8 month old baby is not sleeping well. Why does the child sleep poorly at night, often wakes up. Problem: Premature transition from two naps to one

Normally, an infant should always sleep in a calm, sound sleep. But at different periods of life, normal sleep is disturbed and a series of restless nights follows, which exhaust the parents so much. This is primarily due to age-related changes through which the baby goes through every 2-3 months. An 8-9-month-old baby is just entering the next important stage of development, and therefore begins to sleep poorly.

What's happening

By the age of eight months, most babies sit up on their own in the crib and even try to move around on all fours. What scope this creates for the active research activity of the child! If earlier he could only reach out to things interesting for himself with his hands, now he is trying to crawl to them himself.

Once again, the child's sleep pattern is changing. Night rest still goes up to 10 hours, and the daytime period is significantly reduced. The baby is already quite enough to sleep for 2 hours twice a day. But two daytime rests are obligatory, otherwise by the evening the fragile nervous system is so overloaded that the child of 8 months does not sleep well at night.

At this age, even breastfed babies should already be receiving complementary foods. New foods are constantly appearing in the child's diet, which must be introduced very smoothly. If you immediately feed the baby with a standard portion of unusual food for him, the digestive system will immediately react with a malfunction. Already forgotten colic, cramps, gases will begin, which can keep you awake all night.

The psychological burden on the baby is enormous. He learns new things every day, like a sponge absorbs new words, struggling to repeat individual sounds and syllables. It gives him great pleasure to communicate with loved ones. He violently shows emotions and reacts very sensitively to the slightest changes in the mood or intonation of his mother's voice.

Not yet able to control his own overwork, the baby, having received many even positive impressions, can become sharply capricious, become restless, and start crying a lot. This means only one thing - the child is tired and needs rest. Mom needs to try to control the psycho-emotional state of the baby in order to prevent severe overwork.

The physical activity of an 8-month-old baby increases significantly. He learns to play with toys, most of the time he sits, many children get up, holding their hands on the side of the crib. This requires huge energy costs, and the appetite of the crumbs increases dramatically. Sometimes you even have to return to night feeding, especially when breastfeeding, otherwise a hungry child does not sleep well at night - he tosses and turns all the time, often wakes up.

Sleep phases by 8 months become the same as in an adult. That is, babies also have superficial sleep most of the night.

And if earlier it was possible to wake a sleeping child only with the roar of a cannon, now he began to fall asleep longer and sleep more sensitively. This means that it is necessary to accustom him to falling asleep on his own, since now it is unlikely that he will be able to transfer a dozing baby to the crib without waking him up.

The following signs indicate that there are indeed problems with sleep:

• the baby categorically refuses to go to bed at the usual time;
• the duration of falling asleep increases to half an hour or more;
• the child wakes up 2-3 times a night;
• after a night awakening, the baby does not fall asleep for 1.5-2 hours;
• the baby constantly tosses and turns in a dream, sometimes screams or moans through a dream;
• there are sudden awakenings with hysteria.

There are many reasons for the appearance of such problems, and age-related changes are only one of them, more related to the psychological aspect of a child's development. All the rest can be divided into physiological and pathological.

And problems with children's sleep can be provoked by the parents themselves with their wrong actions.

Physiological causes

The physiological reasons why a child of 8 months falls asleep for a long time and sleeps poorly at night, mostly lie on the surface. They are very easy to identify and eliminate, you just need to carefully observe the situation and your actions and, if necessary, make appropriate adjustments to them:

It is also interesting that by about 8 months the child begins to clearly realize when the mother is going to leave somewhere. Each new separation is a real tragedy - after all, the baby does not yet understand that she will definitely return and he does not have a sense of time.

Therefore, you should not leave him to fall asleep alone - for the time being he cannot do this. At a minimum, sit next to him, but rather provide tactile contact so that the baby feels protected.

Pathological causes

When a child is sick, he always sleeps badly at night. It is quite easy for even an inexperienced mother to identify colds and respiratory diseases - snot, cough, and fever appear.

But there are other pathological reasons that prevent the baby from sleeping soundly:

It is always necessary to treat infants under the supervision of a pediatrician, even if the child does not need hospitalization. Therefore, if you suspect that the reason why the child did not sleep well is a disease, then you should not try to make a diagnosis yourself - go to the doctor and be sure to undergo an examination.

Most diseases detected at an early stage can be easily cured. Advanced diseases can greatly affect the further development of the baby.

To sleep better

Mom always has the opportunity to make sure that the baby sleeps better. Here are some proven simple tricks that will significantly improve the quality of children's sleep at night, regardless of what caused the disorder:

And remember that in the absence of pathologies, sleep problems will improve in a couple of weeks. Therefore, it is very important to remain calm and not spoil the nerves of yourself and your child, being irritated due to sleepless nights and long falling asleep.

Try to rest more, do not hesitate to ask for help from loved ones. Then the period of sleep regression will pass quite quickly and painlessly.

Poor nighttime sleep in infants is common. An 8 month old baby may experience sleep problems for many reasons related to his mental and physical development.

Poor baby sleep at 8 months means:

1. Refusal to go to bed at the proper night time;
2. Wake up periodically
3. Stay awake at night for 1.5–2 hours;
4. Restless sleep, when the baby is constantly spinning, crying;
5. Spontaneous tantrums in the middle of the night, which are difficult to calm down.

Ideally, every child should sleep peacefully and not throw night tantrums. But in infants, there are many reasons that can lead to poor sleep. Many problems just need to be experienced, having gained maximum patience and calmness. And some - require immediate monitoring and treatment by specialists.

For children under 8 months of age, night rest should be 11 hours. This is the average time that is supposed to be observed in the daily routine.

It is during these hours that the main development of the child's body takes place, namely:

1. Growth hormone is released;
2. Strength and spent energy are restored;
3. Relieves stress and fatigue.

At 8 months, problems with healthy sleep may arise for various reasons.

Causes of poor sleep

Since REM sleep is typical for children under one year old, it is not worth waiting for a slow deep rest, as in adults, from babies. Also, children have dreams that are not always pleasant and can scare babies. Therefore, a night's rest in itself is an unsettling time for an 8-month-old baby.

This feature of the child's worldview must be taken into account when falling asleep the baby.

The causes of poor sleep in an eight-month-old baby are mainly related to age-related characteristics. These issues include:

1. Excitation of the nervous system of the baby. This may be due not so much to a nerve problem as to increased activity before bed - too active games, loud music, TV noise, bright lights;
2. Unbalanced, inadequate nutrition. This item applies to babies who are breastfed. In children at the age of eight months, despite the introduction of complementary foods, breast milk remains the main food. The kid spends a lot of energy on learning about the environment, and therefore may experience a lack of nutrition;
3. Overwork. It may be associated with experiencing various emotions and experiences during the day, with the study of new subjects, the knowledge of tastes. From a large number of new experiences, children are very tired, then quickly fall asleep, but often wake up at night;
4. Fear of loneliness. Babies can often wake up when mom is not around. At this age, they can hardly endure separation from their mother and worry that she will not return;
5. Heat, cold. The child does not sleep well when it is cold or very warm. He will constantly wake up and be nervous;
6. A new stage in physical and mental development. The child becomes more developed in psychomotor terms - he sits well, begins to crawl, stand up, play actively;
7. Painful teething;
8. Development of rickets;
9. Prickly heat. The resulting irritation on the skin can cause itching and burning;
10. Pain of various origins - digestive problems, colds.

When should action be taken?

Depending on how the child behaves during night wakefulness, there are two solutions:

• Cases that do not require treatment. If a child sleeps half the night, and then wakes up and behaves calmly, this is a temporary violation of the daily routine that does not need medical intervention. This condition may be associated with the reaction of the nervous system to the development of motor skills of the baby. Be patient and wait for the child to outgrow this period. As a rule, by the year he sleeps more soundly.
• Cases requiring specialist advice and possible treatment. If a baby at this age does not gain weight well, loses its appetite, becomes capricious, often cries at night, and sometimes throws long tantrums, lags behind in development, it must be shown to a doctor.

To identify the reason why the baby does not sleep well, they will be able to:

1. Neurologist;
2. Pediatrician;
3. Uzist during NSG - neurosonography. This procedure is prescribed by a doctor when there are suspicions about complications in the baby's nervous system.

Ultrasound examination of the brain by this method is completely safe and gives accurate results. Neurosonography is carried out through a large fontanel of the baby. When it grows, it will no longer be possible to carry out such a procedure.

As soon as you notice regular disturbances in night sleep, show the baby to the pediatrician. He will examine the child, assess the situation and make a diagnosis. After that, proceed with the implementation of the necessary recommendations.

How can you overcome bad sleep at night?

There are many ways to deal with sleep deprivation on your own:

1. Eliminate overexcitation. For the proper formation of the nervous system, try to spend more time outdoors. If the baby is overly excited, before going to bed, buy it in a bath with the addition of soothing herbs - chamomile, valerian.
2. Fighting malnutrition. Baby sleeps intermittently when hungry. Two hours before bedtime, feed the baby well with porridge, and breastfeed before bedtime. When suckling the breast, he not only eats up, but also calms down due to the production of endorphins. To make breast milk fatter, eat well, include protein, calcium, nuts in the diet.
3. We make up for the lack of activity. When your baby is sleeping and then wakes up and wants to play, try shifting the bedtime schedule. If time permits, put your baby to bed a few hours later than usual. If this is not possible, wait a bit and the mode will improve.
4. We do not allow overheating or hypothermia of the baby. The room must be kept at the required temperature - 22 ° C and humidity of 40%. Cover with only one light blanket. If the child is worried about prickly heat, be sure to treat the painful areas with ointment before going to bed.
5. We take the pain away. By eight months, painful crying is easy to distinguish from whimsical. If the child has swollen red gums, lubricate them with a special cooling gel. If the baby is still not sleeping, crying, give a general painkiller. This option of dealing with crying can be used in isolated cases. Here you need to determine the main cause of pain.
6. We struggle with our own feelings and irritability.

   Since all your feelings and emotions are transferred to the child, try to restrain your anxieties and worries. The more you worry and are nervous, the more restless your baby's night sleep will be. If you are worried about insomnia, then this condition will affect the baby. Try to react calmly to such sleep problems, do not take it out on the child under any circumstances. After waking up at night, constantly smile at the baby, start a pleasant conversation. Only in this way the child will stop worrying and will sleep soundly.

Medical treatment

In rare cases, when poor sleep at night indicates disorders in the baby's nervous system, a specialist may prescribe:

• sedatives;
• Drugs that strengthen the nervous system.

If your child has pain in the gum area, give him a baby pain reliever.

If the baby does not sleep, screams and tightens his legs, he may be disturbed by gases - give him a remedy to improve digestion processes - Babotik, Infakol.

Any drug treatment should be under the supervision of a pediatrician.

How to sleep an overworked child?

Overwork is one of the reasons why the baby has trouble sleeping.

At the age of eight months, children spend a lot of energy on learning about the world around them, and therefore get tired quickly.

Many mothers are faced with a problem when the baby is naughty and wants to sleep, but cannot do this due to overwork. At this age, the child has not yet formed the inhibitory systems responsible for the ability to fall asleep on their own. Therefore, the mother should help the child fall asleep. For this you need:

1. Adhere to the established daily routine;
2. Dose the amount of impressions that occur in the daytime;
3. Control the visit of guests;
4. Create a bedtime ritual.

As soon as the baby begins to rub his eyes, put him to bed.

If you missed this moment or the laying schedule has shifted, it will not be easy for the baby to lay down. The child will become naughty and often wake up in the middle of the night.

In this case, be patient, breastfeed your baby. If he does not sleep and continues to act up, wash with holy water and shake.

motion sickness

If the baby often wakes up in the middle of the night and cannot fall asleep for a long time, try rocking him.

Rocking is a centuries-old reliable way to help your baby relax and fall asleep. This method of dealing with poor night sleep for babies at 8 months is very relevant, when their eyes stick together, and the body asks to crawl in the knowledge of the world around them.

You can rock the baby lying down, putting the baby on your body, or sitting - hugging you. Thanks to such hugs, the baby will feel protected. Such conditions will remind the baby of intrauterine comfort.

Such methods of motion sickness are not capable of harming the health and disruption of the vestibular apparatus.

If you give your baby a breast at night and then rock him to sleep, he will fall asleep faster and rest more calmly.

When this method helps, feel free to carry the baby in your arms, rock it, sing a lullaby, the child will not form any addiction in the future.

Co-sleeping

Since babies during the first year of life are closely connected with their mother, they need her warmth and care. It is very difficult for an eight-month-old baby to break away from his mother, and therefore, when he is placed in a separate bed all night, he may experience fear and stress.

To overcome poor sleep in a child at night, you can sleep with him in the same bed.

This method will be convenient for nursing mothers, who will be able to save their own strength. The child will sleep better.

You can try putting your baby to bed in the middle of the night. So, the first half of the night time, the baby will sleep in his cradle. And from the second half, when you lose strength and get tired, the child can be put in a common bed.

So that in the future joint sleep does not turn into a disaster for parents and the child, it is necessary to completely wean from the common bed after the cessation of breastfeeding.

Rituals before bed

To build a ritual that will help calm, relax the child and prepare him for sleep, you can use the following steps:

1. Bathing. If the baby loves water procedures, then spend them daily before bedtime. If the child does not like evening bathing, spend them in the morning or in the afternoon;
2. Cozy atmosphere. Turn off the TV an hour before bed and eliminate extraneous noise. And also dim the lights;
3. Communication. Hug your baby and tell him about how your day went. Talking to the mother will help the child to relax and have fun;
4. Reading books. Kids love to listen to fairy tales, poems, look at pictures. Such activities not only soothe, but also help develop the intelligence and speech of the baby;
5. Lullabies. Sing the song in a quiet, calm voice. Children love this singing and quickly fall asleep to it. If singing doesn't always work out, try playing children's songs or classical music;
6. When the child is asleep, cover him with a blanket and turn off the light. If the baby is afraid of the dark, you can leave the nightlight on at night.

Daytime sleep of the baby is no less important than nighttime sleep. Moreover, the lack of daytime sleep and accumulated fatigue lead to worse nighttime sleep. And about the influence of children's daytime sleep on mother's well-being, you can write a separate novel! Therefore, today I will tell you what to do if the baby does not fall asleep well during the day, refuses daytime sleep, or sleeps little during the daytime.

Find out the objective numbers

Before answering the question of why a child does not sleep well during the day, it is important to understand how much he actually sleeps over a period of 24 hours and how this sleep is distributed. So for 3-5 days, write down all your baby's sleep intervals, including those that usually "do not count" - 10 minutes of sleep in the car on the way from grandma, 20 minutes of sleep in the stroller, etc.

At the same time, it is important for you to note not only how much the baby slept, but also at what time of the day he fell asleep - for convenience, you can use this form.

Once you have an objective picture, compare it to the recommended sleep allowances that are appropriate for your child's age. Keep in mind that every child is different, and as such, the age at which you stop napping varies greatly. This can happen at 2.5 years (rarely) and after 6, and here it is especially important to compensate for the transition period by organizing an earlier bed.

Correct the situation

If you have come to the conclusion that your baby is short on daytime sleep, this can and should be corrected. However, be aware that daytime sleep is always more difficult for children, and therefore some effort will be required from you. So, let's look at a few possible causes of poor daytime sleep and how to correct them:

Problem 1: Wrong daily routine

Modern sleep scientists are so advanced in the study of sleep that they tell us exactly when the child's body is ready to fall asleep in order to sleep longer and get better quality sleep. There are cyclical periods when the hormonal background changes and makes it easier to fall asleep. At this time, the body temperature drops, and metabolic processes slow down, and if there is a need and a certain degree of fatigue, the body easily falls asleep. Of course, you can fall asleep at other times (and this happens if you are already at the limit). But, remember that sleep in this case is more difficult. You do not get a restorative effect (remember - it seems like you slept, and your head is buzzing so that it would be better not to lie down), and some children may even wake up crying because this dream didn’t really benefit.

Solution

If your baby is having a hard time falling asleep during the day, estimate the time you start putting him to bed. The optimal time to start daytime sleep is 8-30/9 and 12-30/13 days. At the same time, it is important that the morning rise is no later than 7 in the morning, so that the baby has time to accumulate the necessary degree of fatigue by the time his body automatically begins to go into hibernation mode. If the child is not yet 6 months old, consider the optimal duration of wakefulness in order to prevent a state of overwork that will greatly interfere with falling asleep even at optimal hours. We will analyze in great detail the features of building a child’s day regimen at the next one, we will talk about how the baby’s regimen changes from birth to 2 years.

Problem 2: abrupt change of activity

Our children are very active and curious. It is not surprising that for them the daytime hours are a series of discoveries, running, tears, laughter, games, songs and fun. And children are still just learning to manage their emotions, including switching them. This is a difficult task! Therefore, when the mother suddenly gives the command “time to sleep” and tries to curtail all the fun by putting the baby to bed, he protests and does not at all tune in to a sleepy mood.

Solution

Make sure you form a consistent and consistent ritual, including nap time. Of course, it will not be a long procession of bathing, books, pajamas and kisses, like at night, but some elements should be transferred to daytime sleep. Remember, children don't understand the concept of time and are sequencing so they understand what's going to happen next and adjust their expectations accordingly. A clear and consistent routine before each sleep will be a signal of what to tune in to, as well as help avoid disappointment and protests. And one more thing - after 3-4 months of age it is very important for children to sleep in the same place in most cases - this is also part of building the right expectations.

Problem 3: Light and noisy in the sleeping room

At the beginning of the article, I mentioned that daytime sleep is always more difficult than nighttime sleep. The reason is that the environment is very stimulating to wakefulness - the sun is shining, life is noisy outside the window, and the just completed walk did not set you in a sleepy mood. Children, like adults, find it easier to sleep in a dark and quiet space with a comfortable temperature. Many mothers specifically “teach” children to sleep during the day in the light: “so as not to confuse day with night”, “it will be easier to fall asleep in the garden”, “the child should know that it is day”. Doing this is not worth it. Light entering the optic nerve sends a signal to the brain that now is the time of wakefulness and the brain stops the production of the hormone melatonin, which puts our body to sleep. No melatonin, no sleep. Even if the child falls asleep, it will be difficult for him to sleep and he will not oversleep for long. Noise outside the window is another factor that can seriously interfere. It distracts when falling asleep, and can wake up a child who has already fallen asleep.

Solution

Darken the room as much as possible while sleeping. Now there is a wonderful invention - cassette blinds with black out fabric. This design is made according to the size of the glass in your window, and the opaque sheet fits snugly, not letting the bright sun inside. An added bonus from such blinds is that the room heats up less from external heat. If there is no way to install such blinds, be creative - fasten a blanket, tape black construction garbage bags to the glass, hang the most dense woven curtains.

With the noise of the street (and household) will help you fight ... white noise. This is the name of a group of sounds that are generalized in their monotony and cyclicity. You can choose from a great variety - static noise between radio stations (classic white noise), rain or surf noise, heartbeat, etc. Experiment, make sure that the sound level is not too high (this is not how it works) and run it cyclically for the entire period of sleep. These sounds create a background that absorbs background noise, pulls the baby back to sleep on light awakenings, and they are absolutely not addictive. Those. neither adults nor children form attachments to noise as a prerequisite for sleep. Remember - music (including classical) is not white noise!

Problem 4: Premature transition from two naps to one

The transition to the mode of one daytime sleep occurs on average between 15 and 18 months. At such a moment, many mothers notice that morning sleep comes very easily and lasts 1.5-2 hours, but after dinner it is not possible to put the child to bed. The problem arises when the baby is forced to stay awake for 8-10 hours from the moment of the last sleep - he is very tired, naughty, hardly fits at night and may start waking up at night or trying to get up sooooo early in the morning. If a child is not ready for this change (and some may try to make this transition at 9-11 months), then his body simply cannot physically withstand such a load, and a variety of difficulties can begin - from worsening daytime behavior to loss of appetite and lethargy, frequent falls, etc.

Solution

Offer your child two naps for as long as possible. If you begin to notice that morning sleep “interferes” with afternoon sleep, then limit the first interval to an hour so that by lunchtime the baby is ready to fall asleep again. In this case, if necessary, it is appropriate to slightly shift the bedtime from the ideal 13:00 to 13:30, and this sleep does not need to be limited. Often, children aged 9-15 months go through huge developmental leaps - they begin to walk, speak their first words, fantasy develops rapidly, conceptual thinking expands - all this temporarily disrupts sleep. However, usually in a few days, the new skill settles and no longer has such a negative effect on sleep, so before deciding to give up 2 times a day sleep, it is important to continue offering the old regimen for at least two weeks from the moment the difficulties began.

Problem 5: Negative associations with sleep

In the first days (and months) of a newborn's life, mothers do everything to make the baby sleep, and rightly so, because. the nervous system of the baby is often up to 4 months is not able to easily adjust to sleep. However, such habits are addictive, and many mothers find that even by 8 or even 18 months, the only way to put the baby to bed is to roll it in a stroller, hold it all the time in her arms or on her chest. And in this case, sleep is very superficial and short-lived. This problem is the most difficult. The fact is that such children (and often mothers) simply do not believe in their ability to fall asleep differently, without relying on such a familiar “crutch”. Of course, because their whole life went exactly in this order - rocking = sleep, arms = sleep, chest = sleep, stroller = sleep. They never had the opportunity to fall asleep on their own. And this is where you have to teach the child that he himself can cope well with the task of falling asleep, without relying on such “helpers”.

Solution

There are two approaches to solving such problems - cardinal and gradual. Few mothers can decide on the “cry-sleep” method (although when used correctly, this has been proven to be a harmless, fast and effective method), so go straight to more delicate options! Mom will need perseverance and patience to achieve results. In addition, all the previous conditions must be met - sleep must be organized at the right time, in a well-darkened room and after the usual ritual. In most cases, you will have to gradually reduce the impact of your particular association - not to pump until you are completely asleep, but to a deep sleepy state, for example, and then simply hold it in your arms without moving to begin with. Then gradually pump less and less, holding it in your arms, at some point - put the still awake baby in the crib, etc.

For babies who are used to sleeping on their mother's chest, feeding and sleeping should be separated in order to move away from this kind of addiction. It is worth feeding 15-20 minutes before bedtime, not before falling asleep, and then just put the baby to bed, separating food and sleep, for example, by changing a diaper.

Healthy sleep of a child is a guarantee of a good mood for the whole family, but for many parents it is a big problem. It is extremely rare for children to sleep as much as they should sleep, according to pediatricians. Most often there is a simple explanation for this. From our article you will find out how much a child should sleep at 8 months and why he does not sleep well.

How much should a baby sleep at 8 months

On average, an 8-month-old baby should sleep about 17.5 hours a night. At the same time, it is difficult to unequivocally answer the question of how much a child should sleep for 8 months during the day. Usually, about 4 - 5 hours are allotted for daytime sleep. However, all this is very individual: there are kids who only need to sleep twice for half an hour, and at the same time they feel good. We can say how many times a baby sleeps at 8 months on average: at this time, daytime sleep is usually two times.

It all depends on when the children wake up. If the baby gets up at 6 o'clock in the morning, then for him three times a day's sleep can be considered the norm. When you get up at 9 - 10 hours, two sleeps a day is enough. It will not be a deviation to sleep once a day, if only this is enough for the baby.

At night, the baby rests for about 11 - 12 hours. At the same time, he can sleep all night without waking up, or wake his mother several times a night. It all depends on how he feels and the type of feeding, which we will talk about in the next chapter.

8 month old baby not sleeping well

The situation in which a child of 8 months does not sleep well at night is more the norm than a deviation. At the same time, he can wake up both every half an hour, and once every few hours.

Let's analyze the main reasons why a child does not sleep well at 8 months:

• Breast-feeding. If you are still breastfeeding your baby, it is unlikely that he will sleep through the night without waking up. It is important for a baby to feel his mother nearby, because their connection is still very strong. Waking up at night, he is not so much hungry or thirsty, but to feel the warmth of his mother and calm down.
• Teething. It is the most common cause of poor sleep in children over 6 months of age. Teething often causes babies a lot of unpleasant pain.
• Abdominal pain and other pain syndromes.
• Emotional stress and overexcitation before sleep. Too noisy and active games in the evening lead to this, as well as daytime impressions (visits, various fears, new acquaintances, moving).
• Uncomfortable sleeping conditions (uncomfortable clothing, incorrect air temperature).
• Wrong daily routine. If your baby sleeps during the day for a very long time or, conversely, not enough, his nighttime sleep will be unstable.

In any case, if you are worried about a poor night's sleep of an 8-month-old baby, consult a pediatrician and a neurologist. They will examine the child and be able to determine the exact cause of this problem.

8 month old baby crying in his sleep

Many parents are worried not only about poor sleep, but also about the fact that an 8-month-old baby cries at night. It's not easy to calm a baby down. In this case, it is necessary to find out the cause of anxiety and eliminate it. You should definitely consult a doctor, because only an experienced specialist will be able to identify a possible disease in time. However, do not worry in advance.

If an 8 month old baby wakes up at night and cries, this may indicate:

• Wanting to be close to mom. At this age, babies are very attached to their mother and are afraid to be left without her. And in a crib at night it is so scary and lonely that, waking up, they cry for their mother.
• Various types of pain syndrome. For an 8-month-old baby, it is most often teething pain or colic. In addition, incessant strong crying may indicate diseases (colds, sore throats, otitis media, etc.).
• Discomfort associated with room temperature (too hot or cold) or uncomfortable clothing (for example, seams or fabric folds rub against delicate skin).
• Nervous strain or fears. It has been proven that children also have dreams, and not always pleasant ones. Daytime experiences and fears are directly reflected in the dreams of the crumbs.

A small child needs good sleep, which stimulates his growth and development. Almost all parents have gone through nighttime sleep deprivation associated with intestinal colic in a newborn baby. Babies are debilitated by the pain that makes it difficult for them to sleep. Frequent awakenings during this period exhaust not only children, but also their parents. But by about 3-4 months, the work of the digestive system gradually returns to normal, respectively, sleep is getting better.

It would seem that finally, parents can relax and breathe a sigh of relief due to the end of nightly sleep deprivation, as another problem appears - an 8-month-old child sleeps very badly at night. He can cry, wake up, turn around in search of a comfortable position. This seriously affects the psychological state of the baby and parents. Exhausted by nightly concerts, dad and mom are trying to figure out why an 8-month-old baby does not sleep well at night, because of which he cries and is naughty.

At 8 months, the baby shows its individual characteristics, which are the first signs of independence. He observes the world around him with interest, everything seems mysterious to him. During this period, the child increasingly uses movements, facial expressions, gestures and thus expresses his feelings. He can fiddle with toys for a long time, examine them and taste them.

Despite the fact that children are different, there are still certain general criteria in their development that are considered normal. For a baby at 8 months, the following indicators are characteristic:

An eight-month-old child gives parents sleepless nights: what to do?

A child at 8 months does not sleep well at night, often wakes up for various reasons. It is not always possible for parents to deal with this issue on their own. It happens that without the help of specialists it is difficult to cope with the task. Each person is individual. What is typical in behavior for one is categorically unacceptable for another baby. But there are certain points that are almost the same for children. For example, all 8-month-old babies have approximately the same time for rest and sleep.

Attention! Small deviations from the norm are imperceptible, but if the child is 8 months old. he sleeps badly at night all the time, and there are no visible reasons for explaining his behavior, you can’t turn a blind eye to this. It is necessary to find out what is the matter, and try to normalize the sleep-wake mode.

Hours Allotted for Sleep at 8 Months: Standard Views

The average amount of time allotted for sleep at 8 months ranges from 13 to 15 hours a day, of which 10–12 are at night. During the day, children at this age should sleep for at least 3 hours. The baby is awake at eight months for about 3-4 hours a day.

It is known that the reason for the awakening of children under 6 months is hunger, thirst, wet diapers, fear, nervous strain during daytime games.

After the second half of the year, little has changed. But children are less likely to wake up at night to eat, and gradually join a certain daily routine.

The "strike" of the baby and its manifestations

The sleep of a baby at 7-8 months old can be disturbed for various reasons. A baby sleeps restlessly if something disturbs him. For example, a stomach ache or teething. The baby can toss and turn all night, spinning in the crib trying to sleep. If this happens often, parents should pay attention to the general condition of the baby and his health.

The "strike" of the baby manifests itself in the following behavior:

• It is difficult for a child to fall asleep at a certain time; his sleep cannot be called strong and calm.
• He can doze off and wake up frequently.
• During a night's sleep, the baby can constantly whimper and toss and turn, act up and spin.
• The child may scream hysterically at night for no apparent reason.

The concept of sleep regression in children

Babies at the beginning of their lives experience several stages of sleep regression, which is a completely normal phenomenon associated with the physiological and mental development of the baby.

The mobility of children is most evident at 7-10 months. Crawling, standing up, sitting, the first attempts to walk are at this age. All these activities require increased work of the child's brain. The environment is a subject for research.

The kid is interested in everything, in the full sense of the word. This situation leads to the fact that sleep becomes the last place for the baby. The preoccupation with new tasks, the continuous training of one's skills, the analysis of new impressions captivate the little person so much that he is simply not interested in sleeping.

There are signs by which you can determine that a child has a sleep regression:

• The kid categorically refuses to sleep at the usual time for him.
• If he falls asleep, then his sleep lasts 30-40 minutes.
• During bedtime, the child is distracted, begins to look for a bottle, reaches for toys, does everything possible not to sleep.
• During a night's sleep, the number of awakenings of the child increases significantly. Sometimes he wakes up to 10 times.
• The baby's sleep is characterized as poor. The child tosses and turns, cries, groans, screams or sobs in his sleep.
• Sometimes he wakes up in hysterics.

Important! Such moments cannot be called "special strikes" of the baby. He, like his parents, has a very difficult time during periods of sleep regression. It is difficult for a small body to cope with new loads. Therefore, parents should not be angry with him in the first place. It is important to understand him in these moments and try to help.

Other Prerequisites for Problems: Dangerous and Not So Dangerous

By eight months, the baby's sleep is gradually getting better. But it cannot be called completely stable. Sometimes there are signs of poor sleep that cause concern for caring parents. It is worth noting the following reasons for these problems:

Reflection of lack of sleep on the state of the child

Babies during their development need a healthy diet, fresh air and good sleep. Insufficient rest hours lead to improper production of cortisol, which is the hormone of awakening, and melatonin, which is the hormone of sleep.

With a violation of the sleep regimen, not only the child's immunity begins to suffer, but also its organs and systems.

Interesting to know! Thanks to research, it became clear that those children who did not sleep well until the age of five have worse brain activity at the age of five than those who had full sleep in infancy.

Poor sleep is a shattered nervous system, disorders of which are fraught with nervousness, hysteria. In addition to all this, the poor quality of sleep is reflected in the work of the baby's digestive tract.

Reasonable actions of parents

There are many methods by which caring parents manage to ensure and normalize a child's sleep. One way or the other is suitable for every case. In order for the baby to fall asleep quickly and not toss and turn in his sleep, you must follow these recommendations:

• Find the cause of his overexcitation and try to eliminate it.
• It is necessary to spend enough time with the baby in the fresh air.
• When bathing a child in the evening, use herbs that soothe. Chamomile and valerian have proven themselves well in this regard.
• The child should not be allowed to starve. Only a well-fed baby can sleep peacefully.
• As your child gets older, their sleep patterns need to be re-evaluated. If earlier the baby fell asleep at 21 o'clock, then with age he may need more time to stay awake. In such cases, it is better to move a night's sleep for half an hour or an hour.
• It is important to maintain a normal microclimate in the room.
• In the presence of urticaria, which wakes the baby with itching, it is necessary to eliminate this skin problem.
• During teething, it is advisable to use special means to anesthetize the baby's gums.
• Mom should try to be less nervous, her mood is transmitted to the child.
• Falling asleep and waking up a baby should be accompanied by a smile and gentle words. Such an environment has, the child does not experience fear of loneliness.

There are times when a baby’s nighttime awakenings do not cause problems and do not cause a serious illness. It all depends on how often it happens. If very often, then it is better to show the baby to the doctors immediately.

Advice! Experts recommend parents from the first minute of a baby's life to adhere to the correct daily routine. It has been proven that the development of children who live according to a schedule from birth is much better, they are less likely to get sick. Parents with their care and attention should protect children from fears and worries.

There are times when a baby confuses day with night. You can correct the situation if you give him less sleep during the day. Thus, it is gradually possible to normalize the biological clock of the child.

Conclusion

The famous doctor Komarovsky advises: if parents are worried that a child is not sleeping well at 8 months, you should monitor his condition and well-being. Noticed alarm signals should be the reason for a visit to the doctor. Do not delay with this, because the health of the baby is the most valuable and important thing in the world.