Baby's Sleep Schedule Messed Up | Gerber
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What to do When Your Baby’s Sleep Schedule Gets All Messed Up

About the Author

4 min read
Newborn (0-4 months)
Supported Sitter (Around 6 months)
Sitter (6-8 months)
Crawler (8-12 months)
Toddler (12+ months)

We spend around a third of our lives sleeping, a reminder of how important a little shuteye is for everyone. For children, who are so busy growing and developing, sleep is especially important. Take newborns: their sleeping-to-wakefulness ratio is flipped, meaning they can sleep up to 18 hours (!) a day. Despite how important sleep is, it can often feel elusive in those early years. It takes time and patience for babies to learn how to sleep well — and for parents to learn how to help them get there.

However, as any parent can tell you, life loves to disrupt the sleep routines you’ve worked so hard to establish. Whether it’s daylight savings time (shudder), long-haul travel, or just  a kiddo who hasn’t been sleeping well, here are tour top tips for minimizing the fallout from a sudden schedule shift. 

Preparation is Key

As with most things in life, an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. A consistent routine provides a map back to normalcy, so even when it is disrupted, you’re better off. 

 When you know that your schedule is going to be impacted—be it by overseas travel, daylight saving time or a new school year—gradually adjust your little one’s schedule by 10-15 minutes each day ahead of the change. For example, if your child needs to wake at 7am instead of 8, start by waking them at 7:50. Then move to 7:40, 7:30, and so on until you reach 7am. 

If you are lengthening the day due to travel, try adding an extra cat nap to get your baby to their natural bedtime.  And starting the day at their usual time, regardless of time zone, can help keep them on schedule. The goal is to get back on schedule as quickly as possible, so try to avoid 1pm bedtimes (or wake ups, for that matter ????). 

These aren’t magic bullets. Almost every parent has dealt with an overly tired little one after a time change, as well as the opposite: a child who is too wound up to wind down when moving the clock forward. The good news is that children should be back on schedule within a week.

Don’t Sleep on Sleep Cues

A baby can’t tell you if they’re tired, and a toddler may not know what they’re feeling. And while tracking your baby’s wake windows and meals can give you a sense for when they should be ready to fall asleep, time changes and travel can throw those patterns into chaos. That’s why it’s important for parents to watch out for the telltale signs of a sleepy child.

Common sleep cues include:

  • Pulling at ears
  • Closing fists
  • Yawning
  • Fluttering eyelids or difficulty focusing
  • Making jerky arm and leg movements, or arching backwards
  • Frowning or looking worried
  • Sucking on fingers

You can read more about sleep cues and wake windows here.

Practice Good Sleep Hygiene

While you would move the sun and stars for your kids if possible, time is sadly out of your control. What you can control is making sure your child is getting the best rest possible, building in resilience when sleep schedules go awry. Important elements of good sleep include:

  • Share a room...: Rest a bit easier by sharing a space until they’re ready to move to their own room.
  • ...But not a bed: While it may be tempting, do not share the same bed. This is strongly discouraged by the American Academy of Pediatrics and can increase the risk of SIDS, or sudden infant death syndrome
  • Time it right: Focus on sleep cues and track how long children have been awake to make sure they’re tired but not overtired.
  • Keep it consistent: Aim for the same sleep and wake times each day, so your baby’s body and brain start to expect it. (But remember: some sleep disruptions are simply out of your control!)
  • Routine, routine, routine: Create a predictable bedtime ritual (think a bath, bottle then books) so they’re ready to hit the hay right when you wrap up.

Good sleep hygiene will set your child up for success even when facing external factors that feel designed to prevent a good night’s rest.

Lastly, remember that not every night will be the same. Try not to get overwhelmed when it’s 3am and no one is sleeping. Just because your baby is crying tonight does not mean they will cry tomorrow. Be in the moment with your baby and yourself. Calmly rock your baby and do some slow breathing exercises. With practice, these moments can become a bonding opportunity as you and your baby get to know each other. Rest assured that sleeplessness, like childhood, won’t last forever!

If you’re looking for some personalized answers and advice, Gerber’s sleep coaches are a dedicated team of experts with years of experience who are available 24/7 to help families find the sleep solutions that work for them. Sign up here for a virtual 1:1 with Gerber’s Sleep Coach to get answers to any questions you have about sleep challenges.

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