Working Out the Bed Bugs

Since sleeping is such a major part of a newborn’s life, parents who implement some key principles to infant sleeping will have a happier and healthier baby. Particulars of sleeping needs will change throughout development, but certain principles and habits will remain constant. By learning tips and good practices you can help a baby sleep tight and not let the bed bugs bite.

How Much Should You Expect Your Newborn to Sleep?

A newborn is still growing and developing at a very fast pace during the first few weeks after birth. This means lots of sleep as you can imagine. The hard part is that a newborn needs to feed often and will naturally sleep for about two hour increments. In the case that your baby doesn’t, for at least the first two weeks, you shouldn’t let a baby sleep for more than four hours at a time. This schedule includes nights. If he isn’t waking up on his own you should wake him up to feed. If he is hard to wake up or acts dis-interested in feeding it may be a good idea to contact your doctor. See 5 mistakes parents make with newborns. After the first two weeks, this becomes less of a worry. Some babies will start sleeping all the way through the night as early as 6 weeks but you shouldn’t expect it for the first two months. Between 3 to 6 months a baby will start sleeping at longer stretches of eight to twelve hours.

Tips to Happy and Healthy Sleep Habits for Your Newborn

Babies will sleep about every two hours for a total of roughly 16 hours per day. You can still expect quite a bit of volatility and irregularity amid the gradual changes as the baby grows. However, even at this early stage, an infant can learn good habits and adapt to them as they are practiced. Wise is the mother who properly and steadily guides this process for each of her children. The following tips make for a happier baby and you can start as early as the latter part of week one.