How much sleep will you get when your baby is a newborn?

In the early weeks and months of your baby’s life, you might find that it’s a challenge to get enough sleep.

For example, newborns usually sleep in short bursts through the day and night. They don’t know that people sleep at night. Even as babies and children get older, they can have trouble settling to sleep by themselves. They might wake during the night and need help getting back to sleep.

You can get help with baby sleep and settling from your child and family health nurse, GP or paediatrician. These health professionals can work with you to find a sleep and settling solution that’s right for your family.

How much sleep do you need?

In general, adults need 7-8 hours of sleep a night to feel properly rested, although this can vary from 5 up to 10 hours, depending on the person.

You might need more sleep if you:

• find it difficult to wake up in the morning
• feel sleepy all of the time
• can’t concentrate
• feel moody, irritable, depressed or anxious
• are unintentionally having micro-sleeps during the day.

When you get the rest you need, it’s good for your physical, emotional and mental health. And when you’re rested, you’re better able to enjoy time with your baby.

How to sleep better and feel more rested in the early months

The tips below can help you get a better night’s sleep and feel more rested, which is good for you and good for your baby. But how much sleep you get in the early months will depend on what’s happening with your baby.

Before bed

• Aim for a regular bedtime routine, and try to go to sleep at around the same time each night.
• Try to switch off and wind down before bed. For example, read a book, listen to gentle music, have a warm shower, or do breathing exercises or muscle relaxation.
• Avoid tea, coffee, soft drinks, energy drinks, chocolate, cigarettes and other stimulants close to bedtime. They make resting and sleeping harder and affect how well you sleep.
• Avoid using screens in your bedroom, including television, mobile phones and tablets. Screens emit light, which can interfere with sleep.

In bed

It can be hard to wind down after a long day or switch off your mind so you can sleep. These tips might help if you’re having trouble getting to sleep or staying asleep:

• Practise mindfulness or breathing exercises.
• Remind yourself that it’s OK that you’re warm and restful in bed.
• If this doesn’t work, get up and write down what’s on your mind.
• Then go through your bedtime routine again.

During the day

These tips can boost your energy and help you feel more rested, even if you’re not getting as much night-time sleep as you’d like:

• Get some sunlight during the day, particularly in the morning. Spending time in the sun or seeing sunlight can keep your body clock regular and improve the quality of your night-time sleep.
• Try to take a short nap during the day.
• Do physical activity and eat well – this can give you more energy.
• Make time for yourself, even if it’s just 5 minutes reading, walking or meditating.
• Adapt your daily routines and expectations of yourself to make more time for rest.

How to adapt routines, roles and expectations to get more rest

Share baby care

If you can, share baby care with your partner so you both feel as rested as possible. A family member or friend might be able to help too.

Take turns at night or on weekends

Taking turns or shifts for night-time duties can make a difference. This might be harder for breastfeeding mothers. In this case, the key is to try to rest when your baby is resting. On weekends, you could take turns having sleep-ins or naps during the day.

Prioritise daily activities

Using your energy for the things that are most important to you can help you feel better about your day – even if you’re tired at the end of it. For example, it’s OK to play with your child or spend time with family or friends rather than doing the vacuuming.

Break chores into smaller tasks

There will probably be some daily chores that you need to do. If you break these chores into small tasks and focus on one thing at a time, they can seem more manageable. But sometimes chores might just have to wait, no matter how important they are.

Check whether your expectations are realistic

Are you trying to do too much in a day? For example, we might expect that we can play with children, go to work, help at child care or school, cook an amazing dinner, get several loads of washing done, and still go to the gym.

There might be times when you can do all these things. But it’s natural to have days or even weeks when you’re feeling low on energy, and you might need to rethink how much you can get done – and that’s OK.

If you’re struggling to manage daily routines on not enough sleep, it’s OK to ask family or friends for help. And if you feel that lack of sleep is affecting you mentally or emotionally, it’s a very good idea to talk with your GP or another health professional.