What does a 10 – 12-month-old sleep schedule look like? These three months are similar and do not differ too much from your 9-month-old’s schedule.
It can be hard to believe that your little one is almost one year old. As your baby approached the 12 months mark, you may find them resisting naps and bedtime. They are even more aware of their surroundings and spending time exploring and playing with you seems infinitely more appealing to them than sleep.
How Much Sleep Does a 10 – 12-Month-Old Need?
At this age, your baby still needs between 12 – 16 hours sleep in total, with two naps totalling 3-4 hours. Some babies may take one long daytime nap of about 3 hours. If your baby is sleeping less than 3 hours, they will likely require a second nap. Although your little one may resist naps, do not be tempted to reduce down to one nap too quickly. This could result in an overtired baby. Awake windows start to increase to between 3 – 4 hours as they get closer to their 1st birthday.
10 – 12-Month-Old Sleep Tips
If you have followed our sleep schedule recommendations for other months, then the tips for a 10-month-old will not be too different from those.
However, if your baby has not already developed separation anxiety, you may find this may rear its head around the 10-month mark and cause some sleep disruption.
Below are some tips for keeping sleep on track
- Keep up your bedtime routine – By now, you have probably heard this so many times, but a bedtime routine that is calming and predictable helps your little one prepare for sleep.
- Introduce a lovey – If you are concerned that separation anxiety may be impacting your baby's sleep, introducing a lovey can be a great transitional object. There are plenty to choose from but avoid large items such as blankets until your baby has had their 1st birthday.
- Ensure enough overall sleep – Your baby will be so busy practising their new skills like pulling themselves up, and possibly walking that sleep is the last thing on their mind. However, there are few things more challenging than trying to get an overtired baby to settle, so ensure that your little one is getting enough overall sleep. They should be getting between 3 – 4 hours of daytime sleep and a solid 10 – 12 hours at night.
- Try not to intervene too quickly – As your baby is more and more aware of their surroundings, you may find they take a little bit longer to settle and fall asleep, so resist the urge to go in to intervene or offer comfort too soon.
Sleep Schedule for 10 – 12-Month-Old
Bedtimes and nap times do vary by baby, however most 10-month-olds have established a reasonably predictable sleep pattern. Your 10-month-old is likely still taking two naps one in the morning and one in the afternoon.
The schedule below assumes three solid meals a day, four bottles or breastfeeds, a couple of snacks and two naps.
Can You Sleep Train a 10 – 12-Month-Old?
If you have resisted sleep training your baby (I know it can be a tough decision to make) but your baby is still waking up multiple times in the night, it might be time to consider sleep training.
Most paediatricians will give the go-ahead to sleep train between 4 – 6 months. You can sleep train after this, but you can expect a bit more resistance from your little one. This does not mean that sleep training will not work, it just means that you need to be more committed to staying consistent. Understand that as hard as it can be to hear your baby's cries of protest are precisely that, they are protesting the changes. If you stay consistent, your little one will soon settle into the new way of doing things.
There are five different sleep training methods from which you could choose. However, at 10 months old, some of these methods will take longer to see results and may be met with more protesting for longer than others. You can read about the different sleep training methods and select the right approach for you and your baby.
10 – 12-Month-Old Sleep Problems
Here are some of the common sleep problems you may experience at this age.
- Separation anxiety – As we discussed earlier, separation anxiety can cause sleep issues, especially when you try to put your little one down for a nap or bedtime. Try introducing a lovey or other item of comfort and be mindful of creating bad habits during this time.
- Developmental milestones – It seems like every month; there is a major developmental milestone. Your little one is going through constant change. At this age, pulling themselves up and perhaps even taking their first steps can cause disruptions to sleep.
- Teething – Teething can still cause your little one some discomfort. Try a teething ring, the ones you place in the fridge are great as they can help soothe their sore gums.
- Early rising – Early waking is common in babies; however, 5 or 6 a.m. wake-ups are no fun. If your little one wakes before 6 a.m. regularly, you can try shifting their routine slightly; however, do not be tempted to keep your baby up late in the hopes they will sleep later. This rarely works and results in a tired baby. If you have tweaked the schedule and your baby is still waking early, you may have to accept that you have an early riser (sorry!)
Is there a 10 – 12-Month Sleep Regression?
The short answer is No.
This does not mean that your baby will not experience some disturbance in their sleep. As discussed above, developmental milestones, separation anxiety etc. can all cause sleep problems; however, these are not true sleep-regressions (this is a term used all too often).
When significant changes are going on in our lives, even as adults, we can experience sleeping problems – trouble falling asleep, restless nights, etc.
So, whilst you cannot magically make your baby’s sleep disruptions vanish into thin air (as great as that thought is). By continuing to encourage good sleep habits this too will pass for your little one and they will soon be back to their typical sleeping pattern.
Little boys should never be put to sleep. They always wake up a day older.
-Peter Pan
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