Newborn Sleep
It is developmentally normal for newborns to have unpredictable sleep patterns in the first few months.
Most babies don’t fall into any kind of routine or sleep pattern until closer to 4 months of age for some babies this might be later than 4 months, which means they may rely on a parent to support and assist them to sleep and there is nothing wrong with that if its working for your family.
It is very common for newborns to want to sleep on or near a parent, rather than in their sleep space.
Common Newborn Sleep:
- Irregular sleep patterns
- They do not know day from night some newborns may sleep lot’s during the day and be wakeful overnight, some babies seem to figure it out right away, every baby is unique, but your baby isn’t broken if they are more wakeful overnight to begin with
- Later bedtimes, their circadian rhythm will kick in, in due course, and bedtime will naturally wind back earlier, you don’t need to worry about forcing early bedtimes with newborns (even up to 6 months of age) if it makes the entire household unhappy
- Wake regularly for feeding, this is not only important for weight gain, but for establishing & maintaining milk supply and also to know they have a caregiver close that cares and responds to their needs
- Sleep more soundly when a caregiver is close by & they may wake when you put them down. This is more likely to happen as the baby gets out of those initially sleepy first 6ish weeks.