Gina Johnson
Newborns sleep a lot—anywhere from 11 to 19 hours a day—but they don't know the difference between day and night, and they wake up frequently. Their sleep is divided into active sleep and quiet sleep. During active sleep, newborns may move, groan, open their eyes, cry out, or breathe noisily or irregularly. During quiet sleep, they lie relatively still and their breathing is more even. As they get older, newborns will have less active sleep and more deep sleep.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Sleep duration | 11-19 hours a day |
| Sleep cycle | 20-50 minutes |
| Sleep stages | 1, 2, 3, 4, REM |
| Sleep type | Active sleep, quiet sleep, indeterminate sleep |
| Sleep position | On the back |
| Feeding | Every 3 hours |
| Circadian rhythm | Absent at birth, starts to develop at 2-3 months |
| Self-soothing | Absent at birth, starts to develop at 3 months |
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What You'll Learn
- Newborns sleep 12-18 hours a day in short bursts, waking frequently
- They do not know the difference between day and night, and have no sleep-wake rhythm
- Newborns have three types of sleep: quiet, active, and indeterminate
- They move from active sleep to quiet sleep and back again in cycles
- Self-settling is a newborn's ability to settle themselves between sleep cycles
Newborns sleep 12-18 hours a day in short bursts, waking frequently
Newborns typically sleep between 12 and 18 hours a day, but this is spread across the day and night with no set schedule or concentration of sleeping and waking. This is because newborns do not know the difference between day and night and have not yet established a sleep-wake rhythm.
Newborns sleep in short bursts, known as sleep cycles, which are usually around 20 to 50 minutes long. They wake frequently during the night, often because they need to be fed or changed. It is important to create positive sleep associations for your newborn and to avoid negative sleep associations, such as holding your baby until they fall asleep, as this may result in them needing to be held to fall asleep in the future.
At around 3 months of age, newborns may start to learn the rhythm of day and night and sleep cycles become more regular. You can help your newborn learn to sleep more at night by exposing them to light and gently playing with them during the day, as well as providing a dim and quiet environment at night.
The first 3 months are an important time for both parents and newborns to learn how to feed and to develop a routine together. During this time, newborns are usually the most unsettled and cry a lot as it is their main way of communicating. It is often hard for new parents to know how long and how often a newborn should sleep, but it is generally recommended to prioritise a newborn's feeding needs over trying to establish a strict sleeping routine.
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They do not know the difference between day and night, and have no sleep-wake rhythm
Newborns generally sleep between 12 and 18 hours in a 24-hour period. However, they do not know the difference between day and night and have no established sleep-wake rhythm. This means newborns sleep in short bursts, or sleep cycles, which are usually around 20 to 50 minutes long. During this time, newborns may move, groan, open their eyes, cry out, or breathe noisily or irregularly.
The lack of an established sleep-wake rhythm in newborns is due to the absence of fully entrained circadian rhythms. Circadian rhythms are internal processes that regulate an individual's sleep-wake cycles, aligning them with the 24-hour day and night cycle. In newborns, these rhythms have not yet developed, resulting in irregular sleeping and waking patterns.
At birth, sleep timing in newborns is distributed evenly across day and night for the first few weeks, with sleep occurring in multiple short bouts throughout the 24-hour period. This distribution of sleep is influenced by factors such as feeding needs, as newborns have small stomachs and need to wake up frequently for feedings.
As newborns grow, they gradually develop circadian rhythms, typically around 2 to 3 months of age. This development leads to sleep consolidation, resulting in longer durations of wakefulness during the day and more extended periods of sleep at night. By the time infants are around 12 months old, their sleep patterns have typically shifted towards more nocturnal sleep, with the majority of their sleep consolidated in the evening and during daytime naps.
It is important to note that while newborns may not have established sleep-wake rhythms, parents can help them develop healthy sleep habits. Creating positive sleep associations and establishing bedtime routines can assist newborns in settling themselves and falling back to sleep. However, it is recommended to prioritise feeding needs over strict sleeping routines in the early months.
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Newborns have three types of sleep: quiet, active, and indeterminate
Newborns typically sleep for 12 to 18 hours per day, but this is spread out discontinuously across the day and night, with the longest continuous sleep episode lasting only 2.5 to 4 hours. Newborns have different sleep patterns from adults, with three distinct types of sleep: quiet sleep, active sleep, and indeterminate sleep.
Quiet sleep is similar to the NREM (non-rapid eye movement) sleep of adults. During this type of sleep, newborns lie relatively still and their breathing is more even and regular.
Active sleep, on the other hand, is analogous to REM (rapid-eye movement) sleep. During active sleep, newborns may move, groan, open their eyes, cry out, or breathe noisily or irregularly. This type of sleep is considered to be lighter than quiet sleep, and newborns are more likely to awaken in response to touch or a low-oxygen environment during this stage. Interestingly, active sleep constitutes the largest portion of sleep time for newborns, making up about 50% of their total sleep.
Indeterminate sleep, also referred to as transitional sleep, is a brief state that combines characteristics of both active and quiet sleep. For example, a newborn in indeterminate sleep may exhibit vocalizations associated with active sleep while also displaying regular breathing patterns characteristic of quiet sleep.
The sleep cycles of newborns are typically between 20 to 50 minutes long, with each cycle consisting of only one or two sleep stages. As newborns grow older, their sleep cycles change and become more similar to those of adults. By 3 months of age, sleep cycles become more regular, with sleep onset beginning with NREM sleep, and REM sleep shifting to the later part of the cycle. The total NREM and REM sleep cycle at this age is typically 50 minutes.
It is important to note that newborns do not initially have established sleep-wake rhythms and may confuse day and night. However, by exposing newborns to light and gently playing with them during the day, parents can help them learn the difference between day and night, promoting longer sleep periods at night.
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They move from active sleep to quiet sleep and back again in cycles
Newborns sleep in short bursts, known as sleep cycles, which are usually around 20 to 50 minutes long. They do not know the difference between day and night and do not have established sleep-wake rhythms. This is because they lack an established circadian rhythm and hence sleep across multiple intervals throughout the day and night in short bouts, which may also be due to their frequent feeding needs.
Newborn sleep cycles consist of active sleep and quiet sleep. During active sleep, newborns may move, groan, open their eyes, cry out, or breathe noisily or irregularly. This is analogous to REM sleep, during which babies can be easily woken up. During quiet sleep, they will lie relatively still and their breathing will be more even. This is similar to NREM sleep.
At birth, sleep timing is distributed evenly across day and night for the first few weeks, with no regular rhythm or concentration of sleeping and waking. Circadian rhythms begin to arise around 2 to 3 months of age, leading to sleep consolidation that manifests in greater durations of wakefulness during the day and longer periods of sleep at night. By 3 months of age, sleep cycles become more regular, with sleep onset beginning with NREM sleep, and REM sleep decreasing and shifting to the later part of the sleep cycle.
As babies grow, they will have less active sleep and more deep sleep. They will begin to enter deep sleep at the start of their sleep cycles. This is due to the emergence of the circadian rhythm and a greater responsiveness to social cues.
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Self-settling is a newborn's ability to settle themselves between sleep cycles
Newborns generally sleep 12 to 16 hours in a 24-hour period, waking only for feedings every few hours. They do not know the difference between day and night and do not have established sleep-wake rhythms. They sleep in short bursts, known as sleep cycles, which are usually around 20 to 50 minutes long.
Different babies have different temperaments, personalities, and self-settling abilities. It is common for newborns and babies up to 6 months old to need help settling and getting back to sleep. They usually require a cue from their external environment, such as swaddling, a bath, massage, or a dimly lit room, to indicate that it is time to sleep.
Establishing a bedtime routine can help prevent sleep problems and create positive sleep associations. However, some settling techniques, such as holding or rocking the baby until they fall asleep, may be challenging to maintain in the long term and can create negative sleep associations. Instead, putting the baby to bed drowsy but awake can help them learn to associate falling asleep with being in bed alone and foster self-soothing abilities.
As babies get older, they will gradually learn to self-settle between sleep cycles. By 3-4 months of age, they start to have their longest sleep at night, and by 6 months, their total sleep time reduces slightly, with the longest continuous sleep episode lengthening to approximately 6 hours.
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Frequently asked questions
Newborns sleep for 12 to 16 hours in a 24-hour period, in short bursts of 20 to 50 minutes.
Newborns have three types of sleep: quiet sleep (similar to NREM), active sleep (analogous to REM), and indeterminate sleep.
During deep sleep, newborns lie relatively still and their breathing is more even. This is known as quiet sleep.
You can help your newborn learn to sleep more at night by exposing them to light and playing with them during the day... It is also important to create a dim and quiet environment at night.
