Is it a Regression or is it Progression? Here are the best ways to handle sleep regressions happening with your little one. As a parent, you’ve likely heard about the ‘four-month sleep regression’. However, you probably didn’t know that there are multiple regressions—many of which are actually ‘progressions’ in your little one’s development, rather than a regression in sleep (even though it may feel this way). Allow me to share some tips on how you can utilise the CuboAi Smart Baby Monitor to navigate through these stages as smoothly as possible. As a parent, sleep logs can help us identify exactly what is happening during a baby’s 24-hour sleep cycle. From this information, we can pinpoint what may need tweaking to promote longer stretches of sleep. This is why we love the Sleep Analytics feature of the CuboAi Smart Baby Monitor. With accurate documentation, it’s simple to look at your baby’s sleep patterns and settling times, allowing us to identify exactly where changes need to be made. Having the data stored in one accessible app is also very helpful for parents. We can refer back to it as our baby grows and progresses through these natural sleep stages. Before we look at how these progressions/regressions can impact sleep, let’s look at when we commonly see them occur:
● 4 months
● 7/8 months
●12 months
● 2 years
The four-month sleep regression is not only the first, but also by far the most commonly discussed. This one in my opinion IS a sleep regression because it occurs as a result of change in sleep cycles, which can make it feel like sleep progress is regressing. Why do these changes in sleep cycles occur? This is due to your baby’s sleep cycle maturing and becoming more like ours. Unfortunately, this means that the sleepy newborn phase is over. Around three to four months, a baby’s sleep cycle typically starts to mature, meaning their overnight sleeps go from 4-6 hours to 2-4 hours. Their sleep cycles throughout the day also become more obvious and start to shorten to around 40 minutes (hello catnapping!). This is commonly why it may feel like sleep takes a hit during the four-month regression stage.
The 7/8-month sleep regression isn’t as much to do with sleep cycles or developmental milestones, but more to do with the transition from three to two naps throughout the day. Understandably, sleep might feel a little off course during this time. Babies may play jump rope with this transition for some time until they finally settle into two naps, which will eventually become the new normal.
The twelve-month sleep regression is associated with developmental progressions such as learning to stand, pulling themselves up, talking, and also transitioning from two naps to a singular nap. This “regression” can occur anywhere from 11 to 14 months but is referred to as the ‘12-month sleep regression’.
The final stage (can I get a hallelujah!) is the two-year sleep regression. Around this age, your little one is starting to become less baby-like and more toddler-like, which brings about more independence. Even though they have developed this independence, they still don’t have the ability to self-regulate, which can potentially lead to behaviour you may not have seen in your child before. Your little one has most likely developed the skill of knowing what they want and when they want it—they find ways to push boundaries and even develop FOMO (fear of missing out). These behaviours are all a part of this stage where independent tendencies are developed.
My top tip in navigating these changes in sleep cycles is to offer your little one some space. This period of space simply means giving your little one the chance to master their new skill of resettling without creating a need for assistance that wasn’t needed before. If your baby is taking longer than usualto settle, don’t rush straight in. Trust that through these stages, they are learning new skills. Watch via the CuboAi Smart Baby Monitor for added peace of mind and, if necessary, respond to your baby after allowing them some space to try and master their new skills on their own. Lots of practice during awake time is also a must!
