The four month sleep regression can feel very challeneging to get through due to this being the first major sleep regression your baby experiences and because it tends to come out of nowhere! This is the regression where I often hear parents tell me, "My baby was sleeping so well through the night with only 1-2 night wakings and now they are up 4-6 times a night again!". In this post I will discuss the causes of this regression and my tips forgetting through it and getting you and your little one sleeping soundly again!
What Causes The Four Month Regression?
Around 3-5 months of age, your baby will be going through developmental changes! They include:
Biological change in sleep patterns
Sleep needs are changing - wake windows are lenghtening and 4-3 nap transition
Learning to roll
Any of these causes can happen between 3-5 months but it is still the four month regression. This regression is the only one that has a biological change in your baby's sleep cycles! Let's look at each of these causes.
Sleep Cycles Mature
After this maturation, your baby will now be experiencing a full sleep cycle that lasts anywhere between 60-120 minutes. Towards the end of the cycle, they will go into a very light stage of sleep. If you are supporting your baby to sleep by rocking, feeding, holding, etc., then they might struggle getting through this light stage of sleep and into the next cycle without your support.
Let's look at an example to see how this looks in real life!
You rock your baby to sleep at bedtime and transfer them. After 1-2 hours, they slightly awaken and check in with their surroundings. "Wait, why am I not being rocked?" is what they are probably thinking causing them to cry for you! In the beginning of the night when sleep pressure is higher, they might be able to transition into another cycle of sleep without your help. But later in the night, usuall after 1-2am, when sleep pressure is lighter, they might be calling for you at the end of every cycle.
Some babies may be able to be assisted to sleep at bedtime and still sleep fairly well through the night (meaning they have few wakings in the night). The majority of babies, however, will need to learn to fall asleep independently at bedtime so that they are able to connect sleep cycles on their own in the night.
Sleep Needs Change
Around four months of age, wake windows are increasing to 90-120 minutes and nearing the 4 to 3 nap transition. Signs that your baby is needing an increase in their wake windows are naps shortening,more night wakings happening, early morning wakings happening, and/or your baby taking longer than 20 minutes to fall asleep for a nap or bedtime.
Physical Developments
Babies are learning to roll, their hand/eye coordination is developing, they are bringing objects to their mouths, and they are starting to babble. All of these new skills take lots of brain power! This can temporarily disrupt sleep in the night.
How To Navigate The Regression
Some families might opt to work on optimizing their baby's schedule and wait to see if their naps and nights get better.
Some might choose to start sleep training their baby at this point. This can help ensure that they are able to connect sleep cycles in the night and to rule out that contributing to the wakings.
Last Thoughts
With several causes for this regression, some families will experience the regression for a week, several weeks, or indefinitely until they work on independent sleep.
When more night wakings start to happen, more feedings might start happening in the night which can disrupt day time feedings. This can end in a reverse cycling situation - your baby is taking in a majority of their calories during the night and they aren't motivated to eat during the day! So now their wakings in the night are legitimately for hunger!
If your baby was previously only taking 1-2 feedings in the night, it is safe to assume that they don't suddenly need more and I would encourage you to try to soothe them back to sleep by rocking, holding, etc. for any wakings they weren't previously having.
Growth spurts can cause an increase in feedings but you will also see this increase during the day and not just at night.
Need help getting your little one sleeping better? Check out my support packages!
Questions on the four month regression? Shoot me an email! fullbloomsleep@gmail.com
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