Preventing Overtiredness in Newborns

Preventing overtiredness is going to be one of your most important tasks with your newborn. When a baby becomes overtired they can get very fussy and have a harder time falling asleep and staying asleep. An overtired baby will typically have shorter naps and more frequent night awakenings.

The trick to preventing overtiredness is to get your baby down as soon as they are sleepy. So how do we know when our baby is ready for a nap? Find your baby’s “sweet spot” by looking at a combination of their awake time and their sleepy cues.

Most newborns are awake for somewhere between 45-90 minutes between naps. The older your baby gets, the longer their awake time will get. Every baby is different. So rather than only looking at the amount of time your baby has been awake, you want to also look for sleepy cues your baby is showing you.

Common sleepy cues we see in newborns are:

• a calm, peaceful demeanor

• a subtle yawn

• reddish eyelids/eyebrows

• eyes staring off into the distance

• body is still

These sleepy cues are signals that your baby is getting ready for a nap. Many parents mistake tired signals for sleepy cues. Tired signals are signs that your baby should have already been asleep, so you need to get them down soon as possible.

Tired signals can include:

• fussing

• avoiding eye contact

• tugging on ears

• rubbing eyes

• rigid body

Watching your baby’s awake time in combination with their sleepy cues will help you determine when it is time to get them down for a nap.

Struggling with newborn sleep?

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