Sleep regressions are no fun for anyone involved. A 12 month old sleep regression can feel like torment after working so hard on sleep training methods and getting your little one to fall asleep independently.
Building healthy sleep habits is vital to your baby’s sleep needs and developmental milestones, but that 12 month sleep regression can feel like you’re starting all over.
In this article, we’ll discuss your toddler’s sleep regression, what to do about the disturbed sleep routine, and how to get better nighttime sleep soon.
In a nutshell, this is all about why 12-month sleep regression occurs around the first birthday and what to do about it so that everyone can get some night’s sleep and maybe even a nap.
Sleep regressions
Sleep training can help you deal with the eventual hit of a sleep regression, but it doesn’t mean it won’t still disrupt sleep.
Sleep regressions are periods when your child hits critical developmental milestones, and your baby’s sleep suffers. The bedtime routine may seem pointless suddenly.
Your little one may suddenly wake up in the middle of the night and stay awake for hours. No amount of lullabies sung, stories read, begging your child to sleep, or bribing your child with things if they stop yelling will solve the problem.
Parents have been trying those tactics forever with no real results.
Not all babies experience the same common sleep regressions, but most of them hit a period of sleep regression a month before or after their first birthday.
It can make for long nights, even longer days, and parents begging for a morning nap that their baby is simply unwilling to comply with.
12 Month old sleep regression
In the period surrounding the first birthday, your child, who may have been previously sleeping like a little angel most nights, is growing and learning things at lightning speed.
They are most likely walking, have a few words in their vocabulary, and are interested in just about every single thing they can see or get their hands on.
Even a good sleeper is bound to have difficulty settling down for sleep when life is so interesting and exciting.
Sleep issues can occur naturally, and your baby’s sleep problems are probably less likely due to your parenting or your child’s strong will. It’s simply the fault of the natural process of going from infant to toddler.
Your child has entered the stage when they are starting to want more independence, but can also get clingy and want to be little babies when they are deprived of sleep or feel emotions that they don’t know how to deal with on their own.
13-Month-old sleep regression
Sleep regression may wait a month later or so after that first birthday.
This makes some parents believe they have successfully dodged the 12-month sleep regression and count themselves lucky.
Then, suddenly, they notice that out of nowhere, their little one may refuse to fall asleep alone, or they fight sleep, or they refuse naps.
It’s the case for many babies that sleep regression doesn’t precisely follow an ironclad schedule.
So if you have a baby who is a little over a year old, and they didn’t have a sleep regression but are suddenly having sleep problems, don’t worry.
These sleep issues are probably not the product of illness or injury. It’s just sleep regression, showing up a little bit late.
11-Month-old sleep regression
This 12 month sleep regression can go the other direction, as well. Your not-quite-one-year-old can go from two naps without a fuss every day to the full-on refusal to fall asleep, regardless of how tired they are.
Sleep periods can be thrown way off, bedtime routines suddenly seem pointless, and your baby’s sleep times don’t make sense.
If you are concerned, just keep in mind that even a sleep-trained little one can go through a sleep regression, and if your child is close to 12 months old, it’s probably just the 12-month sleep regression showing up a bit early.
Signs of sleep regression
Not sure if it’s sleep regression or just a hiccup in what is usually a smooth bedtime routine? Knowing when it’s a sleep regression versus teething versus possible illness can be tricky.
The following are some signs that your little one’s sleep loss is due to regression.
1. Fighting naps
Baby sleep is very important, so if you can tell that your little one is tired during what should be your regular daytime sleep routine, but they’re suddenly fighting you and refusing to nap, it could be a regression.
Afternoon naptime routines are often the most disturbed in daytime child sleep.
Sleep patterns may make no sense, and sleep deprivation may be evident in how your child acts and even appears. You may notice dark circles under the eyes and chronic fussiness.
2. Fighting bedtime
Good sleep habits are something that many parents work hard to establish. Better sleep for your baby means better sleep for everyone.
Most babies who are good sleepers and then hit a regression end up feeling the effects of lost sleep.
The only real relief is that this will only last a few weeks.
3. Frequent night wakings
Sleep patterns are disturbed, and what you thought were hard-set sleep habits have become sleep challenges.
During a sleep regression, your child’s sleep may also suffer at night. Waking frequently at all hours is not at all fun for anyone involved.
The natural sleep cycle your little one is used to has now turned to disrupted sleep, and you may find yourself getting out of bed several times a night to deal with awake times in the middle of the night and the wee hours of the morning.
4. Waking early
It seems like it doesn’t make much difference during 12 month sleep regression whether your child got a full night or half an hour of uninterrupted baby sleep. They still seem to wake up early in the morning.
The one-year sleep regression is hard on your sleep cycle and your child’s. It’s made even worse when your baby also refuses that day’s afternoon nap.
What makes the 12 month sleep regression so bad?
Many parents attest that the 12-month sleep regression is far worse than anything they have experienced in regressions and sleep issues.
This is because your child is older, and several factors can play into your child’s sleep being less than great.
The following are issues that can make the 12 month sleep regression period seem endless and almost unbearable.
1. Separation anxiety
Separation anxiety typically operates at full force by this point in a child’s life. Independent sleep habits often take a hit when separation anxiety enters the picture.
Your kiddo knows that you are no longer in the room, and they dislike it and want you to know about it. They can refuse sleep, cry loudly, scream, and throw tantrums.
The Sleep Foundation suggests that when dealing with separation anxiety, don’t turn on the light when you check on your little one. Don’t take them out of their bed. Simply reassure them, tell them it’s time for sleep, and then leave the room again.
Keeping the sleep environment dark and calm will help you get through most sleep regressions, and the anxiety that comes with leaving the room is a temporary phase.
Allowing your child to learn to self-soothe through the process and striving to remain consistent will benefit you and your child.
Children thrive with a routine, and when your baby learns new skills to help them cope with going to sleep alone in their bed, your baby’s brain will remember it, and they’ll soon start getting enough sleep.
2. Teething
When your child cuts teeth alongside regression to their sleep, it can be a very chaotic experience.
There’s slobber everywhere, chewing on everything, ear tugging, hair pulling, screaming, crying, and sometimes even a fever has been thrown into the already stressful mix.
When you add teething to regression, sleep outcomes are unfavorable for anyone in a household.
Trying a very calm and relaxing routine before bed can help settle your teething child down so they can stay asleep and have fewer sleeping problems throughout the night.
Keeping to a consistent routine, with the possible exception of an earlier bedtime, can also help.
Tips to help you get through a regression
Regressions of sleep can be stressful for your baby, but also for you as the parent. It can quickly dissolve into a vicious cycle of feeding off each other’s stress as your toddler starts to notice and react to your stress level.
In turn, your child’s stress is triggering you.
If regression lasts longer than a few weeks, contacting an expert to evaluate your child may be best. Insomnia and other sleep disorders can occur in small children and even infants, and getting a diagnosis for such an issue and the help you need can be very helpful.
You can contact your family physician, who can refer you to a certified pediatric sleep consultant who can help you from there.
You may also benefit from adjusting daytime sleeping to manage sleep at night better. Short naps are better than no nap at all, and if your child only takes one nap during the day, try to keep your home quiet and calm so they can get the most restful sleep possible.
Take advantage of any napping your child does by getting some much-needed rest. The dishes and the laundry can wait. You need sleep, just like your child.
You’re no good to anyone running on an empty tank. Remember to take care of yourself.
Keeping the daytime active is another great way to help wear your child out before bed.
Going outside and getting fresh air, doing lots of activities that challenge your child, crafts that work on fine motor skills, games that challenge mobility, and other things that keep things physical and moving are great ways to burn up that energy so that your little one is more likely to sleep well.
Maintaining healthy sleep habits
Regression is a normal part of child development. The older they get, the less fun it is to deal with.
Anxiety over being alone, having a more extensive vocabulary, and having more willpower to refuse sleep consciously are all added challenges when your child grows from a small baby to a toddler. Teething and sleep disorders can also be factors.
Sticking with your routine, getting rest when your child rests, and being patient is the best action. Getting help from family and friends can also be a great idea.
Remember that you need your rest and that this will only last a few weeks.