Will I Ever Sleep Again?

It may seem as though once that baby comes along, you will never get a good night’s sleep! Rest assured that you will get back to some restful sleeping, but it may take time. You will likely hear those people that say “my baby slept through the night at two weeks”. You really should take a step back and consider what people mean by “sleeping through the night”.

Generally most newborns wake at least every 3-4 hours once they are home from the hospital to eat. The amount of time that this cycle goes on varies from baby to baby, and yes there are always exceptions to the rule. When you consider how much growing they are doing in the first few months, it’s no wonder that they need to wake up and eat so much. This too shall pass and soon enough, mother and baby will be resting easy again.

There’s no point in rushing any sort of schedule because it takes time. Once you see that patterns are developing though, it may be helpful to try putting the baby down for naps around the same time. Before you know it, you’ll be getting a morning and an afternoon nap from the baby. Putting the baby down around the same time every night and developing a night time routine can help tremendously. Getting into the habit of giving a bath, bed time story, and a bottle can provide some necessary structure. The baby will soon get used to these patterns and eventually fall asleep on their own.

You will get past the sleep deprivation phase, even if it doesn’t feel like it at the time. It’s just a phase like everything else in motherhood and soon enough you will both be waking up after a full night’s sleep, ready to take on the day.