How to Handle the Frustrating (and Exhausting) 4 Month Sleep Regression
The exhausting 4-month sleep regression is when your baby wakes very frequently at night and/or takes short naps. Although there are temporary regressions at other ages, including 8 months, 11 months, 18 months, and 2 years old, the 4-month sleep regression is a permanent change to how your baby sleeps.
Learn more about this exhausting time period and how to manage it.
When does the 4-month sleep regression start?
The 4-month sleep regression can start any time after 8 weeks old, though some babies don’t sleep well from birth. This regression can also start as late as 5 months.
When does the 4-month sleep regression end?
The 4-month sleep regression doesn’t ever “end” in the strictest sense of the word. It is a permanent change to your baby’s sleep patterns. Some babies will begin (or go back) to sleeping well in 2-3 weeks while others have sleep habits that need to be actively changed in order to help them sleep well.
The 4 Month Sleep Regression at-a-glance:
- A permanent change in how a baby sleeps.
- Starts as early as 8 weeks and as late as 5 months.
- Your baby now cycles in and out of sleep cycles, light and deep sleep, something he or she didn’t do as a newborn.
- Your baby now wakes every 45 minutes to 2 hours.
- Things never go back to what they once were.
- While some babies will learn to sleep well after this change, many need your help learning how to sleep through the night or take longer naps.
4 Month Sleep Regression: Baby Sleep Patterns Change Permanently
If you are reading this page, you have likely just Googled 4 month sleep regression as thousands of people do each month. Working with parents every day, we know that many parents begin to have sleep problems when their baby is between 3 months and 5 months old and those sleep problems can last days, weeks, even months and years! Why do our 4 month old babies sleep worse than ever before and why doesn’t it improve? This guide will help you by explaining what the 4 month sleep regression is, why your baby’s sleep patterns changed, and the solution to the 4 month sleep regression.
The 4 month sleep regression marks a permanent change in your baby’s sleeping habits. See, before your baby hit the 4 month mark, your baby’s sleeping patterns were very…well…babyish. What do I mean by that? Simply this – babies don’t have distinct sleep stages like we adults do. While we cycle between deep and light sleep, our babies don’t – they sleep deeply pretty much all the time. (This explains why newborns and very young infants tend to sleep anywhere, through anything!)
After 4 months, though, all bets are off! As your baby’s brain matures, around the 4 month mark, her sleeping patterns change – they become more like yours. Now, she is cycling between light and deep sleep – just like you. When you look at it this way, it’s clear that the 4 month sleep regression is a very normal, very healthy developmental milestone, just like learning to walk and talk. So if your baby is currently going through the 4 month sleep regression, congratulations – her growth and development is right on track!
But also, if your baby is currently going through the 4 month sleep regression – you have my deepest sympathies ;). That’s because (as many of you well know) your baby’s new ‘grown up’ sleep patterns produce WAY more night waking and short naps. Every time your baby cycles out of deep sleep and into slight sleep, theres a good chance she will wake up – and once she’s up, she will more than likely need your help to fall back to sleep.
4 Month Sleep Regression: How To Manage It Right Now
Here’s the thing to remember about the 4 month sleep regression: it doesn’t go away. It’s different in that sense than the other sleep regressions that happen at 8, 9, or 10 months, and the toddler seep regressions that happen at 18 months and 2 years old. Those sleep regressions ultimately pass in a few weeks, and your little one’s sleep returns to normal. Not so with this one. The changes that happen with the 4 month sleep regression are permanent.
But don’t let that thoroughly depress you! There are ways you can move past the 4 month sleep regression, and teach your baby a new way to sleep. We’ll get to those in a moment.
In the beginning, though, here’s our advice: cope as best you can. If you are in the early days of the regression, you are no doubt exhausted beyond all measure and feeling utterly frustrated. This is normal. Spend the next few days/weeks coping, while you formulate your sleep training plan.
How can you cope? Here are a few strategies you can use to encourage your baby to sleep more during the 4 month sleep regression:
- Continue helping your baby fall asleep in the way he has been falling asleep up until now. If you’ve been nursing to sleep, keep doing it. Same with rocking or holding to sleep. Yes, these are sleep associations that will ultimately hinder your baby’s sleep, and that you’ll need to wean away from later. But don’t worry about that right now – for now, do what you need to do to help your baby fall asleep.
- Swaddle and/or offer a pacifier. If you’ve been doing this (and it’s been working), keep it up. If you haven’t, try these as techniques to help soothe your fussy baby, and to promote sleep.
- Offer a dream feed. This isn’t a fool-proof strategy, but it works well for some babies. Offer a dream feed and ‘top-off’ right before you go to bed, and it may help your baby sleep a bit longer at night.
- Use the swing, if you have one. The swing can be a great way to soothe your fussy baby, and to help induce a nap that wouldn’t otherwise happen ;). Just be sure to supervise your baby while he’s sleeping in the swing – you don’t want to let him sleep there for long periods of time.
- Ask for help! This is the time to lean hard on friends and family members. Let other people hang out with the baby while you take a nap.
“I am so happy with my experience with The Baby Sleep Site. My sleep consultant was phenomenal. I contacted the site after my little guy went through the 4 month sleep regression. He started to only sleep in 20 minute increments, so I resorted to co-sleeping out of necessity. They were able to help me to adjust his eating schedule and napping schedule, while educating me on the process along the way. She was always quick to respond to my emails, which were often several times a day – including weekends. While my son is not quite sleeping through the night yet, I am happy to say that he is in his own room and in his own bed! His sleep stretches are growing. He is also napping in his own bed now, which has freed up my day considerably! I couldn’t be happier with my experience with The Baby Sleep Site and will recommend your services to friends and family. I hope that I don’t need any more sleep help, but if I do, I am confident that The Baby Sleep Site will be able to guide me on the right path.”
-Maggie Bales, MI
“I am so happy with my experience with The Baby Sleep Site. My sleep consultant was phenomenal. I contacted the site after my little guy went through the 4 month sleep regression. He started to only sleep in 20 minute increments, so I resorted to co-sleeping out of necessity. They were able to help me to adjust his eating schedule and napping schedule, while educating me on the process along the way. She was always quick to respond to my emails, which were often several times a day – including weekends. While my son is not quite sleeping through the night yet, I am happy to say that he is in his own room and in his own bed! His sleep stretches are growing. He is also napping in his own bed now, which has freed up my day considerably! I couldn’t be happier with my experience with The Baby Sleep Site and will recommend your services to friends and family. I hope that I don’t need any more sleep help, but if I do, I am confident that The Baby Sleep Site will be able to guide me on the right path.”Remember, these should all be viewed as short-term solutions. None of these will solve your 4 month old baby’s sleep problems; what they will do is help you rest up in preparation for starting to work on teaching your 4 month old baby a new way to sleep.
4 Month Sleep Regression: How To Move Past It For Good
Once you understand the what and why behind the 4 month sleep regression, and once you’ve taken steps to cope and stay rested in the short-term, it’s time to start teaching your baby a new way to sleep. This process is called sleep training, or sleep coaching.
How does this work? Well, for starters, you look at how your baby falls asleep – those are your baby’s sleep associations. Many babies depend on mom or dad to feed, or rock, or hold them to sleep, for example. Once you’ve identified your baby’s sleep associations, you begin to slowly wean your baby away from them, in an effort to help your baby learn to fall asleep alone. There are many techniques and methods to do this – the one that you choose will depend on your family’s unique circumstances, on your baby’s temperament, and on your own unique parenting philosophy.
Once you have begun weaning your baby away from her sleep associations, you will also want to work on teaching your baby to fall asleep alone. Typically, parents start working on this by putting their babies to bed drowsy but awake. Once your baby can fall sleep alone, without help from you, she will be able to put herself back to sleep at night when she wakes, and to eventually (when she is ready and is done with night feedings) sleep through the night.
Continued below…
4 Month Sleep Regression Case Study
Want more information about how to help your 4 month old sleep well? Check out our detailed case study about Nadia, Brad, and their 4 month old, Abigail.
Read how they helped Abigail learn to sleep longer stretches at night and take better naps – and how they helped to change those sleep associations that were keeping her awake! Just join our Members Area, and access the case study instantly. And that’s not all – our Members Area is packed with additional premium content and resources: e-Books, assessments, more case studies, live chat with a sleep consultant, and more. It actually costs less to join than buying products separately! And best of all, members receive 20% of all consultation services – that savings alone can actually pay for the cost of the membership!
Help For The 4 Month Sleep Regression
Now, trust me when I say that this process is much easier said than done! Actually teaching your baby a new way to sleep involves lots of work for many families, and can take weeks to accomplish. Some families can do this on their own, with the help of books and other resources. If you feel ready to tackle your baby’s sleep challenges on your own, but want to read up on sleep training first, you might consider taking a look at our e-Book, The 3-Step System To Help Your Baby Sleep.
But while some families can go it alone, other families find themselves needing additional help. That’s precisely why we are here – to offer that additional help! Nicole created The Baby Sleep Site® in 2008 with the goal of offering personalized, individualized sleep help to exhausted families, and she’s been doing it ever since.
So, how does this system of individualized help work? It’s simple – you purchase a consultation package and connect one-on-one with a trained sleep consultant. After learning more about your family’s unique situation and sleep struggles, your consultant creates a Personalized Sleep Plan™ just for you, and then provides additional help and support along the way, as you implement the plan at home. Simple, and effective!
If you are ready to move past the 4 month sleep regression, and you feel ready to teach your baby a new way to sleep, take the first step today! Browse our list of consultation packages, and choose one that looks best for your family.
Click here to view our consultation packages.
Once you purchase, you will receive an e-mail with instructions about how to log in to our Help Desk. Once logged in, you can create your account, fill out your family’s sleep history, connect with a sleep consultant, and get started! Then, in a matter of weeks, you will be able to add your name to our long list of well-rested parents :).
Want FREE sleep help that you can put to use right away? Download a copy of our free guide, 5 Ways To Help Your Child Sleep Through The Night! The guide is available to download instantly, which means you can start using the techniques in it as early as tonight. So download now, and learn why your baby is waking at night – and what you can do about it.
Click here to learn more about how to get your free guide.
A better night’s sleep could be just a few clicks away. So don’t wait – download now, and start your journey to better sleep tonight!
How are you coping with the 4 month sleep regression? Any tips for struggling, exhausted parents? Add your voice to the conversation!
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If you are tired of wading through stacks of baby sleep books that just aren't working, if you are beyond exhausted and just can't solve your child's sleep problems on your own...than personalized sleep consulting is for you. Our team of expert consultants will create a Personalized Sleep Plan® just for your family and then support you through every step of implementing your plan. We encourage you to consider our personalized, one-on-one baby and toddler sleep consultation packages if you want to see real, meaningful results now. Your consultation package also includes ample follow-up help, designed to help you troubleshoot problems and tweak your plan as needed.Learn More About Services
For those persistent nighttime struggles, check out The 3 Step System to Help Your Baby Sleep. Using the same unique approach and practical tools for success, this e-book helps you and your baby sleep through the night.
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If you’re looking for ways to get your baby or toddler into a healthy sleeping routine during the day, 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 45 sample sleep schedules and worksheets, Mastering Naps and Schedules is a hands-on tool ideal for any parenting style.
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For those persistent toddler sleep struggles, check out The 5 Step System to Help Your Toddler Sleep. Using the same unique approach and practical tools for success, this e-book helps you and your toddler sleep through the night and enjoy a better daytime schedule.
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Hello my daughter is 18 weeks old. She has been a great sleeper. Bed time at 830/9pm and awake around 530am. Sleeping 9-10hrs a night straight. The last few days she has been waking every 2 hours after her first wake she never really gets back in to a deep sleep. I miss my good sleeper. Please help us get back to 9-10hrs a night.
Hang in there @Jessica! The 4 month sleep regression is definitely a rough one, and it will just take time and effort to teach her how to self soothe and fall back asleep on her own. Here is a link to download a free guide which will give tips on where to start: http://www.babysleepsite.com/sleep-through-night-free-ebook/
Please note that at this age 1-3 feedings at night are still normal so if she doesn’t go back to her super long stretches, but has stopped with the every 2 hour thing, that may be what she needs right now since there’s lots of growth spurts happening! If you need more help, please don’t hesitate to reach out. We have a ton of other resources for you if you need!
How do you recommend teaching her how to self sooth herself back to sleep? Is crying it out something I should allow her to do? She is 4 months. She can put herself to sleep for nap time but at night is the problem. I keep finding my self picking her back up and not even two minutes of hold her and she is out.
Hi @Jessica, thanks for getting back to me. There are lots of different techniques to teach her to fall back asleep on her own (crying it out would be one of the options, but even within that there are tons of variations of what you can do) and many people begin this process between 4-6 months. Here is a link to an article on our site that goes over a few different sleep training techniques: https://www.babysleepsite.com/sleep-training/5-sleep-training-methods-explained/
Within this article there are lots of other links to give you more information on a specific technique. The important thing with sleep training is to definitely have a plan of action, and to give it some time for at least a week or so before changing the routine. Using the tips from the free guide I linked previously as well (establishing a bedtime routine, making sure the schedule is right, etc.) will all be keys in success.
If you need more help, please let us know! We have a ton of other resources (you will see as you begin to click around), many are free, and we also have more in-depth information in our Members Area that you can read more about here: https://www.babysleepsite.com/diy/ and we have personalized consulting as well.
Hopefully since your daughter was sleeping well for you before she will catch on quick and you’re able to get things on track very soon. Let us know how everything turns out or if you have any more questions!
My son is about to turn 5 months and we have been struggling with sleep training for the past few weeks. We never really slept during the day in the early months but always slept amazing at night..
Currently he needs to rocked or patted to drowsy then in the crib and then patted till asleep.. occasionlly he will roll onto his tummy then wakes up.. this morning he was wide awake at 3am..
the last two nights he’s suffered from congestion and prefers to be upright.. could this be hindering the training process? How long do we persist with the current method of training?
My wife has Post Partem Depression and is not copying with the exhaustion.. she’s weeping and is struggling to deal with the lack of progress even though I feel there is some..
Hi @Richard – Thank you for writing to us, and I am sorry that you are working hard but still struggling with sleep! Yes, certainly feeling ill/congested can be a hindrance to the sleep training process. Hang in there, and please support your spouse and help her do the same! It is great that you have noticed progress. That is a good thing! We recommend sticking with your “plan” for at least one to two weeks, before adjusting things. I am not sure how long it has been for you, or how consistent you have been able to be.
One of our expert sleep consultants would love to take an in depth look at his sleep history and details about his day and night sleep and would be happy to help support you and your family through this!
If you find that you would like more help, you can read about all of our sleep consultation packages here: http://babysleepsite.com/services/
Hang in there Richard, and if your wife has not already sought help for her PPD, please check out this site with her: http://www.postpartum.net/ or call this number for support: 1-800-944-4773
How am I coping? With coffee – I really just want to stab my eyes out I’m that tired. This is my second baby and I thought I would have it sussed being my second but nope – what worked for one definitely doesn’t work for the other. Ah well thank goodness for family and friends and awesome sites like this.
@Yunene, hang in there! It is crazy how different babies can be! I’m glad you’re finding the site helpful and that you have support around you. If you need anything, let us know, but for now, go enjoy a cup of coffee!
Good Morning,
My baby boy is 17 weeks today and up until a week and a half ago he was sleeping through the night. Now the sleep regression has hit hard. I bath him at 7 and he has a massage and gets dressed for bed and has his bottle around 7:45 and he’s notmally asleep by 8:30 the latest, I put him in his cot when he’s awake but drowsy and he goes off on his own with no fuss. He sleeps solidly until 12:30 every night and that’s when it starts, at least once an hour he’s awake, I’ve tried giving him a bottle and he’s not hungry so I resorted back to just giving his dummy and he does drift back off but then an hour later he’s awake again!
Any advice I would be hugely grateful!
Hannah x
@Hannah, thanks for writing to us. I am sorry you’re struggling with your son’s sleep! It sounds like he may be experiencing the 4 month regression so he’ll need to learn how to settle himself to sleep during those wake ups. Here is a link to a free guide with tips to help him sleep through the night: http://www.babysleepsite.com/sleep-through-night-free-ebook/
Hopefully he gets back on track soon! Be sure to click the links in the guide that will take you to more resources and let us know if you need any more help.
My son is 3 months and is sleeping 7 hour stretches at night. I am terrified once the 4 month regression happens he will become a bad sleeper (my oldest child was a terrible sleeper).
We rock him and cuddle before he goes to sleep and he always cries for awhile and then eventually goes to sleep – sometimes in our arms, sometimes I put him down when he is very close to drifting off and then sssssh him to sleep. Would this be considered a wind down session or a sleep association?
Any specific advice about things we should be doing in the lead up to the regression to help or prevent it becoming terrible?
Hi @Lauren, thanks for writing to us! I am sorry your first child was a terrible sleeper and that you are now worried about your second. It sounds like you are doing all you know to do to establish good sleep habits from the beginning so hopefully things will continue! It truly depends on the child. I had one child that never showed signs of any sleep regression, while my other gave me trouble for far longer. Here is a link to free guide that you can keep as a reference if you do begin to experience trouble as the next month approaches: https://www.babysleepsite.com/baby-sleep-through-night-free-ebook/
Hopefully you won’t need it! 😉 If you need any more help, please let us know, we are here!
My son is almost 4.5 months. He has always gone to sleep 15 to 20mins after putting him down and sometimes lesser than that.
Now the issue is, for the last 3 days or so, for his morning nap he has been playing and not going to sleep, he keeps practising his rolling technique and then eventually sleep. For his afternoon nap, he however won’t go to.sleep straight away, he will keep talking and cooing to himself, rolling and eventually crying, which I then go to him and carry him and gently but firmly tell him it’s his naptime and then leave the room. He cries for a minute or so and then he sleeps. (Or so) but then he wakes up after about 40minutes later he whines, but I don’t go to him, so I allow him fall back asleep again until it’s his wake up time. I have a toddler that I have to look after as well. How do I handle this phase, should I continue with what I am doing or allow him stay awake more, and then put him back to sleep
He wakes up 6/6:30 am
First nap: 8:/15 or 8: 20 am to wake up 10 am
Second nap 11:20 am to wake up 1: 30 pm
Third nap 3: 15 pm to wake up 4:15 pm.
The reason for this nap gap is because he starts getting a little cranky at that time, so I close the curtain and he still cries a bit, but then i calm him and then he gors quiet. However, he still wont go to sleep until alomost 45 minutes later. He wont cry straight away, he will keep cooing and turning or even laughing, until it’s about 40 minutes and then he starts crying. Before I go him to reassure him and then he sleeps.
Is this the real regression or it’s just him wanting more play time?
@Lola – Thank you for writing to us. I am sorry you’ve been struggling the past few days with your son’s naps. It sounds like he has an amazing routine that you are sticking to, so if it’s a regression or him just testing out his new skill of rolling (that can often mess with sleep too) hopefully he’ll be back on track soon with the help of your consistency. 🙂 If you need any nap tips in addition to what you are already doing, be sure to download our free guide for naps here: https://www.babysleepsite.com/free-baby-nap-guide/
Hope this helps!
I really appreciate this site and all the information. My baby is 4.5 months, and she’s definitely going through the sleep regression, but she already knows how to fall asleep on her own. When it’s naptime or bedtime I just go through the wind down routine and put her in bed, and she sometimes cries a bit but often falls asleep with no crying. However, she won’t sleep longer than 30-45 minutes during the day unless she’s in her swing, and she wakes up usually three times at night when she had previously been sleeping 6-9 hours in a stretch. Is this something we just have to wait out, or something we will need to work on?
Again, so grateful for your input!
Hi @Chelsea,
Thank you for writing to us! it sounds like you have been working hard to get your little one sleeping well! it is great that she can already fall asleep on her own! Those short naps are common, but feel free to try and encourage her to fall back to sleep if she can/will. That may take a little more time, so hang in there! Regarding her night wakings, I cannot say if she will outgrow that on your own, or if she will need help. Every baby is different, and some will drop those night wakings/feeds (if she is feeding at those times) on their own, and many will not. If you do find that you need to work on those night wakings or those short naps, we would love to help! Just contact us at any time if things do not smooth out! Good luck Chelsea, and thanks for reading!
Ok… today has got to be the most longest day ever. I don’t even know what to classify this as. I have a 3.5 month old. Woke up at 7am as usual. First nap is usually about an hr later 8am, (we started this bed time at 6 weeks based on his tired cues) as he wants to go to bed at that time.
But for the past two days, he has been resisting going to bed at 8am. Today he fussed and cried and refused to go to bed. Eventually I had to bring up his 2nd nap up early as he was already dozing on his own at 10:40am after being up for over 3 hrs!!!
He woke up at 1:20pm and has ever since refused his last nap..He keeps crying from being tired, he also wants to feed as well, which I dutifuly oblidge. But then I tried putting him to bed 2 hrs later after waking up as putting him to bed earlier (1hr 30 mins) isn’t really working. But he keeps refusing. Now it’s over 3.5 hrs, still refusing to go down even after calming him down and blacking out the room.
Issue now is, he has just dozed off on his own whilst lying down the bed and it’s not even pitch black in the room.
P.s: he was getting to sleep on his own after nap routine of lullaby and then put him to bed to sleep.
Same with bedtime. After the routine, he falls asleep on his own after lullaby.
Now this week, he seems to be fussing a bit more than usual.
Please help! How do I get him to sleep on his own again, as I don’t like long crying and all of that.
Hi Lola,
Thank you for using The Baby Sleep Site as a resource. I’m sorry to hear you’re running into the 4 month regression a little early – it can be exhausting! Many babies will stop napping regularly for a short period of time during a regression, growth spurt, or when they’re learning a new skill. It can be hard to get through in the moment, but it almost always improves within a week or two. You might like our article on sleep coaching, which you can start around 4 months-old, and which includes no- and low-cry methods: https://www.babysleepsite.com/sleep-training/sleep-training-from-no-cry-to-cry-series-part-1/
I hope this helps, and good luck!
What is the reason for waiting to train until the regression passes? How does one know when it actually has passed?
@DeAnna – Thank you for stopping by our sleepy little village and for reading! We generally make this flexible suggestion since your baby’s “worsened” sleep or newly “bad” sleep is quite literally out of their control so adding in teaching them a new skill during this time may lead to longer training and/or more frustration for both you and your baby. And the 4 month sleep regression doesn’t really “pass” unfortunately – you all just settle in to the new way your baby sleeps. I hope this helps, DeAnna. Please keep reading!
Hi Neosha, we’re in this situation at the moment with our 4 month old..if it’s suggested to wait until the regression passes but then you say it doesn’t really pass, isnt that somewhat conflicting..i.e. how do we know when is a good time to start sleep training? For the last 4 days our baby has been waking up more often at night and being harder to settle, do we start now or wait longer? Thanks!
Hi @Elliot Whitehead, thanks for your comment! I totally understand why you are asking that! I’m sorry if it seems confusing. We include this because for some babies, they do just “get it” without a ton of intervention. That is why we said watch and see what happens, but if you’re getting desperate and are ready to begin sleep training, go ahead and go for it, it is easier to start now before you are totally exhausted rather than waiting to see if you will have an issue or not. Typically for future regressions (9 months, 12 months, and so on) you can “wait them out” and remain consistent and things will get back on track in a few days/weeks. I hope this helps!
I’m one week away from having a 4 month old. He was starting to sleep 3-6 hour stretches at about 10 weeks but then he accidentally flipped in his arms up sleep sack from back to belly twice! He woke up screaming both times luckily and I saved him. It was terrifying! He hated being swaddled with arms in anyway but still had a strong startle reflex so we had a few sleepless nights. I tried the Merlín sleep suit and that helped for a little bit (he slept about 2-2 1/2hrs only at a time) but then at 13 weeks his sleep just got worse. So for the last 2 weeks he sleeps about 2 hrs when he first goes down, but then wakes up every 40-90 minutes. I nurse him to sleep because it was working well before but now I’m up nursing half the night. Nursing about 15 minutes every 40-90 minutes is killing me. To make things worse…. he sleeps in his bassinet at night but only naps during the day if he’s being carried. That’s gone on since birth. I go back to work in 6 weeks and can’t continue like this. I’m also worried he may be too young for sleep training?
@Paulie – Thank you for stopping by our sleepy little village and for sharing with us. We completely feel your pain – 4 month olds are definitely tough when it comes to managing their sleep as this frustrating and exhausting sleep regression causes all sorts of havoc. We generally advise our parents that it is never too soon to start teaching your baby healthy sleeping habits and we encourage a “formal” or more strict sleep training program once your baby is at least 4 months old. When you’re ready, please consider connecting with one of our sleep consultants who will be able to get more detailed information from you and walk you step-by-step, day-by-day through this process. You can read more about our lovely ladies here: http://www.babysleepsite.com/about and our services here: http://www.babysleepsite.com/services Hang in there, Paulie!
My doughter has 4months and two weeks. Before she gets 4months she was sleeping all night since 9-10pm untill 08-09.00 am. Since she had 4months her nights vary:she gets up and stays awake for an hour and after that she gets back to sleep, or in another nights she wake’s up for the pacifier two or three times and quickly goes back to sleep and other times she wakes up very fussy, i hold her until she sleeps back.
By the day she is sleeping well. She has 3-4naps. She is sleeping one hour or two by nap.
By night she is sleeping with me in the same bed. And both day and night i help her to sleep as i walk with her in my arms.
In this the 4months sleep regresion? Or it doesn’t start yet?
Hi @Raluca, thank you for writing to us! I am sorry you have been struggling with your daughter’s sleep. It could possibly be the regression as around this age sleep patterns begin to change. We have a free guide with tips on helping your child sleep better at night that may help. Here is the link to sign up to receive it if you are interested: https://www.babysleepsite.com/baby-sleep-through-night-free-ebook/
If things don’t smooth out in a few weeks and you need more help, let us know! Our amazing sleep consultants can walk through these challenges with you and help both you and your daughter get more sleep at night. If you are interested you can view our packages online here: https://www.babysleepsite.com/baby-toddler-sleep-consulting-services/ or you can email us directly and we can recommend a specific package for you at contact@babysleepsite.com
Hang in there! I am sorry you are struggling and hope this helps!
Thank you very much for your answer. I would have another question if you would be nice to answer me.
Meanwhile she turned 5month and the situation is the same. So I’m thinking to aplly a sleeping training method.
At this time i help her to sleep by walking with her in the room with pacifier. It take me by 5-15minutes to help her to sleep.
In the first i would like to weaning her by the pacifier. So, the question is:first should I get ridder of the pacifier by continuing helping her to sleep by walking with her in the room? Or should I start directly with sleep training without a pacifier?
Tkank you!
Hi @Raluca, I’m sorry the issues are still going on but at least you are able to know it is something that will need a plan of action. The way you choose to proceed is going to be up to you so my piece of advise is to stay consistent with your plan and to give it time. Here is an article to help with your decision for the pacifier. https://www.babysleepsite.com/sleep-training/pacifier-weaning-stop-baby-toddler-how-when/
Hang in there!
Hello.This post was really remarkable, especially since I
was looking for thoughts on this matter last Monday.
Good day, my baby girl is 14 weeks, and she’s rubbing her gums with her tongue, does is mean she can be teething
Hi @Maleagiso Cecilia Ntlatseng, thanks for your comment! All babies are so different! It could be possible she’s teething (once it starts you may feel like she’s constantly teething for about 2 years with breaks here and there) or she’s just found her tongue. 🙂 Enjoy your sweet girl!
My little one just turned 16 weeks, and just started his 4 month sleep regression. We are going to start sleep training him. But nobody will give me an answer to this question: do we need to transfer him to his own room?
I would have no problem with this, as long as it will help him to sleep better.
Thanks!
@P – Thank you for stopping by our sleepy little village and for commenting. I completely understand your frustration about the sometimes impossibility of finding 1 answer to what seems to be 1 simple question – we try to keep things as simple as possible here. The answer to this is “It’s entirely up to you!” 🙂 Some do while some work on sleep first before transferring to their own room and some never transfer to their own room, so whatever works for your family is what you should do as long as it’s done safely. If you’d like any help managing that transition or working on room-sharing with your little one while sleep coaching, we’re here to help! Feel free to connect with one of our consultants at any time: http://www.babysleepsite.com/services I hope this helps, and please keep reading!
My daughter is 4.5 months old. She has not been a good sleeper, preferring to sleep on me, since the very night she was born. At about 3 months, she went from a not-great sleeper, to a very bad one. She would sleep 45 minutes in her bed and then wake up as soon as I put her down for the remainder of the night. I assumed she was going through the 4 month sleep regression early. When she turned 4 months old, I started doing pickup/put down with her and it worked wonders. We had been doing that with a good degree of success for about 10 days, when all of a sudden she started desperately wanting to be nursed to sleep and waking every 2-2.5 hours. This has gone on for the last 2 nights and now I don’t know whether to be more strict with her or cut her some slack. I thought she had already regressed but if this is actually it, do I keep forging ahead with the pick up/put down? I don’t want to be cruel but I do want to get her sleep back on track. Thanks in advance!
Hi @Joanna! Thank you for stopping by and leaving a comment – I am so sorry to hear that you are feeling the effects of the 4 month sleep regression! It is a rough one and I do hope things level out soon, especially with you being consistent with sleep training her. If the issues persist, or you find you’re getting closer to the end of your rope, let us know! We have an amazing team of sleep consultants here that can help figure out what the issue is if it’s not regression related. Hang in there and I hope this passes quickly!
My daughter just turned 4 months. She was the only child I have that would sleep close to 12 hours at night and wake up one time for a feeding. Now She’s up 6-7 times at night and only napping 15-25 minutes every other hour or so. I’m a mother of 4. My youngest 2 are 11 months apart. Something has got to give. ?????
@Sarah I’m so sorry to hear your daughter is waking so much at night. You are not alone and we get a lot of parents here around this same time! Waking up so much at night is certainly exhausting. We are happy to help and welcome you to contact us any time!
Hey,
My little one is 3.5 months old she us a good sleeper at night waking twice in the night from 9pm – 7am. But I can not get her to slef sooth at all. She fights sleep and just screams when she is over tierd. Her dad and I have to constantly rock her to sleep. In the day her naps and very short and fragmented it doesn’t matter where she sleep it won’t be for long. I don’t know how much more I can take. It breaks my heart listening to get cry like that but I get so frustrated when she just won’t sleep!
Thank you.
@Stacey I’m sorry to hear your 3 1/2 month old is having trouble falling asleep at night. You’re certainly not alone and we’d be happy to help! At The Baby Sleep Site, we believe in helping babies learn how to sleep before we expect them to necessarily be able to do it alone. We are all moms and want to limit crying as much as possible. There are gentle methods you can use to help her learn how to fall asleep without being rocked. You may be interested in learning about gentle sleep coaching techniques. We have some articles around the blog you are free to peruse, but it may be faster simply to get one of our sleep plans or review some of our case studies, audio recordings, or day-by-day plans in our Members Area where you can also chat live with a sleep consultant. Let me know if you would like more information about that at all or feel free to contact us directly here: https://www.babysleepsite.com/contact Hang in there!! We know how hard this is.