4 Month Old Sleep Schedule With Feedings: For Breastfeeding and Formula-Feeding Babies

4 Month Old Sleep Schedule With Feedings

With over 15 years of experience as a pediatric sleep consultant, I’m happy to share sample 4 month old sleep schedules with feedings. These sample schedules include milk feedings for breastfeeding and formula-feeding babies, solids, naps, and nighttime sleep.

4 Month Old Baby’s Sleep and Development

Pediatricians disagree high and low about when a baby is capable of sleeping through the night and only a handful of parents who reach this page will have a 4 month old who sleeps all night without even a single feeding (those that do are LUCKY!).

Most 4-month-olds need 11-12 hours at night and 3-4 hours during the day. And, many 4-month-olds are still eating 1-2 times a night and some naps are just 30 minutes. In addition, most 4 month olds will take 4 naps a day. Consequently, short naps are normal development at this age as it’s highly unusual for babies to take four 1-hour naps.

At this age, if you are not lucky enough to have a baby who sleeps through the night, many 4-month-olds are still waking 1-3 times to eat at night and many breastfeeding babies will continue to eat 1-2 times until 9+ months of age. On the other hand, formula-fed babies will often be night-weaned by 6 months old. More night feedings than that and likely you have a sleep association problem.

How Many Naps for a 4 Month Old?

Most 4-month-old babies take 4 naps each day totaling 3-4 hours of sleep. The reason for so many naps is primarily because babies this age can’t stay awake longer than 1-2 hours at a time. 4 month old wake windows are still short. Therefore, t’s still common to spread out daytime sleep among multiple sleep periods. However, some babies this age can stay awake longer and drop the fourth nap transitioning to a 3-nap schedule early.

4 Month Old Wake Windows

The typical 4-month old wake window is 1 to 2 hours with the first wake window being one of the shortest. Sometimes, that first wake window is just 75 to 90 minutes.

When Your 4 Month Old’s Sleep Gets Worse

If your baby has recently started sleeping worse, you may want to read more about 4 month old baby sleep. Keep in mind that one of the biggest sleep challenges families face around 4 months is the 4 month sleep regression. During this time period, babies change their sleep permanently and will wake up frequently at night and take shorter naps.

Obviously, all babies vary, but here are some sample (loose) schedules you can use to make your own for your unique baby. Most babies, at this age, can’t be on a strict schedule because many babies are still taking shorter naps while their brain matures and they simply can not stay up very long 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 and every day will still likely be different.

Don’t worry, that will change!

Babies typically transition to just 3 naps around 6 months or 7 months.

If you’re having trouble with naps, you might be interested in helping your baby nap better.

4 Month Old Feeding

Breast milk or formula should be the primary nutrition for the first year and solids should be secondary. Below are the amounts we recommend if your pediatrician recommends solids before 6 months, the age at which most are recommended starting solids. For more information on starting your baby on solid food, we have a series of blog posts dedicated to the subject. We include recommendations about how and when to start solids, as well as helpful information on food allergies, recommended products, baby-friendly recipes, and more.

Average amounts per day:

• At least 5-6 breastfeeding sessions per day or 2 1/2 ounces formula for each pound of weight (approx. 20-30 ounces) (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).

And, ONLY IF your pediatrician recommends solids this young (it is now recommended at 6+ months):

• Up to 1-2 servings baby cereal (1 serving = 1-2 Tablespoons dry)
• Up to 1-2 servings fruit or veggies (1 serving = 1-2 Tablespoons)

Note: With your doctor’s approval and guidance, you will start with just one teaspoon of solids (before mixing w/ breast milk or formula) and work your way up. Don’t forget to wait at least 3-4 days before introducing a new food for food allergy reasons.

“Thank you for your articles, they’ve shown me that my 4 month old baby is perfectly normal and I’m doing the right things in relation to his sleep. This is such a relief! So many sources just don’t seem to give realistic information about baby sleep – not for myself or for any other mum I know.

Great care has obviously been taken by The Baby Sleep Site in reflecting a realistic and true picture of what a ‘normal’ baby is. Thank you.”
-Sincerely, Elizabeth

Sample 4 Month Old Schedule

This schedule assumes a baby can stay up 1 hour 15 minutes before needing to sleep again. At this age, wake-time should be 1-2 hours TOPS, to avoid baby getting overtired.

4-Month-Old Sleep Schedule
TimeActivity
6:30 AMWake and Breast milk or Formula
7:15 AMSolids (Only if your pediatrician has recommended starting this early)
7:45Nap
8:15-8:45Breast milk or Formula
9:45-10:00Nap
10:45-11:15Breast milk or Formula
11:45-12:00Nap
1:15-1:45Breast milk or Formula
2:00Nap
3:45-4:15Breast milk or Formula
4:45Nap
5:45Begin bedtime routine
6:00Breast milk or Formula
6:15Bedtime (Goal to be asleep at this time)

+Plus probably 1-3 nighttime feedings

Note: This schedule follows the eat-play-sleep routine, however, it is sometimes hard to do 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.


You May Also Be Interested In:

All content of The Baby Sleep Site®, such as articles, e-guides, e-Books, advice, evaluative consultations, text, graphics, images, and other material contained on The Baby Sleep Site® (“Content”) are for informational and supportive purposes only. The Content is not intended to be a substitute for professional or medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always, always, always seek the advice of your physician or another qualified healthcare provider with any questions you may have regarding your or your child’s medical condition(s), behaviors, feeding and sleeping habits, and environment. Never disregard professional medical advice or delay in seeking it because of something you have read on The Baby Sleep Site®.

The Baby Sleep Site® is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program and other product affiliate programs. If you click on a product link and make a purchase, The Baby Sleep Site® may (but not always) receive a small commission from the company selling the product, but will not affect your purchase price. We only recommend products that we believe are quality products and are good for our readers.

Holistic Sleep Solutions from The Baby Sleep Site®

e-Book bundles

Do-It-Yourself: Just getting started with your research but you want to stop Googling? Choose from any of our e-book bundles for practical advice you can put to use TODAY!  

Become a VIP Member

Do-It-Mostly-Yourself: Would you like to continue learning with the option of getting answers from an expert sleep consultant? We have a perfect solution! Become a VIP Member for access to all of our premium content. This includes ALL of our e-books and bonuses, audio courses, access to our “ask the author” feature giving you answers to your pressing questions from an expert baby sleep consultant, and more!

Get a Personalized Sleep Plan

Work With a Sleep Expert: Tap into over a decade of experience with thousands of families before you! Get a Personalized Sleep Plan® just for your unique situation, get guidance and answers to all your “what if?” questions while you work through your plan, and benefit from expert support along the way. We can’t tell you how many times we’ve heard “I wish I had done this sooner!” Not sure? Read these stories from well-rested parents.

Don’t lose another wink of sleep — GET STARTED TODAY with our gentler, kinder approach to healthy sleep!

FREE Guide: Five Ways To Help Your Child Sleep Through the Night

Join over 500,000 parents for 15+ years & sign up today to receive the guide and Newzzz, our Baby Sleep Newsletter absolutely FREE!












 
315
Share to...