How much do new babies sleep?

You may hear that it seems like newborns never sleep. Actually though, they sleep quite a lot. New parents, even those who sleep when their baby sleeps may still feel extra tired because becoming a parent is a major adjustment and it's trying, both physically and mentally. Plus just because a newborn sleeps often, their patterns are wacky, so they may not be sleeping when you're used to sleeping.

Until your baby is about four to six months it's not very realistic to place sleep expectations on him. In the first month your baby will typically sleep 15-16 hours a day or so, but it can happen in unpredictable shifts. By the time your newborn is about a month old he'll be sleeping a tiny bit less but will have developed a schedule of sorts - not always on your schedule though. At this point you should still allow your baby to sleep whenever he likes. Training a baby under the age of four months to sleep on a perfect schedule is not going to work and the both of you will become frustrated. You can stay sane by doing the following:

• Sleep or relax when your baby does.
• Get help and support so that you have a chance to sleep uninterrupted.
• Don't wake your baby up to feed him unless your pediatrician has a specific reason why you should. If your baby is hungry he'll wake up. Halting his sleep will only make him cranky.

Once your baby starts nearing that four month age you can start trying to teach him the difference between night and day. At this point you can also try to get your baby to fall asleep on his own, although some babies do better at this than others. Also see:

• What to do when your baby wakes up at 4am
• What to do with an early riser
• Plan better baby naps