How much sleep does my baby need? It’s a question every new mum googles relentlessly. Sleep varies from baby to baby and just like us, babies are variable in their sleep needs! Whilst some babies might have solid nights and lengthy naps, other babies will need less sleep and have shorter nights and shorter naps. That said, whilst “low sleep needs” is used a lot to describe a baby that is not sleeping as much as their peers, it could be that there are other things to optimise in baby’s day and environment that are going to help them become higher sleep needs! I don’t love the term low sleep needs as it tends to discount those babies who are not sleeping very much, or very easily but that actually could do better with a little more help and support along their way to make them comfortable.
The guidelines below are taken from the National Sleep Foundation and detail roughly how much sleep a baby needs at different stages in their babyhood.
How much sleep does a baby need?
- Newborns 0-4 months: 16-18 hours a day
- 6-12 months: 12-16 hours a day
The amount of sleep a child needs does vary from one baby to another and it will also vary depending on where you read the information too – some sleep experts disagree with the idea that a baby can sleep 12 hours during the night time and others write books on that very notion. Remember that as a parent, you can optimise your baby’s sleep but you cannot force them to sleep any more than they need or want to!
In my extensive experience as a baby sleep coach, I would always want to be aiming for 10+ hours at night for a baby who is under 12 months, and this doesn’t change too significantly in toddlerhood either. It is important to understand that you may not reach exactly 12 hours (aka the magic 7am-7pm), but anything over 10 is great, with most babies I work with reaching 11+ hours in their time spent working with us.
How to factor in night feeds
A lot of parents will commonly as questions like whether night feeds are included in that 11- 12 hours overnight, and the answer is…yes. If your baby is still at the age where they need night feeds then if they are feeding in the night, assuming it is just a feed and then straight back to sleep, then I would just include that in the 11-12 hours.
For example, a 5-month-old baby might be feeding for up to an hour in their night time period, and this can still be included in that 10-12 hours that you as a parent will likely be aiming for.
However, if your baby is up for 2 hours after a feed needing to be rocked to sleep, or wakes several times in the night to be walked around the room and so on, then I wouldn’t include that time as “sleeping” time and would ideally like to make an improvement on that baby’s night time sleep hours.
Heidi’s suggested baby sleep times (per 24 hour period):
- 5-6 months of age – 15-16 hours over 24 hours (11-12 hours at night, 3-4 hours in the day)
- 7-9 months of age – 14-15 hours over 24 hours (11-12 hours at night, 2.5-3.5 hours in the day)
- 10-12 months of age – 13-14 hours over 24 hours (11-12 hours at night, 3 hours in the day)
Instilling healthy sleep habits
I have three children of my own and both of my boys had 3 hour naps right up until 18 months of age, whereas I know plenty of babies already on one nap by 12 months…every baby is different, but, in my vast experience, the earlier you install healthy sleep habits, the more sleep you are likely to get closer to 11-12 hours during the night time.
For more information on how much sleep does baby need, or Heidi’s sleep methods and approaches visit @positivelyparenthood or www.positivelyparenthood.com
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