Baby sleep schedule for the first three months may not be regular and easy to plan. On the other hand, those first three months of your baby’s life are crucial for development. I like to call it the ‚4th-trimester’ period. Basically, the baby should still be inside the womb but instead must deal with own growth and the outside world, that cannot yet understand.

What is normal and why is your baby sleeping so long? Should the naps be longer at a time? Let’s take a look at basic schedules.

There are two main phases: up to 6-8 weeks of life, and the second one until three months old.

Up to 6-8 weeks

Newborn’s sleep pattern is greatly irregular, and the sleep itself takes most of the day. Newborns can sleep up to 18 hours a day. This gives us only 6 hours to stay awake and eat! Night sleep is long but interrupted by feeding, changing and comforting.

In the early weeks, you can expect your little one to fuss from hunger 10-12 times a day, also at night. Naps can last 15 minutes to 4 hours, taking up to 8 hours od the day. In the first weeks awake time probably won’t take longer than an hour.

In the second month, if the nap goes over 2 hours, it's not a bad idea to wake the baby up for a feeding. The longer the baby naps during the day, the more hungry would be at night.

Up to 3 months

Baby sleep schedule is starting to emerge into a pattern in month 3. Still, your baby probably won’t be awake for more than a couple hours at a time. But at least will able to stay awake a little longer between periods of sleep. That’s also the time when you could start recognizing the time baby starts to get sleepy.

Also, your baby’s stomach is a little bigger now, so the baby will stay full for longer. However, night feeding is still obligatory.

Babies over 8 weeks need up to 14 hours of sleep daily. Amount of 8 hours naps should be taken in 2 or 3 doses.

The bad news is - baby may start to get up earlier, around 6 AM.

If you’d like to get some tips, how to help your baby sleep better or longer the naps - take a look at my How to teach a baby to fall asleep alone guide. Even though you may start the training at four months old, I included some tips for newborns you might like to follow.

Have a good night!

Susan Urban