Sleepless Nights? Addressing Sleep Struggles and Their Solutions from Infants to Children

Sleep deprivation isn’t just a rite of passage for new parents; it’s a challenge that can follow your child all the way through to their early years. While the sleepless nights often begin in the newborn phase, they can evolve into different sleep struggles as your little one grows, affecting babies, toddlers, and even children. If your little one just won’t sleep through the night no matter how many lullabies you hum or how many bedtime stories you read, you are not alone.

Many parents find themselves navigating the often overwhelming world of baby sleep problems, from frequent wake-ups to short naps and everything in between. Understanding and addressing these issues early can help ensure that your child develops healthy sleep habits that last a lifetime.

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The good news is that there are effective strategies to help your baby and you get the restful nights you both desperately need.

What Is the 4-Month Sleep Regression And Why Does It Matter?

As cute as those early months with a newborn can be, it is important to recognise that the 4-month sleep regression is where things can get particularly challenging. Before that, parents are soaked up in the cuddles that they barely notice the habits their newborn is forming. Sleep expert Aya, Founder of Sleep Made Easy, emphasises that this milestone is a real test for parents. At around four months, your baby’s sleep cycle shifts significantly, transitioning from 2 simple sleep stages to 4. This means your little one will be spending more time in light stages of sleep, making them more prone to waking up. If your baby has not yet learned independent sleep skills by this point, they may find themselves stuck in a cycle of wakefulness, which can lead to ongoing sleep issues. 

Aya emphasises that the ideal time to start teaching your baby to sleep is right from the start, as they haven't yet formed any sleep habits. This advice is invaluable for new and expectant parents! However, she also reassures that any sleep guidance before the age of 4 months should be viewed as a guide or education rather than true training. Once your baby reaches 4 months, you can begin implementing sleep training strategies (and yes, this can continue up to the age of 7). It's important to note that those 7-year-olds who struggle with sleep often haven’t developed independent sleep skills, and contrary to popular belief, children rarely just grow out of these issues on their own.

To get a deeper understanding of sleep cycles and the 4-month regression, check out this parent’s guide ‘Navigating the 4-Month Sleep Regression’.

Understanding Baby Sleep Cycles

Understanding sleep cycles is essential for effective sleep training. Babies, like adults, go through various stages of sleep including light and deep sleep. In the first few months of life, their sleep cycles are shorter, lasting around 45 minutes. As they grow older, these sleep cycles increase in time to around 90 minutes.

Stage 1: Lightest sleep, where we drift off but aren’t fully asleep.

Stage 2: Body enters a deeper state of relaxation, heart rate and temperature drop.

Stage 3: Deep sleep, crucial for physical recovery and development.

REM Sleep: The brain becomes active, vivid dreams happen, memories become consolidated, learnings become enhanced  and mood regulated.

To gain a better understanding of what your child’s brain is doing when asleep, this article highlights it all: Why a Resting Brain is a Busy Brain: Unveiling the Secret of Mental Activity

3 Main Reasons Why Your Child has Sleep Struggles

• Dependence on Sleep Prop

According to Aya, a sleep prop refers to any association that your child believes they require in order to fall asleep. Common examples of sleep props include having a parent present in the room, being held, fed, sung to, rocked, or read to sleep. These sleep associations can become problematic because your child may come to rely on them to fall asleep. When they wake up at the end of a sleep cycle and struggle to settle back down without help, this reliance can lead to difficulties. 

Furthermore, as your child matures, these sleep props can become more complicated to manage, especially as toddlers and young children start to exhibit more challenging behaviors.

• Bedtime Routine is Not Consistent

Aya highlights that the bedtime routines play a key role in transitioning from day time to night. Her main tip would be to remain consistent with the time and also order of activities. This will help create order for your child and also enable them to predict when this transition will happen and what this transition means.

• Overtired or undertired

Aya emphasises that sleep training involves more than simply putting your child to bed at a specific time and in a particular manner. She firmly believes that for your child to enjoy a restful night, they must have a productive day. Depending on your child's age, naps can significantly impact their sleep. Without a consistent schedule that is strictly adhered to, you may end up with an overtired or undertired baby. Contrary to common belief, this can result in more difficult nights and increased wakefulness.

While these methods are comforting, they’re often not sustainable for parents already stretched thin.

How Sleep Training Helps (Without Cry-It-Out)

Let’s clarify: sleep training is not about forcing your baby to sleep or disregarding their needs. Instead, it focuses on teaching them to fall asleep independently so they can return to sleep during natural nighttime awakenings. 

If your baby hasn’t yet developed these skills, now (however old your child is) is an ideal time to begin. Sleep training doesn’t have to involve harsh methods. For example, Aya takes pride in her approach, which employs gentle strategies tailored to your baby’s temperament and your parenting style. She creates personalized plans to achieve the best results in the easiest way possible. Before becoming certified, Aya recognized that there was a lot of misinformation online, much of which centered around the cry-it-out method; as a result, she didn’t train her son until a few months later. She truly practices what she preaches.

3 Core Pillars for Better Baby Sleep

To ensure your little one gets the best sleep, it’s like assembling different pieces of a puzzle. The quality of the day greatly influences the night, and vice versa. Here are three fundamental changes you can start to implement:

Create a Sleep-Friendly Bedroom

1. Keep it dark, babies aren’t afraid of the dark, but light can disturb their sleep.

2. Keep it quite, one could use a white noise to drown out household or street sounds.

3. Make the room cool and clutter-free with a breathable sleeping bag.

 Stick to a Consistent Bedtime Routine

• Start with a bath to signal it’s time to wind down.

• For those who drink milk, feed at the beginning of the routine (not right before sleep).

• Aim for a bedtime between 7–8 PM, and keep the routine under 30 minutes.

Encourage Independent Sleep Skills

• Put your baby down awake and not drowsy.

• Give them the opportunity to settle themselves, it builds confidence and better sleep habits.

The Problem with Parental Intervention

As tempting as it is to step in at every whimper, frequent nighttime interventions can make things harder. Babies who rely on sleep props or parental help may struggle to transition between sleep cycles independently.

A baby who has learned to self-soothe, on the other hand, may still wake but they’re more likely to drift back to sleep without a fuss.

Baby Sleep Isn’t Always Linear (And That’s Okay)

Even with the best routine, your baby might have rough nights. Travel, teething, illness, or developmental milestones (hello, crawling!) can cause temporary sleep setbacks.

But here’s the good news: a sleep-trained baby will bounce back quicker than one who hasn’t learned these skills yet.

Why Prioritizing Sleep Benefits the Whole Family

Sleep isn’t just important and healthier for children, it’s essential for your mental, emotional, and physical health, too. A well-rested parent is a more patient, joyful and present one.

When your baby sleeps better, you do too, and the whole household thrives.

Meet the Expert Behind “Sleep Made Easy”

Aya is a dedicated Certified Sleep Sense™ Consultant specialising in children's sleep, from expecting parents to children up to 7 years old. She is passionate about helping families achieve peaceful nights and has extensive knowledge and experience in addressing the sleep challenges that parents often encounter.

Believing that every child deserves quality sleep, Aya is committed to creating personalised plans tailored to each family's specific needs. Her approach blends expertise with compassion, and she maintains ongoing support for families throughout their journey, available via WhatsApp and other platforms. This makes her a reliable resource for parents looking for effective solutions to enhance their children's sleep.

Explore her packages here.

Special Offer for First Time Mums UK Community

Grab 30% OFF any sleep package when you mention “First Time Mums UK” while booking. Before going ahead with any package, Aya requires a free 15 minute call to have a small chat about how she works and to ensure everyone in the family is on the same page. Let’s get your baby sleeping soundly and give you the rest you deserve. 

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Author: Sleep Made Easy

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