 Valentina at 6 months Now that I have a newly 7-month-old baby of my own, I’ve got some new thoughts on baby sleep schedules.
The big thing I have realized is that clock-based sleep schedules aren’t necessary as early as I thought. I have previously recommended a clock-based schedule by about 6 months old, sometimes even younger. But with my own baby, at seven months, I can see that using a clock-based schedule would actually backfire because it would leave her overtired. Here’s why: the length of her naps is quite variable. And obviously, she’ll need the next nap (or bedtime) much earlier if she took a 50-minute-nap than if she took a 2-hour nap. And this is typical of babies her age. The advantages of a clock-based schedule – namely, more predictability if you want to actually leave your house with your baby, if you have older children who need you, or if you need to give your childcare provider more clear cut instructions – are considerable. But for me, working from home and having childcare for her at home (and without other children), it’s been ideal to follow her sleepy cues exclusively. That way, she gets the perfect amount of sleep for her each day. The cool thing is that she is naturally moving closer to the 9-12-3 nap schedule that I typically recommend for a baby her age. But yesterday she needed 4 naps and I’m grateful that we are able to accommodate that! And it meant that we could go out for an early dinner yesterday and she could snooze on the way home, around 6:30, get home for a quick feed, then put her straight to bed. I wouldn't normally recommend a nap that late but she was overtired at that point and luckily, it didn't hurt bedtime. If you aren’t able to accommodate a sleepy-cues-led sleep schedule, your 6+ month old will be fine, not to worry. But if you can accommodate it, even better! About wake windows... I'm beginning to realize that I don't think they are all that useful UNLESS you have trouble seeing sleepy cues in your baby. Sleepy cues are always better, but overtired babies often don't show sleepy cues. In that case, go by wake windows, at least until your baby is more rested, then try again with sleepy cues. PS It’s not too late for you to have a well-rested family before the end of the year! Two week coaching packages as well as tune-up sessions are available. Schedule a free consult and start of 2024 off with a bang, well-rested and energized.
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 Wake windows are all the rage nowadays, but the concept is actually a fairly recent invention.
They are basically a way to predict sleepy cues, and also to help parents whose babies don’t reliably show sleepy cues. Even if your baby does show sleepy cues, wake windows can help you plan your day. For example, if you know your baby is typically awake for 75 minutes after she wakes up in the morning and before she shows sleepy cues and is therefore ready to go down for her first nap, that means her wake window is roughly 75 minutes. You can use this to plan your day. For instance, after I feed and diaper the baby, I know I can reliably put her in her baby gym to play for 30 minutes while I get her sister ready for school. But if I try to shower too, I’ll be dealing with an overtired baby who will be hard to get down for her nap. It'll be better to put her down in her crib first and then shower. She'll nap longer and I'll enjoy my shower more without a wailing baby. Always go by sleepy cues first if your baby shows signs of being tired BEFORE the wake window is up. But if your baby doesn’t show sleepy cues, use wake windows instead. Wake windows generally start out shorter and get longer throughout the day. For a baby in the three-month-range, for example, her wake windows might be 60-75-75-90 minutes. That is, 60 minutes from her morning wake time until the first nap, 75 minutes of awake time (including feeding and diapering!) between the first and second nap and again between second and third naps, and 90 minutes between the final nap of the day and bedtime. Every baby is different in terms of sleep needs and wake windows so again, use your own baby's sleepy cues to predict her wake windows. When should you NOT use wake windows? I generally advise stopping them by 5-6 months. At this age, your baby should be ready to settle into a predictable clock-based schedule. That might look like: 7 am wake up 9 am nap 12 pm nap 3 pm 7 pm bedtime With older children it can be helpful to know, for example, that your child needs to be awake 4-6 hours after naptime and before bedtime, but since this is such a wide range of times, it’s not terribly useful. I find it easier to say, “don’t let your child nap past 3 pm” than to focus on the wake window. If you'd like help getting your child's sleep schedule optimized so that the whole family sleeps well, set up a free consultation and we'll get your family well-rested in two weeks or less, guaranteed. |
AuthorAbby Wolfson is a pediatric nurse practitioner, certified child sleep consultant and certified life coach for parents. She divides her time between Brooklyn, NY and San Miguel de Allende, Mexico. Archives
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