The 9 Month Sleep Regression

So much is happening in those first months of your baby’s life. Sometimes it just feels like they are going from one development in the next. The last development or sleep regression was finally over, you got back into a good rhythm and „Hello“ there is the next one again. Your baby starts to sleep worse again and doesn’t seem to be in a good mood during the day. These could be the first signs of the 9 month sleep regression. Some babies can cope very well with sleep regressions and developments and other don’t.

How do you recognize the 9 month sleep regression?

– Increase in fussiness– Frequent night waking and hard to settle again– Shorter day naps or nap refusal– Change in appetite

Between 7-9 months your baby will begin to develop his gross motor skills and may begin to crawl or maybe even pull himself up on the furniture. You may have already noticed that your baby also wants to practice this all the time, especially when it’s time to sleep.  It often happen that your baby starts to cry at night as he stood up and doesn’t know yet how to get down again. Practice this a lot during the day and show your baby gently how this works in bed as well. Like this they will sooner learn to go down by themselves.

The brain of your 9 month old baby is then also in a great development. At this age, babies begin to categorize objects and people and understand that not everything is created equal. They also learn that there is a certain order in how things are done, and this fascinates them a lot.

What can you do to make this sleep regression easier for your child

It’s important to support and help your little one during this sleep regression & strong development. Here are some tips that you can use:

– Take some extra time for cuddles and some quality one on one play time.– Let your child know when you are leaving the room and coming back– Help your child to go from the standing position into the sitting/lying position. Practice this a lot during the day.– Keep a predictable nap and bedtime routine.

How to get through this phase

Don’t forget, and I can’t say it enough, it‘s just a phase! Your baby will go back to its old sleep rhythm. What can you do to ensure that your baby sleeps better and that you get through this sleep regression as gently as possible?:

• Listen to your baby. Especially now it’s very important to cuddle a lot. Take enough (or even some extra time) for bedtime and a bedtime ritual.

• Be patient and support your baby when he is frustrated or uncomfortable. Don’t forget that your baby is extremely busy processing everything he is learning.

• Be flexible. Maybe it happens that you cannot catch up on sleep while your baby is taking his midday nap because the naps are suddenly shorter. Don’t be afraid to ask for help from your partner, family or friends. This gives you a short break to catch up on some sleep or just relax.

• Stick to good sleeping habits. Even though it is important to support and respond to your baby’s needs, but try not to fall back into old sleep habits or create new ones out of desperation. If you did not breasted your child to sleep or rocked/stroked your baby to sleep, try not to re-introduce this sleep crutch.

It might feel like your baby will never sleep well again. Remember, like any sleep regression and development, it is only temporary. This phase will also pass.

If you’ve noticed that your baby is still having sleep problems after the regression. Or instead of decreasing, you’ve increase the sleep crutches of your child, and you don’t know how to get rid of them, feel free to contact me.  I would be happy to offer you a free Info call so I can tell you a bit more about sleep coaching and we can see if coaching or a general consult can help you all get your sleep back.

Do you want to learn more about sleep regression? How many are there and when will the last one be over? Have a look at my blog article “What’s a sleep regression”