Why Are Earlier Bedtimes Better for Babies?

A question I often hear is, “Should I push my baby’s bedtime back so they sleep in later?”⁣

If your baby is older than 12 weeks, pushing baby’s bedtime back can actually cause MORE night wakings and/or earlier morning wakings.

Why Is It Bad To Push Back Bedtime?

Right around 3 months, melatonin is released in the brain earlier (usually sometime between 6:30-7:30pm), causing the sleep drive to be strong. ⁣This is why I highly recommend early bedtimes. ⁣If your baby goes to bed during their “sweet spot” of melatonin being released, they will not only fall asleep easier but STAY asleep as well. ⁣

⁣If baby goes to bed after this small window of time, their body will get a “second wind,” making it difficult to fall asleep, get into a deep sleep, and stay asleep. ⁣This is why later bedtimes do not help baby sleep in later, and can actually cause more sleep problems. ⁣

If your baby is struggling to sleep, try moving bedtime up a little!

Do I Need to Move Up Bedtime?

If your baby is one or more of the following:⁣

  1. Close to 12 weeks old ⁣

  2. Struggling to make it to the 10pm bedtime

  3. Having early morning wakings⁣

Then it’s probably time to bump up that bedtime! ⁣I’ll use 10pm and 7pm to make it simple, but adjust to your goal bedtime. I recommend no later than 8pm.

How to Move Up Baby's Bedtime

In short, follow the 15-minute rule I talk about in my e-book.⁣

Example:⁣

  • Night 1: 9:30 feed, bedtime routine, 10pm bed. ⁣

  • Night 2: 9:15 feed, bedtime routine, 9:45 bed. ⁣

  • Night 3: 9:00 feed, bedtime routine, 9:30 bed. ⁣

Continue this process until your 7pm feed merges with the last feeding. ⁣Yes, the last 2 feedings get closer and closer and it feels weird to do! But when you make it to 8:00 as your last feed, try pushing the 7:00 back to 7:15, do bedtime at 7:45, and drop the 8:00 feed. ⁣

If you’re new to this, it sounds confusing. I totally get that! And if you’re not to the 12-week mark yet, it seems even more confusing. ⁣However, once you reach this point you’ll know what to do. Just take it one day at a time.

You’ll get there!

Jessalyn