Some parents have found that before the baby could sleep peacefully all night, and now wake up several times a night, is the baby sick?
In fact, the baby is experiencing a "sleep regression period".
"Sleep regression period" refers to the infant period baby sleep has been very good, suddenly sleep quality declines, sleep time shortened, night awakening times increase, accompanied by crying and other behaviors, it is difficult to fall asleep again.
Infant sleep regression is a normal physiological phenomenon, under normal circumstances, babies will experience four "sleep regression periods".
The first "sleep regression period" is about 4 to 6 months
At this time, the baby develops relatively rapidly, and large movements begin to develop, such as turning over. When the baby sleeps, it may be uncomfortable because the sleeping position after turning over, and it is not taken care of by the caregiver in time, it will not sleep steadily.
At the same time, the 4-month-old baby is also a key moment in the transition from infant sleep to adult sleep patterns. It is difficult for babies to adapt to new sleep patterns, which may wake up frequently at night.
The second "sleep regression period" is about 8 to 10 months
At this time, the baby has learned to climb and sit, the brain develops more rapidly, and the baby's cognitive patterns begin to develop. At this time, the baby's sleep time during the day is also three sleeps and two sleeps, and the adjustment of sleep time will also occur in the situation of "sleep regression".
The third "sleep regression period" is about one year old
At this time, the baby's energy is relatively strong, the metabolism is fast, and it is also the time when the baby begins to toddlers and learns to speak. The baby is full of curiosity about the things around him, as if he can never use endless energy, and the time for sleep is relatively small.
The fourth "sleep regression period" is about 18 to 24 months
At this time, the baby basically learned to walk, emotions also began to develop, there will be anxiety, uneasiness, resulting in a decline in sleep quality at night, the number of night awakenings increased.
So, if the baby has "sleep regression", how should parents respond?
Help your baby build good sleep habits
Some parents will worry that the child sleeps too long during the day and will wake up the baby, in fact, it is better to wake up the child until the natural awakening.
At night, parents worry that if they don't wake up their children to breastfeed, their children will be hungry. At this time, if the baby does not take the initiative to wake up, parents do not have to struggle, and it is also possible to wait for the baby to wake up and then feed.
It is necessary to minimize the habit of shaking the baby to sleep as soon as he cries, and milking sleep as soon as he cries. Your baby's brain is not yet mature, and shaking can have an impact on brain development. At this time, just pat the baby's back, hold the baby's small hand, and let the baby fall asleep slowly.
Help your baby establish good sleep patterns
As mentioned above, the sleep pattern of the four-month-old baby will change, so as a parent, our focus is on how to help the baby adapt to the new sleep pattern.
What is this sleep pattern? It's eating, playing, and sleeping.
Most of the baby in the month is sleeping, and when the baby grows up, the sleeping time will be reduced, and the number of waking up during the day will increase, at this time, in addition to making the baby full, parents must also play with the baby.
During the day, you can follow this eating, playing, and sleeping pattern to let your baby take a nap twice, and as you age, it slowly becomes once. Parents can observe for a few days to find out the time for their baby to eat, sleep and play mode, and better help the baby to spend "sleep regression".
Increase your baby's exercise
As the baby's age increases, the baby's energy becomes more and more vigorous, and parents can also increase the baby's exercise. For babies under the age of one month, parents can do touch. As the age increases, parents can play games with their babies, increase the amount of exercise during the day, and gradually reduce the amount of sleep during the day.
Gradually change habits
For babies who have a lot of night milk and can't sleep all night, before going to bed, you can increase the amount of food for the baby and reduce the number of night feedings, this process can be gradually reduced, so that the baby can slowly adapt. When the baby is about one and a half years old, you can consider quitting night milk.