6 Month Old Baby Schedule
Posted by Nicole on July 31st, 2008
This article outlines the average 6 month old baby schedule, including feedings, solids, naps and night sleep.
6 month old baby’s sleep
At this age, if you are not lucky enough to have a baby who sleeps through the night, many 6 month olds are still waking 1-2 times to eat at night. Anything more and likely you have a sleep association problem (aside from the 6-month growth spurt that should only last a few days to a week). Your 6 month old should be taking 2-3 naps per day for a total of 2-3 hours per day plus 11-12 hours at night. If you’re having trouble with naps, you might be interested in helping your baby nap.
Obviously, all babies vary, but here are some sample schedules you can use to make your own for your unique baby. Schedules are iffy at this age because many babies simply can not stay up past 2 hours to get to the next scheduled nap-time, so at this age, it’s likely naps are still on the short side, but come frequently. Over the next several weeks, you can work on getting down to just 3 naps to get closer to the 7 month schedule.
I should warn you that I am in the camp that breast milk or formula should be the primary nutrition for the first year and solids come secondary. Below are the amounts recommended from Super Baby Food, the book I use for reference (as a guide, not as the end-all-be-all because I don’t give my kids nuts before a year or follow other things in the book, but it’s a good reference guide). Another useful reference is Wholesome Baby Food. Although I work full time, I did make most of my baby food (I’d make 1 or 2 big batches of something each weekend in 1-2 hours), but even if you don’t, the website is useful as a guide when to introduce what food and other meal ideas.
Amounts per day:
• At least 5-6 breastfeeding sessions per day or 24-32 ounces formula or combination (decrease solids if your baby is not taking in at least this much)
• Water is unnecessary (breast milk and formula have plenty of water in them). If your baby has any constipation issues, focus on P-foods (pears, prunes, etc.)
• 1-2 servings baby cereal (1 serving = 1-2 Tablespoons dry)
• 1-2 servings fruit (1 serving = 1-2 Tablespoons)
• 1-2 servings vegetable (1 serving = 1-2 Tablespoons)
Note: If you did not start solids until 6 months (I did not start until 6 months), you will work your way up to the amount of servings above. Don’t worry about feeding this much right away!
Here is a what I call a “staggered” approach. My first son did better with a full feeding and then having solids a bit in between. He was a little hungry but not famished. He just didn’t do well with stopping nursing or his bottle mid-way to eat solids.
Schedule 1
6:30 – Wake and Breast milk or Formula
7:45 – Breakfast
8:30 – Morning Nap (at least 1 hour)
10:00 – Breast milk or Formula
11:30 – Nap (often 30-45 minutes at this age)
1:00 – Breast milk or Formula
2:00 – Nap (often 30-45 minutes at this age)
4:00 – Breast milk or Formula
4:30 – Catnap (30 minutes)
5:00 – Dinner
6:00 – Begin bedtime routine
6:30 – Breast milk or Formula and Bedtime
7:00 – Goal to be asleep
+Plus possibly 1-2 nighttime feedings
If your baby doesn’t mind a more “consolidated” approach to eating, like my second son, here is another type of schedule:
Schedule 2
7:00 – Wake and Breast milk or Formula, then Breakfast
9:00 – Morning Nap (at least 1 hour)
10:00 – Breast milk or Formula
12:00 – Nap (often 30-45 minutes at this age)
1:00 – Breast milk or Formula
2:30 – Nap (often 30-45 minutes at this age)
4:00 – Breast milk or Formula
5:00 – Catnap (30 minutes)
5:30 – Partial Breast milk or Formula Feeding, then Dinner
6:30 – Begin bedtime routine
7:00 – Bedtime
7:30 – Goal to be asleep
+Plus possibly 1-2 nighttime feedings
Note: Many people prefer to follow an eat-play-sleep routine, which is a good routine to follow, however, sometimes hard to implement at this age when the amount of time between naps is not long enough and your baby wakes too early from his nap because of a feeding. I take all of that into consideration when making my schedules. The most important part is to be careful not to create sleep associations with feedings too close to sleep times, which we saw become important at 4 months old.
You may also be interested in tracking your baby’s sleep, feedings, medication doses, immunizations, etc. using online baby software at Babble Soft. You can even use the software on your mobile device for when you’re on the go!
If you’re looking for ways to get your baby or toddler into a healthy sleeping routine during the day, I encourage you to explore Mastering Naps and Schedules, a comprehensive guide to napping routines, nap transitions, and all the other important “how-tos” of good baby sleep. With over 40 sample sleep schedules and planning worksheets, Mastering Naps and Schedules is a hands-on tool ideal for any parenting style. For those persistent nighttime struggles, check out Help Your Child Sleep, a Step-by-Step Guide. Using the same unique approach and practical tools for success, this e-book helps you and your baby sleep through the night. Or, join our Members Area packed with exclusive content and resources: e-Books, assessments, detailed case studies, expert advice, peer support, and more. It actually costs less to join than buying products separately! For those looking for a more customized solution for your unique situation with support along the way, please consider one-on-one baby and toddler sleep consultations.
What is your 6-month old’s schedule?
Tags: 6 month babies, 6 month baby schedule, 6 month feeding, 6 month feeding schedule, 6 month old feeding schedule, 6 month schedule, 6 month sleep, 6 month training, 6 months schedule, baby nap schedule, baby on schedule, baby schedule, baby sleep schedule, feeding schedule for 6 month, schedule 6 month, schedule for 6 month old
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July 31st, 2008
My son needed to stagger his food as well. I also think this helped him stay full for his morning and afternood naps. Before I staggered his food, her would sometimes wake up early from nap and have a hard time going back to sleep and I think sometimes it was out of hunger.
My son also really loved his bottles. He hated to have it taken out before he finished the whole things. Six months was a real trying time with naps, but working to get on a schedule really helped alot. Liam knew what to expect and so did I.
August 1st, 2008
@Jana Thank you for your comment!
Nicoles last blog post..6 Month Old Baby Schedule
August 3rd, 2008
My daughter just turned 6 months old and we’ve had to go back to basics with the solids because her stomach wasn’t handling what we had introduced in the past month (apples, sweet potatoes and carrots along with oatmeal cereal). So, her schedule is currently:
Wake at 7
Breastfeed at 8:30
Morning Nap at 9 (1 hour or more)
Breastfeed at 11:30
Catnap at 12 noon (30-45 minutes)
Breastfeed at 2:30
Afternoon Nap at 3 (1 hour or more)
Breastfeed but just a snack really at 5
3 tbsp. Rice Cereal/Oatmeal mixed with 1.5 oz. breastmilk at 6
Bedtime Routine begins
Breastfeed at 7:30
Asleep by 8
Night feeding at 1 or 2
Night feeding at 4 or 5 (this one is currently phasing itself out)
I’ve tried playing around with the bedtime but she just won’t go down before 7:30 at the earliest. She only sleeps 10 hours at night no matter what, nevermind what the sleep books say about infants her age “needing” 15 hours of sleep a day. I’m lucky she gets 12!
Moniques last blog post..Why Not Dad?
August 3rd, 2008
@Monique Thank you for posting your schedule! I did not start solids with either of my boys until 5 1/2 or 6 months old, so we are definitely in the lower solid levels at this age. It sounds like she is going to bed later because her last nap is long. Usually that’s the catnap of the day. And, my 1st son never did more than 11 to 11 1/2 hours in a stretch. 12 1/2 hours in 24 hours is on the lower end of sleep needs, but there is always a range. If she is happy, that’s a good sign.
Nicoles last blog post..6 Month Old Baby Schedule
August 17th, 2008
My daughter is 6 1/2 months old and I am trying to get her to sleep thru the night. We started solids at almost 6 months her schedule is:
6am Wake up/Nursing
back to sleep
8am 3 Tbsp. Cereal with fruit
play time
10am Nursing
Nap 1 hour
Wake up/ Play time
Noon Lunch Vegetable with fruit puffs for snack
play time
2pm Nursing
Nap 1 hour
play time
5pm Nursing
30-45min cat nap
6:30pm Dinner 3 Tbsp cereal with fruit
play time
8:30pm Bed time bottle of 6oz breastmilk
give or take of course …
I had to switch to bottle at night because she seemed to get too relaxed on my breast and would fall asleep before she was full it has really helped my sanity!!
September 26th, 2008
THANK YOU, my daughter has created her own schedule, feed her when shes hungry, go to sleep when shes tired, but recently shes been staying up til 1 or so, and waking uparound 8 or 9, i figured ITS TIME FOR A SCHEDULE. im going to try this out, most definately!
December 8th, 2008
So if they take a nap for about an hour at 1 and wake up at 2, if they don’t take the optional cat nap later, they’re up for five hours before night time. That sounds like a LOT. I would think my baby would be overtired by then. No?
December 11th, 2008
@Iris Thank you for sharing your schedule!
@Crystal Good luck!
@Lainie Yes, they can get overtired. Sometimes getting them on a schedule can be tricky.
February 6th, 2009
I really try to follow the 2 hour rule with my daughter (and it honestly seems to work with no crying). It’s basically goes by the theory that a baby should not be up for more than 2 hours and should then be put back to sleep. However, as far as a feeding schedule…I don’t have such a thing. I’ve pretty much fed her “on demand” from the point that she was born (formula only). And she goes to sleep for the night at either 7 or 8(ish) and then wakes once before midnight (usually about 2 hours after I put her down. Because the rest of my family is awake I treat it as a nap and try to keep her up for at least a little while however, she usually falls back asleep within a hour of waking up then (usually between 9 and 10) and then she will sleep until usually 5ish and fed and then usually wake up around 7:30ish.
The werid thing about her is that about 3-4 weeks ago she was sleeping thru the night (10 to 12 hours) and then she went thru her growth spurt where she was awake a few times a night and now she is on the above schedule – I really don’t get why she hasn’t returned to sleeping thru the night but like all other babies they forgot to send her manual home with her…LOL
February 6th, 2009
My daughter eats both her bottle and meals on a regular basis (two meals a day) and goes to bed and wakes up at the same time every night (6:30pm-6am). Yet she still is highly inconsistent with her naps. Sometimes they’re 25 minutes. Usually they’re 45 minutes. Every now and then they’re 1-1.5 hours. There’s no “morning” or “afternoon” nap with her. It’s whatever she does that day, usually several naps cause they’re so short.
But no matter what (knock on wood), she sleeps well at night. Is it possible that some babies just don’t need/want a consistent nap schedule?
February 10th, 2009
@Nicole LOL! I wish mine had come with a manual, but that would be too easy. After your daughter’s growth spurt, she might have just gotten used to eating at night and it becomes a chicken and egg problem. They won’t eat more during the day as long as they get calories at night and won’t stop eating at night because they need more calories than they are taking in during the day. Either that, or her needs have increased if she has gotten more active lately. You may want to consider night-weaning at least down to one feeding.
February 10th, 2009
@Lainie Some babies are simply inconsistent. If you are following my “Baby Temperament and Sleep” series, there will be an article soon about “regularity”. Some babies you can set a clock by and others are only consistent in that they are different every day. I have the latter. Every single day is different. But, schedules are still useful for many babies in that they enjoy the routine and predictability, especially if your baby is slow-to-adapt (another temperament trait).
February 10th, 2009
I am so new at this mom thing and Ive totally been learning as I go I don’t really know how to wean a night feeding. Do you have any suggestions? Honestly just letting her “cry it out” isn’t really an option for me (at least not thus far- I am exhausted but I know that she crys when she needs something (food) and I just can’t deprive her of that.) I know some people are strong enough to go thru it but I am not. So any suggestions would be helpful. – The night before she slept thru the night for the first time when she woke up I just rocked her and put her back to sleep and then the next night she slept 13 hours straight. But now when I try it she won’t sleep for more than an hour and will wake up again so I feed her. So any suggestions besides letting her cry would be most helpful.
Thank you.
February 10th, 2009
Daniel is 5 and half months now and he is on solids once a day just for dinner which helps him sleep through the night. This is rougly his schedule. I am not set on what time he does what…I just make sure he goes down 2 hours after he woke up. He feeds roughly every 4 hours…he is breastfed.
5am-6am: milkfeed
sleep till around 7
milkfeed when waking up
sleep around 8:30am for an hour
play and walk(if weather permits,it is so hot right now)
around 11-11:30am: breastfeed and nap
1:30pm:awake and play
3-5:sleep(longest nap of the day)
5: awake(I never let him sleep longer that 5)
5: cereal with fruit
7:bath
7:30: sleep
He then sleeps from then until 5-6am the next morning.
I have been very lucky…our boy has been sleeping through since 8 weeks and I have never had problems with his sleep.
Help for Nicole. The goal with your baby is to let her learn to self soothe, and with crying it out it will help her to do just that. What is her age? After 4 months she does not really need a night feed anymore so if she wakes up then try and give her some water or offer the dummy. Do you get up and go to her immediately? Why dont you let her sort it out a bit. If she gets crying then go to her and pat her a bit while you talk to her soflty. Try not to pick her up. Shame..it is not easy…but doing it now will save you much more hardship later on. I feel waking at night can become a habit, which can be very hard to break. I just help my friend train her 10 and half month old…it took 2 weeks of crying it out and he is now a contented and happy baby.
Good luck.
February 10th, 2009
@Nicole I have a lot of suggestions, but it’s just too much to put in a comment here.
I have an e-Book where I go through everything or I provide one-on-one sleep help with my baby sleep consulting services. I can offer little suggestions here in comments, but there is just too much to put here and I would also need to know your whole story. I know how hard it is to be a new mom with a challenging sleeper and if cry-it-out is not an option, then we work around it. Good luck! Hope to hear from you!
@Wilma Thank you for sharing your schedule!
February 10th, 2009
Thanks, Nicole! I look forward to reading the next in your series and am happy to know my child isn’t the only inconsistent one out there.
February 26th, 2009
At what age do babies no longer need night feeds??! My son (almost 6 months) is small for his age (around 13 lbs)…. my biggest fear is that I will let him cry at night when he is actually hungry (not just trying to get some attention at night!) Where is your e-book?
March 2nd, 2009
@Seema Pediatricians all disagree about this. I usually err on the side of caution there. Many babies can sleep all night without feeding by 9 months. Many can do it at 6 months and more by 9, but some will need one feeding up through a year. I fed both my boys up through about a year. I talk about feedings and how to handle it with sleep training without night-weaning in my e-Book. You can find that here: http://www.babysleepsite.com/ebook Good luck!
April 7th, 2009
My little one has had a tough time sleeping since he was two weeks old. He is now almost 7 mos. (He has been getting about 8-10 hours of sleep per 24 hour period lately, including naps) I FINALLY got him on a manageable wake, nap, feed, bed schedule when he was between 4 and 5 mos..but then a month later, we moved and he went back to his erratic baby mode, despite my efforts to implement the schedule he had gotten used to. He has been in our room since day 1, and it was RARE for me to get more than 4-5 hours of sleep per night. He’d usually feed once or twice, at around midnight and at about 4 am, depending. (Swaddling became a sleep necessity for him when he was 8 weeks, as well as the pacifier.) Last week, I was up and down more than 10 times in one night with him; giving him the pacifier, trying to wrap his wiggly little body back into a tight swaddle, etc. He’d be wriggled out of his swaddle and angry within minutes! I began to really see that he had gotten too big to swaddle; and that it wasn’t healthy for him to NEED the swaddle and dummy to even settle for a nap. It also wasn’t healthy for either of us that I had essentially been giving him unlimited “room service” whenever he let out more than a squeak at night. I knew that it was time for him to learn to self soothe. So I did some research, really hoping for some help, cause man… I was burned out! Tonight is the sixth night of implementing a modified ferber method while also quitting the swaddle cold turkey and sleeping in the other room, across the house. I had a very tough time with this decision, because I knew that he was going to be very confused and frustrated, but I also knew that he REALLY needed more sleep! (we both did!!) So with the support of my pediatrician and good friend with experience, I have toughed it out. I have been putting him down at 7 (following a strict bedtime routine). It was really rough the first two days but has gotten progressively better.. he now goes down for most naps (9am, 1pm, and a 4pm catnap) without complaining or fussing too much, and goes down at night willingly and quietly (ALL BY HIMSELF!) He still wakes once or twice so far. I have tried both going to him and doing a feed / change and also letting him put himself back to sleep. The night I chose to let him put himself back to sleep, (which was torture for me, by the way)…I went in at 7am to get him up and he was all smiles and in one of his best moods for most of the day because he was well rested!!! It is important to me for him to have a healthy grasp on the concept that nighttime is for sleeping, and daytime is for eating, playing, napping and snuggling. I am confident that in another two weeks, I will have a much happier and well rested baby with the skills and ability he needs to have good sleep habits. It has been a very hard transition for both of us, but I think, well worth it. I have also taken up baby wearing during the day to make sure that the attachment is still strong and he feels nurtured by me ALL DAY.
April 8th, 2009
Tia – That’s very similar to what happened with my baby when she was 5-6 months old. We quit the swaddling cold turkey. That week we also quit the pacifier (at night) cold turkey. We also changed her bed time from 10:30 to 7:30 (it’s now 6:30).
That got us started on the right path, but there were still night wakings. With basically the Ferber method (and some cry it out) – and the aide of a blankie to comfort her when she wakes up – she now sleeps 12-13 hours a night, almost never waking up (knock on wood).
Sounds like you’re very close to peaceful sleep. Go you!
April 8th, 2009
Lainie-glad to hear that your baby is now sleeping 12-13 hours straight! I really hope my little guy does soon, too!! Last night he woke up at 9:00 after only being down for two hours, so I decided to tank him up with 8oz. milk, even though he had enjoyed a nice robust dinner of carrots & corn puree as well as a 7 oz bottle right before I put him down at 7. He ate the whole 8 oz!! After the bottle, he went straight back to sleep and we didn’t hear a peep out of him all night. YESSS!
April 14th, 2009
hi, i am not sure if i am over feeding my little one >> . she is 6 mnths and this is her schedule .
7 am – 6 oz milk
8 am- 2 tbsp rice cereal .
8.30 am- 11 – sleep
12 noon – lunch 2 oz gerber veg + 5 oz formulae
1.00 p.m – sleep 2 hours
4.00 p.m – 2 oz fruit
5.00 p.m – 5 oz milk & sleep 1/12 hours
8.00 – dinner 2 oz veg & 6 oz formula
sometimes a feed at 2 a.m or not .. depends upon her .. she is taking the paci only at nap times , plus she is still being swaddled .. i want to get rid of it but then thinks if it’s working for us .. is there a harm !! what do you guys think ??
April 16th, 2009
My son is 6 months old and has never slept more that 4 hours at time day or night. He is in the 90% on both weight and height and he eats 5 ounces every 2 1/2 hours. He fights sleep horribly and will not go down for a nap unless he completely exhausted. I have tried to maintain somewhat of a schedule and by 7:30 he is asleep, sadly he will only sleep till 11:30 -12:00p.m and then i feed him another 6 ounce bottle. He then wakes up at 3:30-4:00a.m and I feed him again, then he will sleep until 5:00-5:30a.m and he is up for the day. He doesn’t go down for his nap till 9:30 or 10 and by that time we are both exhausted. I am wondering if i feed him more, a few times less a day do you think he would sleep more or is there something else i should be doing? I do know i need to him on a better schedule its just he tends to be a bit stubborn about sleeping. If anyone has any suggestions i need all the help i can get. He is a great baby but He hates to sleep.
April 16th, 2009
@kshi21 I only recommend getting rid of the pacifier if it’s a problem more than a solution. If it’s working, great! A baby will not overeat. That is a learned behaviour, so I would not worry. Good luck!
June 17th, 2009
I am so happy to have stumbled on your website. It’s the first one out there that makes me feel like my 6 month old isn’t abnormal for still taking 4 naps. He just can’t stay up more than 2 hours at a time and only naps for 45 minutes. I recently sleep trained him for nights to wean him from a night feeding and to lose the swaddle and it’s been going well. he was also rocked to sleep for naps but i’ve stopped that. i’d love to get to a 3 nap schedule but i don’t know how to increase his awake time and make his naps longer. i also wanted to know what happens if after 2 weeks of sleeping through the night they start to wake again? do you re-sleep train? it’s all very confusing. thanks for the great advice!
June 21st, 2009
@Andrea I’m so glad you found the site, too!
Your baby will naturally start being able to stay awake longer. Every couple of weeks you can try to increase wake time by 15 minutes and see how he handles it. My son did not get “good” at a schedule until 7 1/2 months when he could finally stay up longer than 1 hour 15 minutes without being overtired and take short naps. He more than made up for the short wake time by going to one nap early and stopped napping all together early, too. So, don’t worry. 
About sleep training. You are never really “done”, if they start to have backslides, but after they are sleeping all night and they have a night-waking, obviously you should check on your baby. I’d give 5-10 minutes to see if he will re-settle and then go check on him. It is confusing to know what you do, but you always want to address any needs they have and things like illnesses, diaper leaks, teeth, etc. will come up along the way, even after sleep training. The good thing is a previously sleep-trained baby will generally get back to sleeping well after an illness, vacation, etc within 1-2 nights. Good luck!
August 18th, 2009
Does anyone have solutions for twins? I have twin 6 1/2 month old girls who are still being swaddled and we have to rock them to sleep still because they share a room and will keep each other up. I don’t want to separate them but I think I might have to. Also, what is the best way to get a baby to sleep without swaddling them. Our girls have been tightly swaddled since birth and now that they are getting bigger it is getting harder for us but they wont settle if their arms are loose. Any help would be appreciated!
August 20th, 2009
HELP!! I have a 6 month old girl that will not sleep at night or day for that matter. What is the best way to start sleep training? Do you start with the evenings and then nap time or do you do everything at once? She cries every time her binky falls out and also when I lay her down. Can I give her a binky during the day as long as she does not associate it with sleeping or is it best to get rid of it all together? Please give me some advice we need some sleep!! It looks like I need to get her on a schedule because she isn’t on one. I keep reading that schedules are bad when you are breastfeeding because it will decrease your supply if you are on a rigid schedule. I had a really hard time getting my milk supply up so I don’t want to do anything that will jeapordize that. Anyway any advice would be good. Thanks!!
August 24th, 2009
I’ve been having a really hard time with naps for the past month. The only way i can get my almost 6 month old son to sleep is nursing him and then letting him fall asleep on the breast. and i think that i am probably making matters worse by letting him do this,but have no clue how to break this happen and get him to sleep without the boob.
August 28th, 2009
My 6 month old hasn’t napped since he was 10 days old. He sleeps anywhere from 5-7 hours at night and wakes anywhere from 6-7 times per night. He’s up for the day by 5:30am, 6am if I’m lucky, and then is awake for 16-17 hours straight before he goes down for the night for some very broken up sleep. I’ve tried all the “expert” methods. Those are a joke. We’ve darkened the room, used a “guaranteed to make your baby sleep” cd, and every single old fashioned method, new method, every friend’s/family’s expert advice, doctor’s advice and every single web page written about how to get your baby to sleep known to man.
I think my only option left is to drink……heavily.
August 31st, 2009
Jessica, all I have to say is I’m sorry. Hopefully Nicole can help you!
September 3rd, 2009
@Katie Ironically, I am typing up a Twins sleep coaching case study right now (no cry) that will go into the new Members Area. Help them learn to fall asleep unassisted first even if you have to temporarily separate them and then bring them back together. They do often learn to sleep through each other’s noises just like I have to sleep through my husband’s snoring.
As for stopping the swaddle, you can try one arm first and then both, but in the end, it just takes practice for them to be able to do it. Good luck!
September 4th, 2009
Hi! I have a 5 month old that WILL NOT sleep through the night at all! We lay him down around 10pm, then he is up around 2:30-3:00am for his bink and then about 3:30 he wants to eat. We are trying so hard to break him of the dreaded 4:00am feeding. After he eats he will go back to sleep but literally every half an hour he is up cause he spits his bink out. I feed him 4 Tablespoons of cereal at 9:00pm and then around 4oz at 10pm then bed. It’s like after 5 hours he is up for the day. It’s just killing my husband and me because we go to bed around 11pm and then we both know that after 2:30 am we are getting no sleep. He is on a pretty good schedule with eating… in the morning he eats about 2 Tablespoons of cereal and a 1/2 jar of fruit and then about 5 oz. About every 4 hours he has a bottle filled with 5oz. And then gets a jar of veggies around 5pm. And then 4 Tablespoons of cereal before bed with his bottle like I said before. He also gets a bath and massage every night before bed. I don’t know if this is normal… literally all of my friend’s babies slept for at least 7-9 hours at this time. Mine will not sleep for more then 4-5 hours straight. Maybe it’s just habit for him to wake up??? Any suggestions would be great! I’m just sooo tired all the time and would love for him to sleep from 10ish till 6 or 7 straight?? Does anyone think this is possible? — I also forgot to add his naps total about 4 hours a day too!
September 4th, 2009
@Julie Schedules can be as flexible or as rigid as you make it. I certainly had a routine and schedule, but my boys ate every 2 hours, rather than 3, for a long time (both breastfed for a year). My older son also didn’t get on a schedule until more like 7 1/2 months because he became overtired so easily after just staying up for 1 hour 15 minutes. So, don’t feel too pressured that you *have* to be on a certain schedule to promote good sleep. To answer your questions, day and night sleep are handled by different parts of the brain, so you can give a binky during the day, even for naps, but work on getting removing it at night. How you sleep train really depends on the method, but usually I leave naps to last because they are usually the hardest for most people. Good luck!
September 4th, 2009
@Victoria Without knowing all the details, it’s not really a problem if he falls asleep nursing if he then naps well (at least 1 hour twice a day and 30-45 minutes for a 3rd nap if he takes one), but if he takes too long to fall asleep and then doesn’t nap long you probably want to help him learn to fall asleep without nursing, so he can go back to sleep during sleep transitions and lengthen his naps. Good luck!
September 4th, 2009
@Jessica (((HUGS))) You didn’t say how you put him down for naps or what you try, so it’s hard to help. I hope one day you decide to get one-on-one help (from me!) because for some of us, no book will ever help. Our babies aren’t those that are like the babies in the books and sometimes a new method is what’s needed. Good luck!
September 11th, 2009
I’ve tried swaddling, giving in and nursing him to sleep, binkie, doing everything exactly the same every single day (still do it) so that he has a schedule, darkened his room with curtains, a “guaranteed to make your baby sleep or your money back” cd, (we got our money back), rocking him to sleep, crying it out, modified crying it out, patting him in his crib, wearing him in a sling, taking him for rides in the car, walking him in the stroller, putting him in a swing, putting him in a swing and placing the whole thing in his crib, putting him in a vibrating bouncer, putting him in the bouncer and putting it in the crib, laying down with him and napping along side him, setting up specific “naptimes” during the day so he has a schedule, letting him set his own schedule, doing a night time routine (bath, lotion, reading a story, nursing, bed), doing a night time routine but switching the order around, walking him back and forth through the house, turning off all lights and sounds, setting his mattress on an incline in case it’s reflux, giving him a special stuffed animal to sleep with, giving him one of my shirts to sleep with, rubbing his head, rubbing his tummy, burping him for an hour or more, baby tylenol in case of headache, gripe water, placing him on his tummy………..
I think I’ve tried everything. I took him to the doctor and she just gave me more “tips”….heard them all before. I’m thinking of switching doctors until I can find one that will refer him to a specialist. I was looking at some pictures of him taken over the months and his eyes are so puffy, red and swollen. If I counted all the hours that he has slept since he was born, he probably has gotten a total number of hours of sleep that a 2 month old would have.
He took a nap this morning for 17 minutes!! It was heavenly. Last weekend he did take an hour nap, which was incredible. When he first came home from the hospital, he was getting about 9-10 hours of sleep a day/night. He’s down to about 5-7 hours a day/night now. I miss those newborn days!
September 18th, 2009
@Kelly It sounds like your son has an association with the binky where he can’t fall back to sleep without it. Once a pacifier/binky/dummy is more of a problem than solution I recommend phasing it out (at least at night). You might read more about sleep associations here: http://www.babysleepsite.com/sleep-training/sleep-association/ Good luck!
September 18th, 2009
@Jessica That does not sound right at all.
I’m sorry this is happening, but 5-7 hours in 24 hours? I’d try another doctor. This reminds me of the Worst Sleeper story: http://www.babysleepsite.com/sleep-training/worst-sleeper/ Have you read that one? I would definitely seek medical help. That does not sound like normal sleep problems to be honest. I feel bad for both of you as you are both probably exhausted! If not something medical like that, you might check into Melatonin (ask your doctor) which is natural and promotes sleep. (((HUGS)))
October 17th, 2009
I’m not sure if my son is normal or not…lol…he’s really great actually, but reading other schedules, he doesn’t eat as often as others…just a bit more at each feeding. for a couple weeks just before he turned 6 months he was eating only 4 times a day but 8 ozs…he was just so hungry. He wouldn’t always finish every bottle but he was eating relatively 29-32 oz every day…is that okay? Anyways, we haven’t gotten in to his 6 month appt. yet because of scheduling problems with the ped. but his appt. is on monday (only 1 week before he’s 7 months) so we’ll find out about how to start him on solids, though, I’ve already started him on rice cereal by suggestion of other mothers because of his appetite. He pretty much fell into a schedule on his own and it is as follows:
7:30/8 – wake up and play for a bit
8:15 – 8 oz. formula then play/wake daddy up
9:30/10 – nap for about 1.5 hours
11:30 – wake up and play
12:15 – 6 oz. formula
1:00 – 2 tablespoons rice cereal
1:30 – nap for 30-45 mins…sometimes an hour
2:30 – awake and playing
4:15 – 7 oz. formula
4:30 – take our afternoon walk for an hour or so (usually he’ll take another short nap during this time)
5:30 – home and play time
7:15 – 2 tablespoons cereal
8:15 – 4-5 ozs formula
8:30/9:00 – asleep through the night (wakes a couple times to be comforted back to sleep)
he slept through the night as soon as I introduced his dinner cereal. Lately he’s been sleeping A LOT…seems like almost all day. He just cut his first 2 teeth in the last 2 weeks…so I know he’s going through the pain. Maybe a growth spurt too?
November 18th, 2009
hi. i just want to thank you for such a helpful website- it is the first of its kind that does not make me feel bad that my 6 month-old is still swaddled, takes 4 short naps every day and wakes to eat once or twice at night. thank you for sharing your experiences and advice!
December 4th, 2009
@Nina You’re very welcome! Your baby sounds very normal! Good luck!
December 17th, 2009
My daughter is a little over 6 months and I have got her into a routine for her naps and solids. I breastfeed on demand. It is as follows:
7:30-8:30 am wake up.
around 11 am: nap for 30-45 min
1:30 pm solids
around 3 pm: nap for 60-75 min
6 pm: solids
8 – 8.30 pm: sleep
I have a routine for her but all of a sudden she doesn’t want to sleep alone preferably on the breast. I have tried to get her to cry it out and then even when I pick her up she is inconsolable. I can get her to sleep without the breast but if I stroke her or talk to her softly. I don’t know what to do. I don’t want her to cry it out, she gets so hysterical and inconsolable.
December 18th, 2009
Sooo…
My son is almost 6 months old and suffers from eczema. He would be up all night scratching at his head..poor guy. Now he goes to sleep around 6, he wants to sleep earlier for the night but we stretch him to 6 (good thing?) and then he’s usually up at 12:30, then up again at 4. The two night feedings aren’t killing us, but the worst is that at 4, he will then take cat naps for the rest of the am. He will sleep until 5:30. Then be up until 6:30. Then sleeps from 6:30 to 7. I want to get a full 12 hours, not broken up, but his mornings are terrible! Help!
I also stick to the two hour wake-period as well. He can’t stay up for much longer than two hours at a time. He fights going to sleep and will NOT take a pacifier or a blanket of any sort. The only type of soothing that works is when I hold his hand. It quiets him down immediately. The one good thing is that at night he usually goes to bed no problem with no assistance from me.
Thanks for ANY help you can give…we’re exhausted! Much like many of the other mother son this site.
December 23rd, 2009
Wow, I am so happy I stumbled across this website. I am relieved to find that I am not alone in having a baby who does not sleep through the night! Most of our friends who have babies claim that their precsious bundles sleep through the night, and each time I hear this I’m glad I don’t have a sharp object in my hand. LOL.
My 6.5 month old daughter was never a good sleeper from the get-go. She would rather be awake so she can see and hear everything around her. There was a period of time at around 3 months where she slept for about 6 hours straight, but this was very short lived and she begun to settle into a night-time routine of waking up about 4 or 5 times a night. I got so frustrated with making the trip to her crib in her room each time to rock her back to sleep only to repeat the entire thing a few hours later that I started bringing baby to our bed and this is where she now sleeps. I am trying to get her to sleep in her own crib again, but the transition is tough…
Recently, I’m assuming this is due to the growth spurt, she started waking up about 7 to 8 times a night. Both my sanity and my marriage were on rocky ground as sleep deprivation brings out a monster in me I never wish to come out again!
For the past two nights she has been waking up 2 to 3 times a night.
I breastfeed and I refuse to let her cry herself to sleep because she gets very upset that she vomits and poops herself.
Here is our daily schedule (my baby somehow fell into this routine on her own, and I follwed her lead):
6:30-7:30am – Wake up for the day
9am – Breastfeed
9:30am – nap, from half an hour to an hour and a half
11:30isham – solids
1pm – breastfeed
3pm – nap, usually an hour and a half
5pm – Breastfeed
6:30pm – solids
7:45pm – bedtime routine
8/8:30pm – bottle (about 6oz) of my breast milk mixed with cereal.
8:30-9pm – sleep.
10pm – wake up, I rock her back to sleep
2am – wake up, I breastfeed, she falls asleep at the breast
5am – wake up, I breastfeed, falls asleep at the breast
Does anyone have any ideas for me to get by daughter to sleep longer, without crying it out, while at the same time getting her to sleep in her own room? I try not to give her the pacifier at night, actually I noticed that if I don’t give it to her at bedtime, she sleeps a bit longer. Am I feeding her too seldom? Is she not sleeping enough during the day?? She used to take 3 naps a day that were 30 minutes each, but then she started sleeping longer naps and I don’t want to have her napping after 5pm….
Any help would be appreciated!!
December 31st, 2009
Anna D:
The way a baby goes to sleep at night is the way an infant expects to go back to sleep when he or she awakens. Perhaps you should change the way you put her to bed (let her fall asleep on her own using self soothing techniques ie: toy, blanket etc), and this might help with night time awakening/falling back to sleep.
My 6 month old son also gets up at least twice in the middle of the night, but I do not pick him up, and I never have. Once he’s in his crib, he’s in it until morning. Since your daughter is taking breast milk from a bottle perhaps it would be beneficial for both of you if she was fed from a bottle at night where she sleeps. Perhaps alternating breast/bottle at night for a while until she gets used to it.
My daughter, who is now 10, went through the crying/vomiting/pooping stage as well. I could not leave her in her crib laying in her own vomit until I read a passage in Dr. Spock’s book about doing the unthinkable to fix this problem: JUST LEAVE THEM. It took two weeks but the vomiting stopped when she cried. Eventually she realized I wasn’t going to pick her up if she vomited.
January 2nd, 2010
Hari’s Routine @ 6 & 1/2 months
7am – Wake up bottle
8am – breakie
9am – sleep
11am – Wake up bottle
12noon – lunch
1pm – sleep
3pm – Wake up bottle
4:30pm – nap
5:30pm – dinner
6:45pm – bottle
7pm – bedime!!
Every day and she loves it plus she’s crawling and that tires her out heaps too! Hope this helps!!
January 2nd, 2010
Hey Anna D,
I have ben extreemly lucky with my daughter Harli and her awesome sleeping since 4 months. but up until then she woke 3 time a night or more and I fed her and she still screamed. First I put thickener in her bottle after we realised she had silent reflux, that made a massive difference and she still has thickened formula, and after she still kept waking when she lost her dummy, I chucked it out. I had one night of screaming with her trying to get herseld to sleep without it, but that was the first night she slept from 7 til 7!! And now she does it every night! thank god!
January 22nd, 2010
@Sandra This is common around this age to develop a preference to not sleep alone and I can’t say I blame them! Many of us like to sleep with someone, so it makes sense. If you can get her to fall asleep without the breast by stroking and talking to her softly, try to keep doing that but then doing less and less until you are barely doing anything. It takes practice, but she will probably get better and better at it. Keep her calm, but let her fall asleep on her own and that will go a long way. Good luck!
January 22nd, 2010
@Meghan How sweet he falls asleep holding your hand!
4-6 a.m. is the lightest sleep of the whole night (for all of us), so you are NOT ALONE! A lot of people have this problem. The more your son can learn to re-settle himself at this hour, the faster at it he will become. Try to let him fall back to sleep on his own, so he can master this skill. Pushing him longer to get to a 6 p.m. bedtime could also be causing the early morning wake-up. Have you tried giving him a late evening nap around 5 or 5:30 and putting him to bed at 7, instead? Just a thought. Good luck!
January 22nd, 2010
@Anna There is a lot between sleep deprivation and cry it out. Have you tried staying with your daughter to have her fall asleep but without rocking her? That would be a start. The key is to come up with a step-by-step or day-by-day plan to follow that makes progress over a period of a couple of weeks. That’s what I generally help tired parents do, but you can also come up with one yourself, too. Good luck!
January 22nd, 2010
@Jackee Wow! I have not read Dr. Spock’s book about leaving a baby in his or her vomit. I personally would not recommend that. I would at least clean them up and make sure they go back in their crib awake to let them fall asleep on their own. It is true that a baby can learn to vomit on command, but typically that’s a toddler, not a baby, from what I understand. I typically recommend a slower approach and not cry it out for a baby who vomits a lot. There ARE other options. I can not in good conscience recommend leaving a baby in vomit, especially when many babies simply have an immature gag reflex. I am glad it worked for you in a short amount of time, though. We all have to find our own way. Good luck and thanks for commenting!
January 22nd, 2010
@Emma Thank you for sharing your schedule!
January 24th, 2010
Thanks for the words of advice Nicole and Emma. I have been trying something new for the last week and things seem to be going better. Here is what I have done:
I have stopped feeding Maya heavy solids in the evenings (usually this would be veggies), replacing with light fruits instead, and I have been making sure she sleeps either three 1 hour naps or two 1.5 hour naps throughout the day. And now I am also going to try putting her down when she is really drowsy and almost asleep… but not letting her cry herself to sleep…. lets see how it goes.
On another note, my husband, baby and I went to the Caribbean for a week about a month ago and baby slept so well! One night she even slept for almost 7 hours straight with NO interruptions! It was beatiful. However, once we got back to Toronto she got back to her old routine of waking up often. I think I’m going to go away again. LOL.
Thanks again for the tips!
January 26th, 2010
my son doesnt have a schedule! sometimes i find it so frustrating.. and he doesnt take more than 30 minute naps.. the odd time he will surprise me, but not really.. and never in his crib (maybe if he’s in carseat and we’re out)
i look at the sample schedule above with the 30-45 minute naps and i feel a little bit better because everywhere else i’ve read says that babies should take at least one hour naps! i say, what babies.. definitely not mine!! and as much as i’ve tried to ‘extend’ the naps.. really? how? can we as adults extend our naps? i just dont get it!
i actually stress about his sleep (or lack thereof) and i try so hard to watch his sleepy cues and put him down at the right time, etc.. and i just somehow 99% of the time get it wrong !
its so frustrating.. and lately he even fights when i put him down. (is he just becoming too attached to me)
he’s a fairly good baby for night sleep in the sense that he can put himself to sleep easier than naptimes.. he sleeps ok.. there are a number of times we may need to replace the pacifier or if he’s growing through a milestone things are different of course, but its not ever really consolidated uninterrupted sleep.. (and i’m not too much of a fan of the cry it out method.. i think its mean)
anyhow, its nice to see your sample schedule.. its somewhat similar to my sons (well, the way it is with being in bed within two hours again) and it something i can follow..
however, what do i do if he wakes early (ie:5 or 5:30am) .. i’m definitely not ready to start my day at that time.. but i dont know what to do either, with him..
and the thing is.. i have to say he must be ‘overtired’ most of the time because he yawns frequently
anyhow. i dont know anymore.. there are times that i just feel defeated!
February 12th, 2010
My son, Jason, is 6 and a half months old. At 5 and a half months I started reading several books on how to encourage my son to self soothe.
I was strongly against any cry-it-out method, I didn’t think I was strong enough. I do not subscribe to a cio plan myself. I do however allow my son “controlled crying”. I allow him to cry by himself for about 5 minutes before “rescuing” him. But when I do go to him I do not pick him up. I give the paci, lay him back down and cover him up. Quietly shushing, and getting progressively quieter, he goes back to sleep. This allowings him to try to work out what is bothering him by himself. I found I was creating my son’s sleep problems. I wouldn’t let him cry at all. He would wake up in the night, cry out and I would rush to him and pick him up, trying to soothe him. I wasn’t allowing him to learn to put himself back to sleep. I did this because my husband works and I don’t. I wanted to allow him to sleep without disturbances as much as possible. Little did I know babies need to cry. There is a huge difference in cio and allowing your baby to self soothe. Sometimes babies just need to get it out. They cannot talk about their day, or express their feelings other than to cry. Crying is a form of release for them.
I read Nighttime Parenting by Dr. Sears and The 90-Minute Sleep Program by Polly Moore. The one that really helped me create a schedule for Jason was Good Night, Sleep Tight by Kim West. It details how to help your child nap and sleep better by strict scheduling. She says that babies should not need to feed at night, once they have slept through the night once. If you child sleeps 12 hours straight in 1 night, that is the longest s/he can go without a feeding. Start training at night first. Naps are much harder. Here is an example of Jason’s schedule.
7:30 Wake up, Nurse, change diaper and clothes
8:00 Eat Breakfast.(Oatmeal cereal and a jar of breakfast food)
8:30-9:30 Play time
10:00 Nap time (usually about 1.5 hours)
11:30 Wake up, nurse, change diaper
12:00 Eat Lunch. ( Oatmeal cereal, fruit-1/2 jar, and veggie-1/2 jar)
12:30-2:00 Play time
2:30-4:30 Nap time (can vary. ranges from 2-3 hours)
5:00 Change diaper
5:15 Dinner (Meat veggie combo jar and fruit for dessert)
5:30-7 Playtime
7-7:30 bedtime routine(bath, nurse, books, bed)
7:30-8:00 Asleep (normally falls asleep alone, little help. Maybe 1-2 paci runs and laying him back down-my son is pulling up and standing on his own at 6.5 months) He sleep straight through until morning.
I also found naps shorter than 45 minutes are what I call “suicide naps”. Anything less than 45 minutes is less than 1 sleep cycle for a baby. If they do not sleep at least 1 full sleep cycle they will be more tired than when the went to sleep. Most babies will wake in between sleep cycles and go back to sleep. Any child that has slept the night through can put themselves back to sleep. Teaching them consistency is the key. Be consistent in all you do!
I hope this helps some of you out there. I know I was at wits end with my son and his lack of naps. He is a much happier baby now, he needed the strict schedule. Some babies are harder to deal with. Just because your child fights sleep does not mean s/he does not need just as much sleep. Babies do need at least 3 hours of naps a day. The main thing you have to learn is sleep is not something babies are born to do. Like most skills they must be taught. Naps are harder to get down. Like adults, babies have a hard time going to sleep during the daylight hours.
Teaching sleep is not easy, but very rewarding. I definitely recommend reading all there is to read and making an informed decision that is best for you and your little one.
February 19th, 2010
I have a baby that is 6 months old and 21lbs and I am feeding on demand but the thing is that he will eat ALLLL day long and then the next day hardly eat at all and then the next ALLLL day long, i am so confussed about the schedule and im not too fond of his Ped. I am currently looking for a new one. any suggestions???? I dont know if they should eat so many calories or what?? It is getting very frustrating…. He also has acid reflux so Im not sure if that has something to do with it… I just worry that he is not growing good every doc. visit goes good but i havent had to start the solids…. PLEASE HELP
March 2nd, 2010
my baby is 5 1/2 months old.she will be 6 months old on 18 march..
my prb is that she sleeps hardly 8 hrs in night. but in that 8 hrs she wake up at every hr means if she sleep at 10 pm then she wake up at 11pm then she want milk after that she again go to sleep she takes 15 min for drinking. then again 12:15 am she wake up.she is not sleeping 8 hrs continously.2nd prb is she wants breastmilk at every hr. i did not start solid food. so plz give me suggestion.
March 2nd, 2010
@Danielle: your lo probably isn’t satisfied by just milk anymore. It is definitely time to start solids. @Priya: I know it’s hard having a baby that doesn’t sleep. Lord knows you are both exhausted. Unfortunately I don’t have a definite answer for you. I’d start solids immediately. If you haven’t done so already, I’d also start your daughter on a strict schedule. Put her to bed no later than 8. Create a bedtime routine, something short and precise. I bathe my son at 7, nurse him at 7:15, read a book at 7:25 and he is in bed by 7:30. Also allow her to cry. I know it’s hard but it is necessary for her to wind down and learn to go to sleep on her own. What is her daytime schedule like? What is the longest she has ever gone without nursing?