19/01/2023
How much sleep does your child really need? 🔍
So many sleep programs for infants and children frustratingly promote 12 hours of sleep at night.
However, based on current research from the National Sleep Foundation for recommended sleep ranges by age, when some children reach the age of 1-2 years, their sleep need has already naturally reduced below this and is being adequately met with less.
We need to be aware too that sleep need is over 24 hours, so if your 2-year-old is still enjoying a 2-hour nap, this is likely to come off their nightly total to some degree and 9 or 10 hours at night might be all they need to top up and thrive.
Of course, there may be some children that love a long nap and still sleep a longer stretch at night. This is because sleep need is heavily individual.
Most of us are somewhere in the middle but a proportion will have either a higher or lower sleep need at either end of the spectrum. Children with lower sleep needs are the often the ones who, as babies, seemed wide-eyed, very alert and resistant to sleep against your best efforts! Children with higher sleep needs might be the ones that willingly take themselves to bed when they’re tired and often need to be woken in the morning. You may notice that siblings don't often sleep the same.
If you’re having bedtime battles, frequent waking, split nights or early rising, add up how much your child is sleeping over 24-hours.
Does it typically still fit within a healthy, normal range for their age?
If so, try these timing adjustments:
✅ If your child still naps, reduce daytime sleep to support a longer duration or better sleep quality at night
✅ Move your sleep scheduling closer to your child’s sleep need to reduce awake time in their bed – this might be with a later bedtime, earlier wake up time or combination of both
Have you felt like sleep is a failure when your child doesn't make 12 hours?
