A baby in the house is a joyous thing, but it can also have a profound impact on the sleep quality of everyone else.
Understanding the sleep process and patterns of the growing child can help in this situation, but ultimately the best thing to remember is that each phase is just that, a phase.
As difficult as it is to do, and sometimes it will not be practical or possible, try to sleep when your baby sleeps in the first few months.
This will help refresh you and prevent exhaustion.
1 to 2 months Newborns can sleep between 10 1/2 to 18 hours a day and, as any new parent will tell you, at irregular hours.
Exposing them to light and noise during the day can encourage them to sleep more at night.
The National sleep foundation of America suggests putting the baby in the cots (crib) when he or she is drowsy, not when asleep, with their face and head cleared of blankets and other soft items.
3 to 11 months When infants are put to bed drowsy but not completely asleep, they're more likely to become self soothers, which enable them to fall asleep independently at bedtime and send themselves back to sleep if they wake during the night.
After six months, infants may experience separation anxiety, but by this time many will sleep through the night, about 9 to 12 hours with naps during the day.
1 to 3 years The standard sleep time at this age is 12 to 14 hours, with one long nap during the day between one and three hours.
Nightmares, the ability to get out of bed and separation anxiety can all make sleep difficult.
A security blanket or stuffed toy should help, as well as firm enforcement of the sleep ritual.
3 to 5 years Children will sleep between 11 and 13 hours a night by this age, although falling asleep and waking is common.
Sleepwalking and sleep terrors may peak at this time.
Maintaining this sleep schedule that ends in a cool, dark room should help.
5 to 12 years Daytime naps should end about this time.
Children aged 5 to 12 need 10-11 hours of sleep, but there are now increasing demands on their waking time from school and social schedules.
Watching TV close to bedtime has been associated with bedtime resistance, difficulty falling asleep and sleeping fewer hours.
Make sure they don't have a TV in their bedroom, so that you can monitor how much they watch.
Understanding the sleep process and patterns of the growing child can help in this situation, but ultimately the best thing to remember is that each phase is just that, a phase.
As difficult as it is to do, and sometimes it will not be practical or possible, try to sleep when your baby sleeps in the first few months.
This will help refresh you and prevent exhaustion.
1 to 2 months Newborns can sleep between 10 1/2 to 18 hours a day and, as any new parent will tell you, at irregular hours.
Exposing them to light and noise during the day can encourage them to sleep more at night.
The National sleep foundation of America suggests putting the baby in the cots (crib) when he or she is drowsy, not when asleep, with their face and head cleared of blankets and other soft items.
3 to 11 months When infants are put to bed drowsy but not completely asleep, they're more likely to become self soothers, which enable them to fall asleep independently at bedtime and send themselves back to sleep if they wake during the night.
After six months, infants may experience separation anxiety, but by this time many will sleep through the night, about 9 to 12 hours with naps during the day.
1 to 3 years The standard sleep time at this age is 12 to 14 hours, with one long nap during the day between one and three hours.
Nightmares, the ability to get out of bed and separation anxiety can all make sleep difficult.
A security blanket or stuffed toy should help, as well as firm enforcement of the sleep ritual.
3 to 5 years Children will sleep between 11 and 13 hours a night by this age, although falling asleep and waking is common.
Sleepwalking and sleep terrors may peak at this time.
Maintaining this sleep schedule that ends in a cool, dark room should help.
5 to 12 years Daytime naps should end about this time.
Children aged 5 to 12 need 10-11 hours of sleep, but there are now increasing demands on their waking time from school and social schedules.
Watching TV close to bedtime has been associated with bedtime resistance, difficulty falling asleep and sleeping fewer hours.
Make sure they don't have a TV in their bedroom, so that you can monitor how much they watch.
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