If the baby is not sleeping well, it sometimes helps to shorten the waking time by fifteen minutes, because if the baby is over-stimulated, it fights tiredness and has difficulty falling asleep. To avoid this, you can watch for the first signs of tiredness and put the baby to sleep while he is getting tired. One of the best signs of tiredness is when the little hands get hot. This is a good time to put the baby to bed.

 

Many parents believe that it is bad to let their child cry. Fifteen or twenty minutes of crying does not harm the child physically or psychologically. The baby learns to calm itself down and fall asleep by itself. It is very important that the baby learns to fall asleep by itself, especially if it wakes up in the middle of the night.

 

The regular sleep pattern in the early stages of a baby's life looks like this:

 

Newborn

 

The newborn baby sleeps everywhere and between 16 and 20 hours a day. It only wakes up at mealtimes and usually goes back to sleep immediately after feeding.

 

2 months old

 

At the age of two months and older, the child should already be used to falling asleep by itself during afternoon naps and at night. It is normal for the baby to cry when it is put to bed. If it cries for more than 10 minutes, you should go and check and reassure it.

 

3 to 6 months old

 

Between 3 and 6 months, the baby will start to need less sleep. It usually skips the third afternoon nap. The baby should be encouraged to stay awake during this time so that it sleeps through the night.

 

16 months and older

 

From the age of 16 months, the baby usually needs only one sleep during the day. The baby should sleep 10 to 12 hours at night and 2 to 3 hours during the day.

 

Basic rules of sleeping for babies

 

• The parents decide when sleep begins and ends, the baby only to a certain extent.

• Babies from four months onwards sometimes wake up crying because they are not yet asleep but something has woken them up, for example a full nappy or uncomfortable posture. Eliminate the problem and let the baby go back to sleep. A well-rested baby wakes up happy and in a good mood.