Adequate rest plays a very important role in a baby's life, having a direct impact on his growth and development. Often the sleep of an 8-month-old baby is disturbed by frequent awakenings, anxiety of the baby, crying and whims. Putting a baby to bed can also be difficult. This phenomenon can be caused by many different reasons. To cope with the problem, you need to find out which of them (or several at once) had a negative impact on the baby's sleep.
Problems with falling asleep in an eight month old baby are not uncommon
Features of sleep at 8 months
At this age, quality rest is of great importance for the normal development of the baby. By this time, the baby is acquiring a lot of new skills and abilities, for the training of which he needs a lot of energy. Sleep, both nighttime and daytime, helps to restore its costs.
According to experts, in the period from 8 to 10 months, the brain develops rapidly in newborns, as a result of which the child's perception of the world around him changes significantly.
An eight month old baby discovers new relationships, comprehends and becomes aware of them. The kid actively studies the world around him and begins to understand that objects in space can be categorized depending on their characteristics. For example, a child at this age realizes that a "cat", be it a real or toy, small or large, is part of the "animals" group.
Such changes in the child's consciousness occur abruptly, therefore, they can cause fear and anxiety in him and, as a result, problems with sleeping and falling asleep. The "restless" period usually lasts 3-6 weeks. Children become more demanding of parental attention, are often capricious, refuse to eat and sleep. The crisis intensifies the child's fear that the mother may leave him and not return. Therefore, the baby often does not want to fall asleep alone, but, waking up at night, cries a lot and calls for mom.
At the age of eight months, the physical development of the child's body is very active. Obtaining new skills and abilities requires regular training and consolidation. The kid learns to crawl, get up, study the surrounding space - this is the activity that most of the waking time is devoted to. Often, the baby does not have only one day to work out his skills, as a result of which the baby's sleep is disturbed by attempts to get up, rest against the side of the bed and lie back.
On a note. In most cases, children who get up in the cradle at night do not know how to return to their previous "lying" position, so they begin to cry and call their mother for help.
Sleep regression is a common cause of difficulty falling asleep and restlessness in your baby. A similar phenomenon occurs due to a sharp jump in the mental and physical development of the baby. In such cases, the child should ensure maximum contact with the mother during the day, as well as provide more free space for new experiments and consolidation of the acquired skills. It is important to ensure that the baby is not overexcited, since such a condition will put additional stress on the still unformed nervous system of the newborn.
At 8 months, the baby actively learns to crawl and walk
How should a child sleep
The total daily sleep duration of 8 months, sufficient for a full rest for an infant, ranges from 13.5 to 15 hours. Unlike a newly born baby, an eight-month-old baby sleeps much less during the day, and the night's rest remains long. Sleep at night lasts 10-12 hours, and daytime sleep for about 3 hours. The allowed wake time ranges from 3 to 4 hours. As they grow older, the duration of these intervals gradually increases, which leads to significant changes in the infant's sleep pattern.
The daily and night schedule by the eighth month usually includes 2 naps, each of which lasts 1.5 hours. In some cases, the third sleep may persist, which falls in the evening and is about 20-40 minutes.
The baby's comfort largely depends on his ability to fall asleep on his own. Thus, a child who knows how to return from a “standing” position to a “lying down” position will not find himself in a difficult situation, therefore he will not cry at night and call his mother - he will calmly lie down and fall asleep again. If it is impossible to lay the baby down without motion sickness, hepatitis B and other similar procedures, then parents should be ready to perform such actions every time the child wakes up.
Sleep rates at 8 months
The daily rest of a child at this age is 13.5-15 hours, 10-12 of which fall on a night's sleep, and 3-4 - on a daytime sleep. During the day, the baby should sleep 2 times for 1.5-2 hours: before lunch and in the late afternoon. At night, the baby can wake up once to eat (this usually happens at 2-3 o'clock in the morning).
The approximate recommended sleep schedule for an infant at eight months is as follows:
- 7-8 am - awakening;
- at 11 o'clock - morning sleep;
- at 3 pm - afternoon rest;
- from 7 o'clock (but no later than 10 o'clock in the evening) - night sleep.
Timely bedding is essential for a comfortable sleep for your baby. This is why it is very important to recognize the signs of fatigue in a child. These include:
- The toddler yawns and rubs his eyes;
- Loses interest in toys and other surrounding objects and phenomena;
- The baby's eyes turn slightly red.
The following sleep patterns are valid:
- For 2-day rest for 1.5-2 hours. This mode indicates the normal development of the child. The waking time is approximately 3.5 hours. In this case, the preliminary part of the daytime sleep is not needed, the main one is enough, which starts at 10 pm.
- For 3 times a day sleep. There is a division into 2 short intervals of 40 minutes (morning and evening), and a good rest (for 2-3 hours) falls on lunch time. Such a regime speaks of the quick fatigability of the toddler (for example, due to a long stay on the street), but there are also no deviations from the norm in this case.
Important! Sleep at this age requires strict adherence. Disrupting the routine will lead to trouble falling asleep and frequent waking. The reasons for such deviations can be laid down both in the behavior of the parents and in the environment.
Signs of baby fatigue will help parents understand when to put the baby to bed.
What to do if your child does not sleep well
To improve the process of falling asleep for an infant, it is necessary to provide the following conditions:
- The air temperature in the room should not exceed 25 degrees;
- Recommended air humidity - from 50 to 70%;
- The room where the newborn is located should be regularly ventilated;
- A strong and restful sleep is facilitated by a walk outside for 1-1.5 hours;
- It is advisable for the child to put on a diaper at night;
- Bathing before laying down will calm the baby;
- Bed linen made of synthetic fabrics should be replaced with natural material; it is also recommended to use an orthopedic pillow;
- The baby needs to be well fed before bedtime;
- The baby is covered with a blanket or diaper at night. A cozy environment will allow him to feel protected, stop worrying and cry.
Causes of anxiety during sleep
The restless behavior of the newborn during rest, when the baby begins to toss and turn, cry, scream, rush, be capricious, can be caused by several reasons. This is why a baby at 8 months often wakes up at night:
- Teething. At this time, babies experience painful sensations, in addition, this condition is often accompanied by an increase in temperature and a change in stool.
- Lactation. Children who are on GV are more attached to their mother than bottle-fed babies. The baby needs the constant presence of her mother nearby, since physical contact during lactation is extremely close. When the baby feels mom's warmth, he quickly and soundly falls asleep.
- Diseases. This category includes colds, otitis media, colic and more. In this case, you need to consult a pediatrician.
- Wrong mode. If the child slept too long during the day or walked a little, then at night, most likely, he wants to catch up.
- External annoyances, such as uncomfortable clothing, bright lights, loud noises, cold or heat.
- Stress, vivid emotions received during the day. This should also include active and noisy games before going to bed for the night.
According to Dr. Komarovsky, the causes of difficulty falling asleep in 8 month old babies can be divided into two categories:
- Natural, associated with the physiological characteristics of the growing organism. At this age in children, superficial sleep is longer than deep sleep. Therefore, frequent awakenings for an 8-month-old baby are the norm. In the same category of natural factors, the doctor attributes the need for night breastfeeding.
- "Situational". Wrong daily routine, lack of such or non-compliance. Here - an excess of daytime rest, poor timing of feeding, lack of physical activity (the child does not get tired during the waking period), uncomfortable conditions (temperature, humidity, etc.).
Waking up once at night to feed is considered normal.
How to put a child to sleep
Effective ways to get an 8 month old baby to sleep include the following:
- The baby is transferred to the crib, rocked (monotonous movements have a calming effect on the child).
- Rocking of the arms. Close contact with mom, her warmth help to fall asleep quickly.
- Lullaby. It is desirable that the mother sang the song - to the sound of her voice, the child will quickly calm down, feel safe and fall asleep.
- Joint sleep with a baby. The constant presence of the mother will ensure a sound deep sleep for the baby.
- Compliance with the regime. Gradually, the child will get used to the routine, and the desire to sleep will arise in him at a certain time. Thanks to this, the laying process will be greatly simplified.
- Listening to calm music or "white noise".
- Comfortable bed.
In addition to these methods, Dr. Komarovsky recommends resorting to the following actions to normalize sleep:
- Refusal of active games before laying down, it is better to replace them with reading fairy tales (2-3 will be enough);
- Relaxing massage;
- Swimming in a large tub. This process will "take away" the baby's excess energy, which will allow him to sleep soundly;
- It is recommended to purchase an orthopedic mattress for the child;
- Before laying the baby, it is better to put on disposable diapers;
- Walking in the fresh air promotes sound and healthy sleep.
On a note. A newborn child must be taught to alternate between rest and wakefulness. From such methods of laying as motion sickness and lulling, you need to gradually give up so that the baby gets used to falling asleep on its own.
The reasons why a baby at 8 months old does not sleep well at night can be different. It is important to correctly establish the essence of the problem and find a suitable way to solve it. If you cope with a situation when a child for 8 months does not sleep well at night, often wakes up and cries, and cannot do it on his own, then you need to seek help from a pediatrician.
