At how many weeks should my baby be sleeping through the night?

Question

she is 8 weekd old, and she seems to be on her way to sleeping for about 6 hours straight at night. How many hours would be considered "sleeping through the night", and how do babies know it is night? During the day she never sleeps longer than 20 minutes even between feedings she stays awake, sometimes she is awake for over 10hrs, with just 10 min. naps here and there-how common is that? Thanks for any tips!

Answer 1

"Sleeping through the night" is officially defined as sleeping 5 or more hours straight. Most babies are developmentally ready to sleep this long between 6 and 12 months old.

Babies know it is night because of what they perceive around them. If you turn on all the lights and talk and play with her for night feedings, then she would likely be confused as to day and night. (In fact, babies who room in with their mothers or are born at home are less likely to have their days and nights mixed up in the first few days and weeks of life than those who spend nights in a hospital nursery--where there *is* no nighttime!) Since you probably keep it dark (or pretty dark), and don't get really playful at night, she learns that it is nighttime.

Just be warned, though... A baby who sleeps through the night (especially if they start early) may suddenly start waking at night for no obvious reason. It is normal.

Answer 2

Every baby is different but my son didnt even sleep in 6 hour stretches until he was 4 months old. I would consider 6 hours sleeping through the night, 6 hours is a long time. And about the naps, it is pretty normal for them to only sleep a little while during the day. I guess they just feel like they will miss something if they do not stay awake all day. Good luck.

Answer 3

My pediatrician says that sleeping 5 hours straight is technically 'sleeping through the night'. She says that babies up to about 6 months still should need to eat at least once during the night, and if your baby doesn't need to, than you are lucky. My daughter is almost 5 months old and only started sleeping 5 hours straight at 4 months. She still wakes up once to eat, but goes back to sleep for a couple of hours after that. Like everyone else has said, every baby is different and some babies don't sleep through the night for a very long time. Heck, most nights before I had my daughter, I didn't sleep through the night.

Answer 4

My son is 15 months old and still wakes at least 2-3 times at night. Maybe she is being put to sleep too early in the evening. You need to set sleep patterns for the kids. When my son was younger, I would give him his bath at 10am give him a bottle then he would go to sleep for about 2 hours or longer, sometimes he does have another during the day until night. I have set a sleep time at night for him and if he's awake after that time has pass, I place him on my bed and gently let him know it's his sleep time, and it usually works.

Answer 5

Heh heh. Is this your first child? In times to come you will realise how pointless this question is. There is no point asking this. Your child will sleep through the night sometime between now and twelve years in the future. There is no authority in the universe that could tell you when she will, or when she should. Some parents will tell you bossily and impatiently that theirs slept right through at three months of age. Other, equally dedicated parents will whimper that their three-year-old still gets up during the night.
Just read a lot of books about kids and sleep, and do your best. Good night, and good luck.

Answer 6

i think of the single situation that helped my son sleep in his very own crib became his boppy pillow. He became the comparable way - might sleep in my palms and then minute he's down, he wakes up. I have been given the Boppy Pillow (used for breast feeding and helping the infant sit down up with help). He sleeps in it and it props him up slightly too. He became colicy and continuously had some form of chilly (RSV, flu pneumonia, etc) so preserving him extra desirable interior the pillow helped. He has slept in his very own crib considering he has been born and he's 8 months previous. i became blessed to have somewhat one that slept contained in the direction of the night from 7 weeks on. I additionally think of this became credited alot to daycare. I had to place him in daycare with the aid of fact I had to pass back to artwork (dad isn't around helping so I had no decision :( ) ......he became no longer getting finished, long 3 hour naps throughout the day with all the noise and comotion of the different little ones. So, at night, he became snoozing troublesome and all the way contained in the direction of the night. he will each so often awaken approximately 5 or in an attempt to get a number of his bottle however.

Answer 7

If your 8 week old is sleeping 6 hours straight through the night, count yourself lucky! My daughter did not sleep that long until she was about 18 months old!

Bottle fed babies sleep longer period than breast fed babies do also.

Answer 8

Doctors consider a 5 hour stretch "sleeping through the night" ... so it sounds like she already is! Lucky you. My 6 month old breastfed son still wakes up twice to feed during the night... but it's easy because he sleeps right next to me so I barely wake up.

Answer 9

A 5 hour stretch is technically considered "sleeping through the night."

It's considered normal for baby to continue to wake at night for the entire first year.

Answer 10

If she is sleeping 6 hours at night she is sleeping through the night!