Sleep Schedule for 3 Month Old Baby?

Updated on January 06, 2010
Y.N. asks from New York, NY
7 answers

I have a 3 month old son who has yet to develop his own schedule. Some days, he sleeps between every feedings, and some days, he takes only a short nap. Today, he was barely awake at all. After every feeding, he would take long long naps. Is this normal? Does this mean that he is not going to sleep at all tonight? Should I encourage him to sleep between every feeding still or should I try to keep him up? Any advice would be greatly appreciated!! I would love to have an example schedule to base things around....

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A.D.

answers from New York on

Dear Y., Sorry, no such thing as a sleep schedule for a 3 month old. Baby needs time and needs to feed on demand. Yes it is not easy but the time will come when things will even out. Still baby's schedule will change often. Do your best. Grandma Mary

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J.P.

answers from New York on

Totally normal. My little girl didn't even out with schedules until 4 months. She was all over the place until then. Now at 7 months she has a morning and afternoon nap (anywhere from 45 mins to 2 hours) and goes to bed at 7:30pm and sleeps 11 hours. They're all different though. However, as counter intuitive as it seems, the more sleep they get during the day, the better they sleep at night - at least that's been my experience.
Good luck!

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A.B.

answers from New York on

I am trying to remember with my girls.. they are 7, 6 and 4 now.. i want to say they were on a little bit of a schedule but not a very strict one.. i believe they slept between every feeding.. my kids were all sleeping through the night at this point.. the longest it took mine was 6 weeks :0) and my first actually slept all night from the first night home from the hospital...lol.. but babies do ALOT of growing the first year and they grow alot when they are sleeping so just try to ride it out and go with it :0) I think my kids woke up at around 6 or 7 am and i fed them and then they stayed awake for just a little while and then took a nap around 9 til around 10 or 11 and then they ate again and stayed awake for a bit til around 1 and then slept til around 2 or 3 and then woke up again and and ate and just kept going like that all day if i remember right.. hope this helps:0)

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R.E.

answers from New York on

I have a 4-month-old girl and sometimes just when I think we're getting a sleep schedule going (on her own, of course) we have a night like last night - where she's literally waking up every 2 hours to feed just enough to make her tired and go back to sleep. And refuses to eat enough to sustain her. UGH! My 4-year-old didn't start sleeping through the night until around 9 months. My pediatricians say that a baby should be sleeping through the night at 6 months, as before then they are just too young to develop a pattern. Personally, I think it's all individualized. I had a friend who's baby was sleeping from 10pm-6am straight by 3 months of age without any hesitation. My pediatrician says that after 6 months, even if they wake up to eat, don't feed them. I couldn't do that. It was easier and faster for me to just feed her and go back to sleep then try to endure her screaming for hours until she feel asleep. Not happening. It's all about what works best for you and your child. At this point, your baby is too young in my opinion. Let the baby sleep when he sleeps. Sometimes my infant sleeps what seems like the better part of the day, other days she's so wide awake I'm praying for her to fall asleep! I think most babies start sleeping through most of the night once cereals and solids are introduced into their diet because it's heavier and sustains them for longer. Good luck! Do what works best for you both!

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S.T.

answers from Albany on

Oh, yes, that is normal. I have three boys myself and every baby is different. I would never wanted to keep them up. They do what they want and all they know is to do what they feel. If they are hungry, they'll let you know, if they are cold, they'll let you know, if they are tired, they'll let you know. I doubt you'll be able to keep him up. Anyways, they are like delicate flowers: they'll grow and bloom with love and care. I know it seems like "forever" that they'll never sleep, but reality, it's not forever and you'll miss the days when he was infant and I know you are exhausted. I know and remember my days and now they are growing up and I sure miss the infant days, baby days but I am enjoying every phase of their lives because they will not be kids again when they grow up and they will eventually grow up. I also know that I felt that when my babies slept it was time to do housework, actually no. When he's down whether he sleeps or not, you can then do the housework, mine was the dishes that was needed to be done. When they are sleeping we, mothers should sleep. When they are awake, we tend to them and when they are satisfied whatever it was they needed then we can do little bit of housework. I needed to remind myself that dishes will be done, children grow up, dishes will be there always whether they are cleaned or not. Maybe if you have a very good friend or MIL or mother or sister who can help out once in awhile, that may be of a great option. But, let your baby sleep when he wants to. That is sooooo normal for babies. :) Congratulations on that baby and God's Gift to you!!!

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A.N.

answers from New York on

Y.,
When my daughter was 7 months old, I actually took the step of consulting with baby sleep consultants (long story, fantastic results), and they were "right on" about babies' schedules. They mentioned that basically for at least the first 4 months or so, that babies can't regulate themselves or be expected to sleep through the night. In a nutshell, let him sleep when he wants and don't worry about a schedule just yet. Good luck.

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E.O.

answers from Rochester on

In a word.... yes. it IS normal. I have a three month old myself. I have three girls, 10, 4 and 3 months. And I have wondered myself if little Abby will sleep tonight if she is sleeping all day. And the answer is that at that age babies need like 20 hours of sleep or so. So sleeping all day isn't really an indication of whether they'll sleep at night.

Abby has just now begun to sleep all night. She has done so for several days now. I hesitate to think that she is going to keep doing it because then she'll change her mind. LOL! At their age they just do what they feel like doing. If they are hungry they want to eat. If they are tired they want to sleep.

Don't worry. I know you are probably exhausted. But this will not last long. Soon your baby will be sleeping like a baby... whoever coined that as a term to aspire to i have no idea... I bet they didn't take care of babies!!

Good luck. You'll get through it. And someday, when they get the mouth on them and talk back.... You'll long for these days when they cooed and gaga'd.

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