42 | JULY & AUGUST 2019
DURATION OF TYPES OF SLEEP
In newborns, deep sleep averages
about 47 minutes compared to 90
minutes for an adult. This sleep
pattern will gradually change as your
baby gets older.
We all wake, or almost wake,
several times during the night. Most
of us don’t even realise or remember
this, though. At the peak of the REM
cycle, your baby will sleep very lightly.
If he feels warm and safe in a familiar
environment and isn’t hungry, he will
go back to sleep.
But if he wakes up in a strange
environment, feels insecure, is cold,
wet and uncomfortable, with a full
nappy or is hungry, he will quickly
wake up and cry for attention.Sleep is an issue in many parents’ lives. The
more information you have, the easier it will be
to instill good sleeping habits from the startYOU MAY FIND that your baby sleeps
much better, or “worse”, than someone
else’s. Just like adults, babies are
individuals with different personalities
and needs, but you can help and
influence your baby to gradually adopt
healthy sleep habits from a young age.
Learn more about sleep, and you
will feel better prepared. Also, don’t
listen to everybody’s advice – if you are
worried about something, consult an
experienced, trusted parenting expert or
medical professional. The first step is to
always rule out illness and discomfort if
your baby is battling to sleep.
Remember too that “sleeping through
the night” means sleeping for five hours,
so don’t expect your baby to sleep the
way an adult does.
THE SCIENCE OF SLEEP
Expect your newborn to wake at least
twice during the night for food. He does
this because his melatonin levels, the
hormone regulating sleep cycles, are not
functional yet. Production of melatonin
will evolve over a few weeks, and he
will then start learning the difference
between night and day.
Meanwhile, you can start teaching
him about his environment and
facilitate better understanding of
nighttime and sleeptime.
Awake state Your baby’s eyes are open,
and he is physically alert. Although
he is calm, he waves his arms and legs
around, startling occasionally.
Quiet state Your baby is quiet yet alert.
This is perfect quality time with him,
because he will watch and listen to you
attentively for a relatively long time.
Drowsy state His eyes flutter, open
and close, and your baby moves very
little. When he does move, he moves
smoothly rather than jerking. If there is
an unexpected noise, he will startle, but
it will be delayed.
Light sleep Although your baby’s eyes
are closed, there is a rapid eye movement
(REM) and random body movement,
with occasional sucking. A loud noise
will startle him at this point and could
disturb the sleeping pattern so that he
reverts back to the awake state.
Deep sleep Now your baby is fast asleep,
and nothing will disturb him. His
eyes are tightly closed, there is no eye
movement, his breathing is regular, and
he won’t be disturbed by noises or wake
up if he is moved.WHAT HE NEEDS
A newborn baby requires about 20
hours of sleep daily. Although this
seems a lot, you won’t necessarily feel
rested, because you’ll be busy with
chores, bathing and feeding him,holding and cuddling or catching up on
some sleep yourself.
Your baby will also feed around eight
times a day (although you should never
feed your breastfed baby, in particular,
according to a schedule), and at around
three months, he’ll probably decrease
his required number of sleep hours to
15 or so. As he hits toddlerhood and
beyond, he will slowly relinquish his
day nap too.
Sleep deprivation and exhaustion are
part and parcel of early parenthood.
While many babies seem to sleep on
schedule at hospital, they really “wake
up” once you’re home, and it’s quite
natural to feel out of your depth as your
baby cries, poohs, possets, wails and
demands food in a seemingly never-
ending cycle.
No matter how difficult these first
few weeks are, bear in mind that the
tricks to get him sleeping through don’t
work. Don’t introduce porridge early or
add it to his formula to “fill him up” or
try to make him drink water during the
night. Simply prioritise your time by
decreasing the number of visitors you
receive, if possible, and worry less about
housework and administrative tasks.HOME SWEET HOME
For at least the first week, try to stick
to the routine you settled into in theDID YOU KNOW?