Getting Baby to Sleep Earlier
Our baby sleeps for 4-6-hour stints at night. His daytime naps are regular, but he doesn't have an early evening nap. He'll often be up between 5 PM and 11 PM. We know that we need to put him down earlier in the evening, but we don't know if we should do it in small steps (start with 10 PM, then 9 PM, etc.) or just put him down at 7 PM?
After 6 weeks of age, the circadian rhythm for night sleep emerges and you have noted the 4 to 6 hour blocks of night sleep. But at or shortly after six weeks of age, your baby's brain shifts towards an earlier bedtime. Instead of wanting to fall asleep at 9, 10, or 11 PM, he now wants to fall asleep at 6, 7, or 8 PM. It is not the same time every night but it is earlier than when he was younger.
Some babies are taking long and late afternoon naps at 10 weeks old and can stay up later (around 8 PM) but other babies are not, so they have to go to bed earlier (around 6pm). Ignore what your friends' children are doing and be highly focused on your son's behavior around 4 or 5 PM. Watch closely for drowsy signs to determine when to try to put baby to sleep.
Forget "small steps." If he is tired, put him to sleep. Look most closely at your child, not the clock. Because "he doesn't do an early evening nap", he probably needs a bedtime around 5:30 or 6 PM. Because he is up between 5 and 11 PM, he is probably developing a second wind early in the evening.
Timing is the key to sleep success. This means that you are attempting to synchronize your soothing to sleep as the sleep wave is emerging and before your child crashes into an overtired state.
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Answered by
Dr. Marc Weissbluth
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