Getting your baby to sleep

Babies need plenty of sleep to help them grow and develop. Some babies sleep more than others. Some sleep for long periods, others in short bursts. As your baby gets older, they will sleep less during the day and more at night.

This list shows the average amount of sleep that babies and toddlers need during a 24-hour period:

• birth to 3 months — 11 to 19 hours, with lots of short cycles
• 3 to 6 months — 12 to 15 hours, with less night waking
• 6 to 12 months — 11 to 16 hours, with a longer sleep during the night
• 1 to 2 years — 12 to 14 hours, including 1 or 2 daytime naps
• 2 to 3 years — 12 to 13 hours, including 1 daytime nap
• 3 to 5 years — 10 to 13 hours, possibly with a daytime nap

Read more about sleep patterns for babies and toddlers. All babies are different.

Safe sleeping

It's safest for babies to sleep in a cot or bassinet in the same room as an adult for the first 6 months or more. This lowers the risk of sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS).

Always place your baby to sleep on their back, with their head and face uncovered, every time they sleep — night or day. Keep the room smoke-free.

Help your baby get used to night and day being different

It can be helpful to show your baby that night-time is different to daytime from the start.

During the day, talk and play with your baby when they are awake.

At night, you could:

• lower the lights
• not talk much and keep your voice quiet
• put your baby down as soon as they've been fed and changed, without playing

Look out for tired signs

Before putting your baby down to sleep, make sure they've had a feed and have a clean nappy. Check they're not too hot or cold.

Your baby might need some help with relaxing and falling asleep. Here are some tips you can try.

Age 0 to 6 months

At this age your baby needs you nearby for comfort. To settle a young baby to sleep, try one of the following ideas:

• Hold your baby in your arms and pat, rock or stroke them while talking or singing softly to them. Once they are calm, put them into their cot. Very young babies might need to fall asleep in your arms before you can put them down.
• 'Hands on settling' — place your baby in their cot when they are awake, but calm and drowsy. Gently pat or stroke them until they fall asleep, comforting them with gentle 'ssshhh' sounds.
• Rock your baby in their pram until they are calm, then move them to their cot. It can help to rock the pram back and forth over a gentle bump, such as the edge of a rug.
• Put on some background noise, such as quiet music or the hum of the washing machine.
• Hold your baby on their tummy across your lap or forearm.
• Give your baby a massage.
• After about 6 weeks, you might choose to give your baby a dummy to suck on.

If your baby becomes upset, pick them up for a cuddle until they are calm or asleep before putting them back in their cot. Stay with them until they fall asleep.

Many parents find breastfeeding their baby to sleep, particularly in the early months, a natural and quick way to settle their baby (if this is your chosen way of feeding). A breastfeed gives your baby food, comfort and helps them to relax. There is no evidence to suggest it will give them 'bad habits' or stop them being able to settle in other ways as they mature and their sleep needs change.

Swaddling your baby can help them settle. It's safe to swaddle your baby until they start trying to roll at the age of 4 to 6 months. Swap to a safe infant sleeping bag once your baby starts rolling onto their tummy.

Age 6 to 12 months

Older babies can gradually learn to settle themselves. Try these ideas with older babies:

• Try 'hands on settling' — putting your baby in their cot and patting or stroking them while making 'ssshhh' sounds — then move away from the cot or leave the room when your baby becomes calm. If your baby becomes distressed, return and comfort them and then try moving again.
• If your baby becomes distressed when you leave the room, try 'camping out'. Put your baby in their cot and comfort them until they're calm, then sit or lie down next to the cot where they can see you. Pretend to be asleep. If your baby wakes up or cries, make comforting noises so they know you're there. Once they are sleeping for long stretches, try leaving the room before they fall asleep.
• Spend some time winding down and doing calm activities, like reading a story or giving your baby a warm bath or a massage.

Newborn babies need to wake for feeds several times a night. They will often go back to sleep quickly after a feed.

Try to resist the urge to rush in if your baby makes a sound during the night. They might settle back to sleep on their own. If they start crying, they need you close by to comfort them.

As your baby discovers how to fall asleep by themselves (typically at about 4-6 months), they will get better at settling themselves when they wake up during the night.

Disturbed nights can be very hard to cope with. Try to rest when your baby is asleep.

If you're formula feeding, you might like to encourage your partner to share the feeds. If you're breastfeeding, you could ask your partner to take over the early morning changing and dressing so that you can go back to sleep. Once you're into a good breastfeeding routine, your partner could give a bottle of expressed breast milk during the night.

If you don't have a partner, you could ask a friend or relative to stay for a few nights so that you can sleep.

If your baby is crying a lot and having trouble sleeping, see a doctor. Most of the time there's nothing wrong, but there are some health problems that can disturb your baby's sleep and cause distress. Your baby's doctor can check for any problems and reassure you if everything is normal.

Talk to a doctor or child health nurse if you feel that you can't cope with your baby's crying, or if it's affecting your mood or your relationship with your baby or partner.

If your baby is not settling no matter what you do, you might feel frustrated or angry. If this happens, the most important thing is keeping your baby safe. Put them in their cot and leave the room while you calm down.

Call a friend or relative or one of the following resources for help.

It is never okay to shake your baby. This can lead to brain damage and death.

If your baby is having problems sleeping, or if you need more advice about getting into a routine, speak to your doctor, midwife or child health nurse.

Visit Tresillian or Karitane for more tips on helping your baby settle and fall asleep at different ages. You can call the Tresillian parent's helpline on 1300 272 736 or Karitane's careline on 1300 227 464 to speak to a nurse.

Red nose has a wide range of information about safe sleep.

The Australian Breastfeeding Association and Royal Children's Hospital both have lots of helpful information about sleep.

Languages other than English

Red nose has translated information on safe sleep in over 20 languages.

Information for Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander people

Product Safety Australia has information and a video called Sleep Bub Safe.

Red nose has information and support for First Nations families.