Sleep plays a very important factor in our physical and mental health. The lack of it can be detrimental as it helps body recovery. Babies usually take 15-18 hours in daytime naps and half night sleep in the first week. In the next few weeks, the average sleep time reduces to around 15 hours a day.
In about the first ten weeks of life, babies cannot differentiate between day and night as their circadian rhythms – the body’s natural biological cycle – are developing. They follow a diverse sleep-wake cycles that varies from child to child, but with longer spells expected at night.
DIFFERENT CYCLES OF SLEEP
Babies experience cycles of sleep. They go through drowsiness to light sleep, then sleep deeply and even a dream sleep – characterized by Rapid Eye Movement (REM). The cycle would then be repeated, though it follows various patterns.
Aside dream sleep, there is quiet sleep which is in between light sleep and deep sleep. Babies can dream during the quiet sleep but there is no rapid eye movement (NREM) in this stage of sleep. In older children, sleepwalking and nightmares happen at this stage of sleep.
Study shows babies spend more time in the dream sleep stage. Adults spend 20 per cent of total sleep in this stage but babies can spend 80 per cent. During dream sleep, the baby’s eyes move back and forth under the eyelids while the rest of the body remains still and the breathing could be irregular.
During quiet sleep, the breathing would be deep and regular – more like rhythmic. The baby may move her body a bit or make sucking movements with the mouth.
DAYTIME NAPS
While the naps during the day would be longer in the first three months, it typically reduces with time. The night sleep increases to 11 hours with brief wake times but the daytime naps and cycles reduces. Around 12 months, the daytime naps would start reducing as night time sleep lengthens.
BEDTIME ROUTINE
A bedtime routine could help babies differentiate feeding and sleeping. This could include a quiet time, a bath, change into night time clothes, a bedtime story or lullaby, calming massage and switching off lights.
Feeding might be beneficial to be around the start of the bedtime routine. Ensuring they do not fall asleep is important otherwise the feeding process is ended and rest of the bedtime routine completed. From three to six months, babies tend to begin the sleeping process – self-soothe –without parents or guardians.
