Awake Times Guide
One of the most common reasons babies have trouble settling is due to being overtired.
Being aware of your babies sleep cycles can be an effective way to avoid an overtired baby.
Part of teaching your baby to settle to sleep involves your baby being able to self-settle. By observing these sleep windows and observing the body’s natural circadian rhythm we are giving your baby the best opportunities to fall asleep without the possible hours battle.
Observing your babies sleep windows is important to ensure they are not going to bed over tired.
As your baby develops, they will have extending periods of awake time, it is important to observe these times to get your baby sleeping better.
The below times are a guide only and are not to cause any further stress or concern about your baby’s sleep. Sometimes some gentle settling support can be used to complement the optimal windows for the best results.
Newborns up to 6 weeks:
Awake times 45min – 90 min max.
This includes the feed, nappy and wind down period
6 weeks to 12 weeks:
Awake times 90 mins to 1hr 45 max.
This includes the feed, nappy, floor time and wind down period
12 weeks to 5 months:
Awake times 1 hr 45 min – 2 hrs (3 day sleeps)
This includes the feed, nappy, floor time and wind down period
5 months to 6 months:
Awake times 2 hrs 15 min – 2 hrs 30 min (3 day sleeps)
This includes the feed, nappy, floor time and wind down period
7 months to 12 months:
Awake times 2 hrs 30 min but 4 hrs awake from lunch sleep before bedtime (2 day sleeps)
It’s important to allow the sleep drive to build before bedtime at this age otherwise you may experience sleep refusal at bedtime or long settling periods
12 months to 18 months:
Awake times 2hrs 30 min but 4 hr awake from lunch sleep before bedtime
At this age you baby may go through a sleep regression but be careful not to drop the morning nap too early it often seems as though your baby is ready to drop it but often results in night time frequent waking’s, so keep persisting with two sleeps a little longer. If you are having difficulty with the day sleep at this point and nights are falling apart you may need a 15 min free consultation with Ballarat Baby Sleep Co. to discuss further
18 months to 3 years:
Most toddlers are on one nap now and can sleep from 2 hrs to 2 ½ hrs.
Awake time from lunch sleep should be 4 ½ hrs to allow enough sleep drive and assist a bedtime without long settling periods
If you are having trouble getting your toddler to have a lunch nap it might help to have a 15 min free consult with Ballarat Baby Sleep Co.
I hope this information has helped as a guide for your baby, remember you should always watch your baby and learn what your baby’s cues are to work in conjunction with this guide. Every baby is unique and has a different temperament so observe these and you’ll soon be able to match the appropriate time to suit your baby.
