old who im struggling with at nights. She will sleep 20-40 mins and than wake up crying until we settle her once again. This goes on all through out the night its been hard . What do you recommend in terms of stopping this from happening ? Its been going on for too long. Plz help
Hi Diana,
I’m so sorry you’re struggling with this. I know first hand those newborn nights can be brutal :/ Beyond what’s written in this article, I think you’d find the Baby Sleep Trainer newborn course to be especially helpful in you resolving this issue.
https://www.babysleeptrainer.com/purchase-newborn-program/
My son is 4 weeks old. He sleeps for 1-2 hours max in a go at night. We are really struggling with his awake times though, he fights sleep no matter how much we rock, feed and settle him. Then this effects his sleep. He probably wakes at 5am to feed and then I try get him down for 6, sometimes he does and other days he will stay up till about 8 before his nap.
We have to do lots of naps in the pram as he just will fight sleep otherwise. In the evening we bath him, change him, feed him and try get him to bed between 7-9pm.
Do you have any tips for fighting sleep, as I think this then effects his sleep.
We also think he could have tummy troubles or reflux.
Thanks!
Hi Much!!
Beyond what I’ve shared in this blog post, you may want to check out my Newborn Program as it may have the help you need to remedy this issue with your little one. Hang in there!!
https://www.babysleeptrainer.com/purchase-newborn-program/
Hi Natalie!
We have a 3 month old who will not sleep in her bassinet or her crib for naps or bedtime. As soon as she gets put down in either one she instantly wakes up and screams bloody murder!!!
She doesn’t like sleeping with the lights on or off and she doesn’t like white noises.
She falls asleep to sensory videos but as soon as I move her to her crib (from falling asleep with us) she wakes up.
Hello Kailynn,
This is so normal for this age group. It sounds like you are doing your best right now. I’d suggest you simply continue doing the best you can until she hits 16 weeks of age from her due date, then consider sleep training her at that time.
https://www.babysleeptrainer.com/what-age-can-i-sleep-train-my-baby/
Hi! My 6 week old baby basically refuses to sleep. This is our 3rd kid and we’ve never experienced anything like this. During the day; we keep her room at a good temperature, dark, white noise machine. We will be trying for over 2 hours at a time to get her to nap. She will start falling asleep, then wake up crying. Swaddled/ unswaddled makes no difference. She will not take a pacifier. We hold her, rock her, bounce her, and everything else which makes no difference . She will also be screaming/ crying the majority of the time. We’ve tried putting her down and letting her cry thinking she will tire herself out, but tbt doesn’t work either. We typically can get 1 or 2 naps for her during the day (lasting 1.5-2.5 hours) and at night we are sometimes able to get one 3 hour stretch in. We are exhausted and don’t know what else to do!
Hi Lauren,
I’m so sorry this is happening!! I know it can be incredibly tough. I wonder if using a swing might help, in addition to darkness and loud white noise. Whatever happens, hang in there – these issues tend to resolve as babies grow older <3
Natalie
Hi Natalie,
Our 12 week old used to give us 3-4 hour (sometimes even 5 hour!) stretches at night, but as of the last two weeks or so, we are lucky if we get 2.5 hours at a stretch. He also wakes – and stays awake – around 5am, regardless of what time he goes down for the night (8-10pm).
We haven’t done anything differently, and he’s always been a so-so napper during the day… not sure what to do, but getting frustrated we are getting LESS sleep as he gets older :/
Thank you,
Emma
Hi Emma,
This is not an uncommon shift as newborns grow into infants. I know it can be frustrating. If baby is ever taking long naps during the day, I’d limit their length to no more than 90-120 minutes for any single nap. Also make sure baby is sleeping in as dark a room as possible with white noise. It may be that this issue isn’t resolvable at this time, but as soon as baby hits 16 weeks of age you can sleep train them so they learn to become an independent sleeper and overcome this issue.
I have been trying all of these things for weeks yet my baby still wake every 3-4 hrs at night! Hellpp!!!
Hi Reann,
Sometimes no matter what you do, newborns wake frequently overnight. Some need to eat that often and so their bodies will wake them up. You may want to check out my Newborn course because that may help you achieve longer stretches of overnight sleep.
https://www.babysleeptrainer.com/purchase-newborn-program/
My baby is 3 months old and waking every 2 hours through out the night, I am doing all the tips you suggest. How do I get him to go longer? I am breast feeding but give him a bottle of formula at 5pm ish and try to give him a dream feed bottle if he’ll take it. He must be waking/feeding for comfort as he can’t be hungry every 2 hours? Shall I leave him to cry and resettle regardless of how long he cries before resettling? By that stage he’ll of course be hungry again. What do you suggest? I’ve sleep trained him so he goes down at 7pm ish with a few tears but settles himself eventually. Likewise day time sleeps I let him cry it out to sleep.
Hi Sarah,
It’s not possible to know if he’s hungry or not – this is something to discuss with your pediatrician. It’s important to ensure he’s growing, your supply is strong, etc.
I would wait until he’s 16 weeks of age counting from due date then check out my online sleep training courses. They will help you work through his night wakings and on what to discuss with your pediatrician before embarking on the sleep training process.
https://www.babysleeptrainer.com/purchase/
Natalie
My 3 week old will only sleep on me for naps and nighttime sleep. I keep trying the bassinet but after 30 min he’s crying until picked up. He sleeps on me just so we can all get some rest. Is this starting a bad habit or is this normal? My other two boys never had this issue as newborns.
Any suggestions or will it get better?
Thank You,
Nikki
My 1 week old baby today has now started to truly wake up more often at night. During the day he sleeps really well hours on end. I try and feed him now every 4 hours with about 3 ounces and it’s going great so far. At night I try to set up a night time routine where we do tummy time, read books and a possible wipe down/shower. I know he’s too young to sleep train but I don’t know why he won’t sleep longer at night. During the day we use the pacifier and he likes it. It stays in his mouth and we have no issues. However at night it’s an issue so I stopped using it. He will allow it to fall out of his mouth and cry every time and he did it soo frequently that I told myself that he shouldn’t use it. During the night he will eat just a little and then fall asleep and wake up over and over. I don’t know what to do.
Hi Natalie!! Thank you for these tips, I’ve implemented them as best as I can for my 3.5week old – I swaddle for sleep time/naps, have a dark environment with white noise for bed time, and am working on limiting naps to 2 hrs during the day.
My current issue is keeping him awake long enough at night for a full feed. He falls asleep so soundly even wearing just a diaper I can’t get him to feed more! This means he’s up every 2 hours to feed, which means, by the time he falls asleep, I sleep about one hour at a time.
Can you recommend what I can do to get him to stay awake for night feeds, and sleep longer at night? Thanks so much!
Hi, my 6.5 week old is slowly sleeping less as less during the day. He will only sleep one sleep cycle in his bed (45minutes ish) before he fully wakes crying. I have tried to settle in the cot with no success. Sometimes if I pick him up he goes back to sleep or just wakes up entirely. He sleeps ok through the night. Only sleeping about 3-4 hours at a time with feeds in between. He also gets held for sleeping between 6:30/7ish until his bath at 9:30 and feed at 10. I’m confident he will continue to get better and longer through the night but the day naps of 45 minutes are hard. Especially to keep the eat play sleep routine with him.,
Hi Tiff,
What you’re describing is 100% normal. For now, this may be the most he is capable of napping length wise. With time, his naps should lengthen. If you can get him to go back to sleep with help to get a longer nap, go for it!
After starting daycare this past week my 11 week old has went from 5-6 hour sleep stretches to only 3 hour sleeps at night.
We used to put her down at 10 and she would sleep til about 3 and each time she woke up she would be giggly but now she is exhausted after daycare so we put her down at 8ish and she will only do 3 hour sleeps and wakes up screaming now. She’s gone to bed completely passed out as well as putting herself to sleep and same results.
She gets 3-4 naps averaging about an 1 each during the day from 7-7
Hello Brooklyn,
This sounds like a tough spot. Hopefully this blog post will help!
https://www.babysleeptrainer.com/daycare-and-sleep-training/
Hi Natalie,
Thanks for your tips. My 5 week old boy has not slept for 4 hours yet day/night. He could do 45-1 hour mostly and sometimes 2 hours. He’s been breastfed and we have enough wet nappies plus I feed him conscious 20 minutes from each side to determine he is eating well. I have 2 older girls and I haven’t found them this challenging. I feel like there’s no improvement. I swaddle, keep the room dark and go by all those rules, but nothing has worked out, it is very challenging with two more other kids. Please send some love to me. Thank you.
Hi Vindya,
Some little ones truly do need to eat that frequently. Having said that, I’d check in with the pediatrician to ensure baby is growing properly and getting enough to eat.
I switched my 3 week old to cluster feed during late afternoon – evening between 4 and 10. Her last feeding is usually at 10-10:30 and then she goes down for the night. She usually gives me 2-2.5 hour stretches in between feedings at night but after 4:30-5 am feeding, she will only sleep for 30 min and I would have to go rock her back to sleep. She also will do the same with her naps after that – will not stay asleep longer than 30 minutes. I’m not sure what I am doing wrong or should be doing to extend her naps/early morning sleeping schedule.
You’re not doing a thing wrong <3 This is just totally normal newborn behavior. I'd encourage you to check out BST's Newborn course. You may find it provides actionable advice that will help baby's sleep improve. https://www.babysleeptrainer.com/purchase-newborn-program/
My 3 week old will only sleep on us. We have tried swaddling, sleep sac, and nightlight/sound machine and nothing helps. Any recommendations?
my 11 week old is starting to sleep 7/8 hour stretch without a bottle. However that stretch is 6/7pm-2am. How do i push it back to be like 9pm-5am?