Sleeping Too Much

Archived Q&A and reviews ▼

Archived Q&A and Reviews

11-week-old sleeps 8 hours at night

Aug 2004

I have a 11.5 weeks old son and he slept nearly 8.5 hrs in the night.. I am nursing him and concerned about normal sleep routines in a baby. My daughter would usually sleep max. 6 hrs in the night for a very long time but my son seems happy to sleep for a longer time and does not cry out for milk in the night or early morning and even after sleeping for a long time in the night wakes up quietly. Day time - from 9-9 he usually nurses 2-3.5 hrs and sleeps max. 45 minutes .. personal experiences and info. about babies sleep routines are very welcome. concerned mom

Hi - your son seems to have very similar sleep patterns to my 3 month old little boy. He rarely sleeps longer than an hour or so during the day, and this hour is usually made up with power naps of 10/15 minutes at a time. But night times are blissful!! He started sleeping through the night at around 2 months. Every now and then he'll wake up (or be woken up by big sister) around 5/6am and will fall back to sleep after a feed - but some nights he'll go from 7pm thru to 8:30am and just like your son, he rarely wakes up extremely hungry, he's happy to coo & gurgle until I'm ready to nurse him. As long as your son is gaining weight then I wouldn't be concerned, it sounds like he is getting plenty of milk in the day and that's keeping him content through the night. Enjoy a good nights rest! Cathy
I can't give you a medical opinion about your son's sleep habits, but they sound almost exactly like my son's. From 3mos to 6mos, he slept 8, 10, sometimes 12 hours a night without waking to eat (I was breastfeeding and supplementing with formula.) He barely napped during the day. From 6-12mos his sleep patterns were all over the board, but now he's 13mos and has what I consider a great sleep schedule of about 10-11 straight hours at night without waking, plus 1-2 naps of 45min-2 hours each per day. He's healthy and bright and meeting all his milestones, so unless there's something else about your son's development that gives you cause to worry about the sleeping, I'd say thank your stars and enjoy your good night's sleep! :) anon

Unsually sleepy 5-month-old

March 2004

My five month old son seems really sleepy. He has slept twice as much as normal in the past day. When he's awake he's very active and alert and does not have any signs of illness. I don't understand what is going on. We started cereal a week ago could it be making him sleepy? Is this a normal change around five months? Adriane

Sounds like a growth spurt! My little guy always sleeps more right before and during a growth spurt.. Everyone said 6 months but he was a little ahead. His was at 5 months. now watch him sprout!
Your son could be allergic to the cereal, or intolerant. Five months is early enough that his gut could still be sensitive to grains. Have you thought of trying mashed banana instead, or waiting until he is six months? Jennifer R.
I noticed with my children that their eating and sleeping patterns could vary pretty wildly during the first year because they have so much growing to do. They grow when they are sleeping, so if he's having a grow spurt, he's going to sleep more. Don't worry. a mom