Baby’s Sleep
Babies of 1 to 3 months sleep about 18 hours a day, and babies of 4 to 6 months sleep at least 15 hours a day. Babies are sleeping almost all the time, but do you know what they will experience in their sleep, and what are the unique rules?
Two Stages of Sleep
The baby’s sleep journey can be divided into two stages, which are consistent with adults. One is the stage of rapid eye rotation (shallow sleep stage), the other is the stage without rapid eye rotation (deep sleep stage). From one stage to another, the baby completes a sleep cycle, and each baby roughly completes five to seven such sleep cycles a night. And the mom feels that the easiest time for her baby to wake up and cry is the transition from one cycle to another, even when the room is quiet.
Travel in Sleep
The baby’s sleep “biological clock” experience is like the bus journey we take, which is divided into waiting, entering the driving road, the first downhill, entering the peak, entering another valley, climbing the peak again, the journey is over.
Waiting (30 minutes from going to bed): The baby needs about 30 minutes to get ready from going to bed to fall asleep.
The first downhill (50-70 minutes): The first downhill into the valley is the lowest part of the journey. At this time, the baby gradually relaxes into a deep sleep, even if you go to hold him or touch him gently, he will not wake up.
Driving to the Peak (70-90 minutes): The baby’s nervous system starts to get excited, and the eyes turn quickly under the eyelids. At this time, they will remember the new skills their mothers taught during the day.
Enter another Valley (100-130 minutes): Babies return to quiet sleep, they will adjust their breathing evenly.
Climbing the Peak again (130-150 minutes): This is the easiest stage for a baby to dream. The cerebral cortex begins to move rapidly. Sometimes the baby will whisper or scream, and sometimes wake up because of fright.
End of the journey: The baby’s sleeping journey has finally come to an end. By this time their physical strength and spirit have returned to a better level, so they have the strength to “toss” you.
How much does the baby sleep?
| Age | Sleep Time (Hour) | Nap | Naptime (Hour) |
| 1 week | 16-18 | ||
| 3 weeks | 15-18 | ||
| 6 weeks | 15-16 | ||
| 4 months | 9-12 | 2 | 2-3 |
| 6 months | 10-11 | 2 | 2-3 |
| 9 months | 10-12 | 2 | 1-2 |
| 1 year | 10-11 | 2 | 1-2 |
| 1.5 years | 10-12 | 2 | 1-2 |
| 2 years | 11-12 | 2 | 1-2 |
| 3 years | 10-11 | 1 | 1-2 |
TIPS: Turning on the light is bad for sleep.
Many parents worry that the bedroom at night is too dark and the baby will be afraid. But the latest research shows that prolonged illumination at night can disrupt the biological clock that regulates sleep and wake rhythms. Therefore, the light and darkness of the baby’s living environment should be in line with the natural alternation of day and night, so that the baby can be accustomed to sleeping in a completely dark environment, which is a way to adapt to the night.
