Are you struggling with baby sleep problems in your home? Is your baby waking often at night, even though you know she is capable of sleeping straight through? Is your little guy taking short mini-naps, instead of long and restful ones (or perhaps refusing naps altogether)?
There are lots of ways to solve these issues, but here’s a first step you may not have considered yet: try keeping a baby sleep log.
Why You Should Bother With Keeping a Baby Sleep Log
Here’s a fact that may be helpful to remember, as you work to understand your baby’s sleeping patterns: the amount of sleep a baby gets in 24 hours will stay relatively constant. However, babies can shift sleep between daytime and nighttime. For example, if your 9 month old baby sleeps 14 total hours, and she takes 3 naps each day that are about an hour each, then you can expect that she will probably sleep about 11 hours at night. But if her naps are extra-long, then her nighttime sleep amount will likely decrease. This won’t always work perfectly, of course, but it should generally remain true.
Keeping a baby sleep log will not only help you keep track of how much overall sleep your baby is getting (which is useful information to have, to help determine if your baby is sleep-deprived); it will also help you see how that sleep is divided up between naps and night, and will help you spot any inconsistencies or problems.
Logging your baby’s sleep will also help you see if there are patterns to your baby’s sleep issues. For example, your sleep log will reveal which naps are consistently shorter, and what times (on average) your baby wakes at night.
Finally, if you keep a log of your baby’s sleep, you can take the average amount of sleep in 24 hours and use that as a guide when adjusting schedules and setting your expectations on wake-times.
How to Log Your Baby’s Sleep
Logging your baby’s sleep is easy and straightforward. You simply need to keep track of wake times, nap times, nap lengths, and bedtime. You’ll need to do this for 1-2 weeks before you will be able to see patterns in your baby’s sleep, and before you will have enough information about your baby’s sleep to start working on sleep solutions.
Your log can be as high tech or as low tech as you would like. A notebook and a pencil are all you need to keep a basic log; you can also create a simple spreadsheet (using a program like Excel) on your computer, and keep a digital file of your log.
Of course, we do live in the age of the smartphone, and you know what that means: there’s an app for that! BabyConnect is one of the most popular baby log apps on the market (available for both Android phones and the iPhone). BabyConnect will help you log your baby’s sleep, yes, but it will help you track much more than that. And it is a great tool to use if your baby has multiple caregivers – it allows caregivers to enter information into the app, and to exchange messages about baby.
Get Professional Baby Sleep Help That Works – Guaranteed!
Even if you keep a careful and detailed log about your baby’s sleep, you may find that you need additional sleep help – and that’s perfectly okay! Some parents can solve sleep problems on their own, but other families struggle with sleep problems that are so challenging, they need outside, professional help. And we offer just that! Connect with an expert consultant today, and she will create a Personalized Sleep Plan™ (using your sleep log, if you send it!) that’s uniquely tailored to fit your baby’s temperament and personality, and your parenting goals.
Browse our list of consultation package options here.
Once you make your choice and purchase, you will immediately receive an e-mail with your Helpdesk login information. You’ll be able to log in and get started right away!
Want more information about how personalized help works? Check out our FAQ page here, and get answers.
Do you keep a baby sleep log? Has it helped you make sense of your baby’s sleep challenges? Any advice for parents who are considering sleep logging?
Our VIP Members Area is 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! As a VIP member, you’ll also enjoy a weekly chat with an expert sleep consultant.
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.
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 45 sample sleep schedules and planning worksheets, Mastering Naps and Schedules is a hands-on tool ideal for any parenting style.
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Great article! I just want to say to moms that maybe have the same type of baby that I have that sometimes trying to keep a log is only going to make you crazy! My baby girl was completely off any kind of pattern for a long long time. She was breastfeeding on demand and every.day.was.unique. I would read all around that keeping track would help me see patterns, but it only got me thinking that something must have been wrong, because she wouldn’t fall under ANY schedule or pattern whatsoever. So my tip is: of it isn’t helping, just drop it. Don’t go crazy because some babies are just like that, and there is nothing wrong. After a few months (a lot of months, actually) she started to have fewer naps and slowly got into a one long nap in the morning and one long nap in the afternoon type of schedule. I’m pretty sure daycare had a lot to do with this and even so, the time of her naps wasn’t always the same every day. Needless to say that because of that I created some bad sleep associations for her trying to make her sleep at any cost. Today at 19 months she still naps at slightly different times each day but thanks to the help of Baby Sleep Site now we make sure that at least she is having the amount of sleep that she needs at her age with minimum sleep associations.
@ Mirella Prado – great comment! You’re absolutely right – thanks for sharing this viewpoint and balancing the article a bit. 🙂 Much appreciated!! Also – so glad we were able to help!!