Yes, there are times when your infant's sleep may be slightly disrupted. Although we don’t believe in ‘regressions’ in the typical sense, that doesn’t mean there might not be times when your baby’s sleep is a little different, or they have new struggles.

This often coincides with major developmental changes.

So how do you handle this and keep your sleep?

Practice new skills during the day.

If your baby is learning to walk, roll over or stand, they’re likely very excited about the new things they’re able to do. Give them as much time to practice these skills during the day as you can so they don’t feel the need to practice them when they should be sleeping.

Prepare for the changes over time if you can.

This one is really focused on rolling, but, if you know your baby is close to the window of when they typically start rolling, and you see some emerging signs, start offering some sleep with one arm out and then two arms out. It’s best to try and prepare them to have their arms out before you have to drop the swaddle for safely reasons. 

Help them learn to navigate their new skills.

When our daughter started to stand, we realized she didn’t know how to sit back down. This caused her to stand in her crib and then cry because she was scared or unsure of what to do to get back down, which can lead them to become overtired. We spent time showing her, both in and out of her crib, how to safely sit back down so when she got the urge to stand in her crib, she was also able to get out of it and lay down again. 

Look to see if you’re close to a new guide.

Infant sleep changes so often that you may be mistaking what’s happening as a developmental change when really it’s a need to increase awake time and lessen daytime sleep. 

Help your baby to sleep if they need it.

As always, we want to help our babies to sleep when they’re dealing with these developmental changes. Even if your baby has been self-soothing for weeks or months, if they’re having trouble getting to sleep within OWT, we still want to help them to sleep so they don’t become overtired.

An overtired baby who is also learning new skills, is not an ideal combination for anyone so help them through these transitions as best you can. Just like with sickness, don’t worry about starting bad ‘habits.’ Once they’ve adjusted to their new skills, their sleep should go seamlessly back to how it was before.

Full Feedings MEMBERS, make sure to check out the OTHER INGREDIENTS content below for more information on how to navigate these phases: 

SLEEP REGRESSIONS
ROLLING OVER
TRANSITIONING TO ARMS OUT
SUDDEN EARLY WAKES
MY BABY WAS STTN BUT IS WAKING AGAIN

If you are a member and experiencing sleep disruptions, reach out to INFANT@FULLFEEDINGS.COM for email support.

If you are not yet a member, check out our NO CRY IT OUT sleep method HERE! We have super affordable online programs that will teach you an easy 3-step method to get your little one to sleep!