Babies and sleeping

Your baby needs a lot of care when she's awake, and you may feel relieved when she drops off to sleep and looks so contented. You may worry if your baby seems to sleep less than you expect, but you'll soon be swapping stories with other parents about broken nights and tough days.

The trouble is, your baby has her own sleep pattern and this can vary from day to day and night to night. Babies aren't born with the ability to sleep through the night. As confidence grows, she'll be able to settle for longer.

In the early weeks, your baby's sleep, or lack of it, will be affecting you. It's normal to feel tired as broken sleep and night feeds interrupt your routine.

Babies need feeding during the night for the sake of nutrition, comfort and the closeness they get by being with you.

Your newborn baby will sleep through most noise and activity, though a sudden noise might wake her. A baby who seems very sleepy a lot of the time and who doesn't wake to feed may be ill, so don't assume a baby like this is 'being good'. Contact a health professional if you're worried.

Research suggests that 22 per cent of nine-month-olds have difficulty settling to sleep and 42 per cent wake frequently in the night.

After six months, new sleep problems may start and night waking happens in 50 per cent of the children who had previously slept through.

The first few months

Newborns usually sleep about eight hours at night, but not in one long unbroken sleep - they may sleep for just one hour, or perhaps for three or five hours before waking.

Key facts

• Nutritionally, breastfeeding is best for babies, but breastfed babies do sleep more lightly and will probably wake more often.
• It's not worth trying to set a sleep routine in the first few months. Be led by your baby's needs - gradually they learn the difference between night and day.
• Expect wide variations. Some babies manage five or six-hour stretches of sleep at night by three to four months, but many do not, and others may even be more wakeful than when they were younger.

As your baby gets older

By about six to eight months, your baby can probably manage without a night feed and may sleep six to eight hours unbroken without waking.

Your baby gradually learns how to fall asleep and how to get back to sleep when she wakes during the night.

If you want her to learn to settle herself, try to put her down before she nods off.

Tips for difficult settlers

• Decide on a bedtime routine, such as feeding, bathing and settling
• Give your baby a few minutes to settle - don't go back in immediately, but never leave a young baby crying for very long
• Keep things a little quieter at night and make sure you have some 'wind down' time, so your baby isn't suddenly expected to switch from lively play to sleep
• Some babies are happier if they can hear household noises and know you're nearby
• Think about family stresses - if you're worried, or if the family is going through a difficult time, your child may sense this and find it harder to settle

Many parents choose to stay with their child as they fall asleep, perhaps sitting by the cot, maybe even touching their hand or hair. Once she settles with you nearby, the idea is to gradually, over a week, move further away from the cot for the settling to sleep time.

Towards the end of the week, you're sitting by the door and, finally, you need no longer stay in the room.

If your baby wakes or is upset, go to her and simply say "night, night", or your favourite goodnight saying, stroke her hair or back, then go back to your place in the room.

When you're trying to settle your baby, always stay in the bedroom area. Don't bring her into the busy areas of the house and definitely not into a room where the TV and activity will wake her further.

Tips for early wakers

This can be worse during summer, when mornings are very light.

• Make your baby's room darker with thick curtains or blinds
• Try putting your older baby's bedtime back a bit - early to bed will almost certainly mean early to rise for most small children
• If you have more than one child, you might be able to encourage them to play and amuse each other in the morning

Safer sleeping for your baby

Your baby can sleep safely if you follow some useful guidelines, based on reducing the risk of cot death, or SIDS (sudden infant death syndrome).

SIDS is rare, and the exact cause isn't known. Researchers think there are likely to be a number of different causes, or that a combination of factors affects a baby at a vulnerable stage of development.

• Place your baby on her back to sleep
• In the cot, place your baby in the 'feet to foot' position so there's less chance of her slipping down beneath the bedding
• No one should smoke in the same room as your baby
• Do not use a duvet, quilt or pillow until your baby is over one year old
• Keep your baby's head uncovered indoors (or whenever you go into warm places)
• If your baby is unwell, seek medical advice straight away

It's recommended you have your baby in the same room as you for the first six months.

If your baby shares your bed, keep her safe by ensuring she doesn't get too hot. It's very important you don't let your baby's head get covered by the duvet, covers or pillow.

If you, or your partner, smoke, use street drugs or medication that makes you sleepy, or if you've been drinking a lot, don't bring your baby into your bed.

Remember, your bed isn't made for your baby, so take care she can't fall out. Make sure there are no sharp corners or hard edges where she could hurt herself.

Don't fall asleep with her on a sofa, as this has been shown to be risky. It's possible to roll on to your baby this way, or for her to get trapped between your body and the side or back of the sofa or its cushions.