Wednesday, January 9, 2013

How Much Sleep Does Your Child Need?

 
 
I have been struggling with my 2 year old daughters sleeping habits from the womb. She was up every hour of the night for the first handful of months. I blamed this on her having colic, until I finally got hit over the head with a full nights rest. I was so in disbelief that I thought for sure I had just slept through her cries, which are much less dramatic now that she is a wee tot. I couldn't blame it on colic any longer, she had long outgrown that. I tried everything from kicking the naps, bedtime stories, baby massages, warm baths, warm milk with honey, you name it and I've tried it. After that single night of full rest, I decided to do some research on the amount of hours of sleep a 2 year old needs. I found that a 2 year old is supposed to have a total of 13 hours of sleep a day. That's insanity, when it comes to my child anyways. I used to give her naps, and she would nap away for 2 hours, and only sleep 5 or 6 at night. Thats when I decided to kick naps, and she started waking up a bit less at night. My daughter is now sleeping 9-11 hours a night and only waking up once, or even at all.
 
 
They say that a child who doesn't sleep through the night is more than likely sleep deprived, rather than not tired. I beg to differ in my case, because now she is sleeping much better than she ever has before.
 
 
 
 
Does my child frequently fall asleep while riding in the car?
 
No, not usually. They are more than likely singing, dancing, or whining for drink.
 
 
Do I have to wake him almost every morning?
 
My children are my alarm, so that answers that.
 
 
Does he seem cranky, irritable, or overtired during the day?
 
She has her cranky moments, but what 2 year old doesn't?
 
 
So according to Babycenter, my children are not sleep deprived, just require less sleep than the average child. I plan on continuing to receive my beautiful full nights sleep. :)
 
 
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15 comments:

Shauna Quintero said...

Sleeping habits have changed drastically in my house! My daughter went from being up as easily as 4:59am to now sleeping in until 11 if I let her. This is lovely except for Mon - Thursday when we have to take big brother to school. She is a beast!

www.mommacandy.com

Jillian Carreira said...

My little girl still gets up at night and comes looking for us, but she has gotten so accustom to me putting her back in her bed now that she waits for me to do it and then stays there for the rest of the night. So consistency is very important. Good luck and I am following you now and would love for you to follow along.
Jillian
http://puzzlemecomplete.blogspot.com/2013/01/a-parents-concern.html

Karina said...

Hi Megan,
Experts words are usually guidelines. At the end of the day, we have to observe and do what's best for our individual children. Our daughter's ped told us to let her cry in the night and if she didn't stop, then we knew she was hungry. Both girls slept through the night at 6 & 8 weeks. That's why I say enjoy your full night of sleep!
Thank you for linking up to the Thumping Thursdays Blog Hop and for posting the badge on your blog.

Karina
http://momintheusa.blogspot.com

Rachel said...

Hi there - new follower from the linkup! Love your blog & can't wait to read more! Hope you have a great day :)
Rachel
http://sugar-stripes.blogspot.com/

Unknown said...

Karina, this is very true! I think I was so frustrated from the sleeplessness that I decided to blame the experts :) Happy to have found your blog hop, and plan on showin' up every Thursday. Happy bloggin'!

Unknown said...

Jillian, I have visited your blog and followed you via GFC. I am having trouble commenting on your posts. My text doesn't show up, will try again tomorrow.

Unknown said...

Shauna, I would give anything to sleep in til 11! Sounds amazing:)

Lisa Cash Hanson said...

My baby had colic and reflux I can totally sympathize with you. But I have to say I've been unusually blessed. She sleeps all night and has since she was 6 months old. She's now 20 months old.
But I did do sleep training when she was 6 months. I wouldn't have believed it if I didn't see it with my own eyes. First night she had a fit cried for an hr. I was right there and every 10 minutes said mommy's here night night I love you but never picked her up. ( she was dry and fed first) Next night she cried I expected the same battle - silence after only 5 minutes asleep in 10. Next night no crying and asleep. Every night since then bedtime is prompt at 8pm she goes right to her crib and right to sleep no issues. She only naps once a day for about 2 hrs. But other then that it's perfect :) Everyone's baby is different I suppose

mail4rosey said...

My youngest child's sleeping was SO erratic, but now that he's started school he goes to bed easily and gets the right amount of sleep (hurrah!).

happy weekend to you!

Heather Margaziotis said...

I agree that sleep is so important. My daughter slept in hot and half increments for the first 5 months. I became a crazy person on that schedule so once I got her on a schedule I rarely break it. My friends call me the schedule nazi but they would like me a lot less if I didn't. So you gotta do what works for you! Sleep makes everyone happier :)

Thanks for stopping by my blog, I will be back to read more as I am your newest follower.

Heather

Unknown said...

My 3 yr old has slept through the night since he was about 4 mos old. I'm blessed, I know. However, he still sleeps with me and wants to stay up until 10p. I struggle with getting "me" time. I did decide recently that he's getting his own bed VERY soon.

Hope you have a great weekend!

momto8blog said...

I have 8 kids all with very different sleeping habits...some of my kids need so little sleep (like my husband) I worry they are iot getting enough sleep...then others need 10 a night (me) or they are mad at the whole world...
I am your newest follower..pls follow back if you can.
good luck...and good night!!

Shauna Quintero said...

Hey! You're one of my favorites so I nominated you for a Leibster Award!

Come check it out!

www.mommacandy.com

Ashley @Pretty Posy said...

My almost three year has not napped since she was 18 months and has never slept well. Every kid's different!

pretty-posy.blogspot.com

Anonymous said...

My son needs no rest it seems
Samelia

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