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Newborn bedtime

8 replies

BrickPeer · 05/12/2025 22:38

My girl is 8 weeks and a pretty good sleeper(touch wood). We've gotten into a routine where we give her a bottle about 10.30 and she's asleep around an hour later, through to 6/7am. That has involved keeping day and night seperate for her, bright room, TV on, talking etc up until that last feed(mainly contact napping) then a dark room, crib, quiet except white noise for bedtime. We also find she sleeps much better if we put her down drowsy but awake.

The late bedtime worked for a while but for various reasons we'd like to bring it forward. We still plan to feed her about 10.30 but would like to put her in her next to me crib after the feed before.

My question for those already doing this is, do you just go to sleep early with your baby? Or do you use a monitor and stay downstairs until your bed time? Ideally we'd like to just watch TV in the room but concerned it would be too much of a distraction. She sleeps through it in the day but that's typically with us rocking her to sleep and we find when we've tried that at night she doesn't sleep for long once transferred to the crib.

Any tips or tricks would be very welcome! Thanks!

OP posts:
Are your children’s vaccines up to date?
Springbaby2023 · 06/12/2025 02:50

Go to bed when she does, but to be honest if she is eight weeks old and sleeping through from 10.30 until 6.30 I wouldn’t change a thing as that’s incredibly good going.

Beekman · 06/12/2025 03:03

Springbaby2023 · 06/12/2025 02:50

Go to bed when she does, but to be honest if she is eight weeks old and sleeping through from 10.30 until 6.30 I wouldn’t change a thing as that’s incredibly good going.

This.

Also, in your situation, I would be ready for bed by 10:30 anyway.

BrickPeer · 06/12/2025 13:47

Beekman · 06/12/2025 03:03

This.

Also, in your situation, I would be ready for bed by 10:30 anyway.

We do go to bed with her after her 10.30 feed, but was considering putting her down after the feed before that (7.30 usually) which is a bit early for us. Mainly because she's very overtired during that period and struggles to sleep even in our arms whereas once we do the whole bedtime routine and put her in the crib she's totally chilled! Most advice I've seen online seems to suggest an earlier bedtime too.

Maybe you're right though, we're very lucky she sleeps through so might be tempting fate to mess with the routine!

OP posts:
Seeline · 06/12/2025 14:07

We did what you're doing now until 6 months due to the SIDS advice.
Babies need to hear others breathing whilst asleep. Watching them on a monitor is not the same.

ThatGreenFawn · 06/12/2025 15:08

Ours slept in a Moses basket downstairs until we were ready for bed. The tv didn't disturb them. They would have a bottle, sleep in Moses basket until we were ready for bed then the Moses basket was carried upstairs when we went to bed.

Redcst · 08/12/2025 10:02

Seeline · 06/12/2025 14:07

We did what you're doing now until 6 months due to the SIDS advice.
Babies need to hear others breathing whilst asleep. Watching them on a monitor is not the same.

This is not necessarily true. There is no evidence to back this theory. It is a theory That’s it.

our little girl is 4 months old between 9pm-10pm she is in her Moses basket in her nursery with a monitor on her. I can literally see her breathing.
we then have an hour downstairs to watch a bit of tv and tome
to ourselves.

For my mental wellbeing I need that hour. I also think you need to be responsible regarding SIDS but also realistic because there is a lot of unnecessary anxiety

Peonies12 · 08/12/2025 15:15

Springbaby2023 · 06/12/2025 02:50

Go to bed when she does, but to be honest if she is eight weeks old and sleeping through from 10.30 until 6.30 I wouldn’t change a thing as that’s incredibly good going.

This is what I was going to say. We started doing an earlier bedtime from around 4 months, but we would join her about an hour later anyway. And enjoy that amazing sleep.

Tippexy · 09/12/2025 20:52

Babies do need to sleep in the same room as you for all sleep until at least six months (most countries say one year). Please do not use monitors with eight week olds.

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