Typical sleep behaviour (2) – babies 3 to 6 months
Typical sleep behaviour (2) – babies 3 to 6 months
In your language:
For translated fact sheets go to
Information in community languages
.
Baby sleep patterns and behaviours at 3 to 6 months
By around 3 months of age, babies usually begin smiling and interacting with you.
Some babies start to have longer periods of sleep, and their sleep cycles develop more of a rhythm.
At this age, most babies sleep 10 to 18 hours in a 24-hour period.
They often sleep in periods that last 2 to 3 hours.
Every child is different, so don’t worry too much if your child has different sleep patterns to those described here. If you are concerned about your child, contact
your local maternal and child nurse
, your doctor or the
Maternal and Child Health Line
on Tel.
13 22 29
.
Baby sleep rhythms at 3 to 6 months
We all have
sleep cycles
. These change as we develop and grow.
Babies generally nap three times during the day – but every baby is different and sleeping patterns can vary a lot.
Your baby is growing quickly, and they still need to wake for feeding.
Most babies also need help to settle and go to sleep at this age.
Settling your baby at 3 to 6 months
You can help your baby learn to
self-settle
and sleep more at night by:
Putting them in their cot when they are tired, but still awake
recognising and responding to
tired signs
using a positive and consistent routine, such as
feed, play, sleep
using positive and consistent
bedtime routines
.
It is important to create positive sleep associations, for your baby. Some settling approaches may be hard to keep doing for the long term, such as holding your baby until they fall asleep. These can create negative sleep associations for your baby resulting in them needing to be held to fall asleep. You need to decide what is right for you and your family.
Feeding your baby at 3 to 6 months
Babies aged 3 to 6 months still need regular feeding.
Being breastfed or formula fed does not impact on the age at which your baby will sleep through the night.
If your baby is breastfed, giving them baby formula or starting solid food early (breastfed or formula fed) will not help them sleep better.
Whether they are breastfed or bottle-fed, babies can learn to relate sleep with feeding. Over time, they may become dependent on feeding to fall asleep easily.
To stop your baby from associating feeding with sleeping, when you have finished feeding and playing with them, put them in their cot to fall asleep by themselves when they show signs of
tiredness
.
If you are worried about your baby’s crying or if they are not sleeping or settling you can talk to your maternal and child health nurse, doctor or phone the Maternal and Child Health Line on Tel.
13 22 29
.
Information in community languages
This fact sheet is available for download in the following community languages:
Easy English - Typical sleep behaviour (2) babies 3 to 6 months
505.29 KB
Arabic - ورقۀ معلوماتی 2: رفتار خاص خواب: نوزادان 3 تا 6 ماه (Typical sleep behaviour (2) babies 3 to 6 months)
docx
241.93 KB
Burmese - အချက်အလက်မှတ်တမ်း 2 - ပုံမှန်အိပ်စက်ခြင်း အပြုအမူ - နို့စို့ကလေးငယ်များ 3-6 လ (Typical sleep behaviour (2) babies 3 to 6 months)
doc
271.5 KB
Dari - صحيفة المعلومات 2، سلوك النوم المعتاد: الأطفال 3-6 أشهر (Typical sleep behaviour (2) – babies 3 to 6 months)
docx
241.33 KB
Khmer - សន្លឹកព័ត៌មានទី២៖ ឥរិយាបទគេងជាធម្មតា៖ ទារកអាយុ៣-៦ខែ (Typical sleep behaviour (2) babies 3 to 6 months)
docx
250.78 KB
Persian - برگه اطلاع رسانی 2: رفتار معمول خواب: نوزادان 3 تا 6 ماهه (Typical sleep behaviour (2) babies 3 to 6 months)
docx
240.48 KB
Punjabi - ਤੱਥ ਸ਼ੀਟ 2: ਨੀਂਦ ਦੇ ਖਾਸ ਵਿਵਹਾਰ: ਬੱਚੇ 3-6 ਮਹੀਨੇ (Typical sleep behaviour (2) babies 3 to 6 months)
docx
243.59 KB
Simplified Chinese - 信息说明书2：典型睡眠行为：3–6个月婴儿 (Typical sleep behaviour (2) babies 3 to 6 months)
docx
238.61 KB
Spanish - Hoja informativa 2: Conducta habitual del sueño en bebés de 3 a 6 meses (Typical sleep behaviour (2) babies 3 to 6 months)
docx
238.92 KB
Vietnamese - Tờ thông tin 2: Hành vi ngủ đặc trưng - trẻ nhỏ từ 3 đến 6 tháng tuổi (Typical sleep behaviour (2) babies 3 to 6 months)
docx
240.27 KB
Maternal and child health nurse visits are important
Victorian parents have free access to the
Maternal and Child Health Service
, which is a great support after your baby is born.
Specially trained maternal and child health will work with your family to help you care for your child until they are ready to start school.
As part of this service, you will visit a maternal and child health nurse in your local area at 10 key ages and stages in your child’s development. These visits are important because they give you an opportunity to identify and address any issues and concerns early in your child’s development.
Visits take place:
following discharge from hospital (
home visit
)
2 weeks
4 weeks
8 weeks
4 months
8 months
1 year
18 months
2 years
3 and a half years
.
Families can access the service at other times by telephone or through a centre visit.
Where to get help
Your local maternal and child health
service
External Link
Your GP (doctor)
Maternal and Child Health Line
Tel.
13 22 29
– available 24 hours a day for the cost of a local call throughout Victoria
Mercy Health O’Connell Family
Centre
External Link
, Canterbury Tel.
(03) 8416 7600
Mercy Health Woi-wurrung-yagila-wulumperi Whittlesea Early Parenting
Centre
External Link
, South Morang Tel.
(03) 9407 6820
Queen Elizabeth Centre
(QEC)
External Link
Tel.
(03) 9549 2777
Tweddle Child and Family Health
Service
External Link
, Footscray and Werribee Tel.
(03) 9689 1577
Aboriginal Health Service
(VAHS)
External Link
Tel.
03 9419 3000
Parentline
Tel.
13 22 89
Translating and Interpreting Service (TIS
National)
External Link
Tel.
131 450
– available (24 hours, 7 days a week) for callers who speak other languages
National Relay
Service
External Link
(24 hours a day, every day) – Speak and listen Tel.
1300 555 727
, TTY Tel.
133 677
, SMS relay Tel.
0423 677 767
.
Captioned, internet and video relay calls are also available through this
service
External Link
.
NURSE-ON-CALL
Tel.
1300 60 60 24
– for expert health advice 24 hours a day, 7 days a week