Newborn Sleep - How Long Should My Baby Sleep For?

Newborn sleep is one thing that women who are mothers for the first time worry about. If you are a new mom, you might be concerned about whether your baby is getting enough sleep. The following is a guide to what you should expect, but you must remember that each baby will be different. Even if this isn't your first child, this baby will not be the same as any of the others.

New born babies will usually sleep 16 to 17 hours a day. Usually, a baby will not sleep all the way through a night until they reach the age of 3 months. There are a couple of reasons why this is the case. The first is that they have small stomachs, so they become hungry a lot quicker, particularly if they are breastfed. It is easier for them to digest breast milk than to digest formula, so they will have to eat more often, particularly at the start of their lives.

They also sleep in shorter cycles and dream in shorter cycles than adults do. Most of the time, new born babies sleep an average of 8 hours a day and 8 hours a night. They won't sleep 8 hours straight, though. When you first bring them home, they will sleep in very short cycles.

Until your baby reaches 2 years old, he or she will sleep 13 to 14 hours, but they will sleep less during the day as they get older. When your baby reaches the age of 2, he should be able to sleep all through the night and take a nap for 2 hours in the day. Keep in mind that baby sleep patterns are different for each baby, so yours might need to take two naps or one long nap. When they reach this age, try to get them to take their naps early, because if they take a nap too late, they might not want to fall asleep at night.

When your baby starts to sleep all the way through the night, you might be frustrated when they start waking up again in the middle of the night. Most of the time, this occurs when they are about 6 months old, and means that they are experiencing a normal development called separation anxiety.

Of course the above figures are just a guide. Don't be concerned if this pattern does not seem to fit your newborn. Sleep needs vary a lot between individual babies and it is not beneficial to compare your newborn's sleep patterns with others.