When your baby or toddler is waking frequently at night, the first question you probably ask yourself is, “Why?!?” Countless parents contact the Baby Sleep Site and ask that very question: “Why is my baby (or toddler) waking up all the time?!” Dear readers, we wish SO MUCH that we had an easy answer to that one. Unfortunately, as with so many things related to your baby or toddler, nighttime waking isn’t exactly straightforward.
Sleep Associations and Hunger: Two Common Causes of Nighttime Waking
Lots of babies and toddlers wake at night due to sleep associations; for those children, the solution is usually to sleep train. Newborns and young infants can often wake at night from hunger; in that case, the solution is to offer a feeding.
But what about nighttime waking that isn’t so straightforward? This article will highlight 6 possible reasons (aside from sleep associations and hunger) your baby or toddler is waking at night.
Other Causes of Nighttime Waking
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A Scheduling Problem
If nighttime sleep is becoming an issue, take a good, hard look at your baby or toddler’s daytime schedule. Is your baby getting enough sleep during the day? If not, she may be overtired; that can lead to lots of nighttime waking. Naps aren’t optional, remember; babies need naps!
On the other hand, your toddler may be getting too much sleep during the day, or he might be going to bed too early; if that’s the case, it can cause him to wake frequently at night. For help in determining if your baby or toddler is getting the right amount of sleep, check out our “How Many Naps” post. If you’re hoping to improve your baby or toddler’s current schedule, take a look at our “Recommended Schedules” page for help.
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A Developmental Leap
Your baby or toddler is growing and learning at a phenomenal rate. And guess what? Each one of those developmental milestones (learning to crawl, learning to walk, learning to talk, etc.) affects your baby’s sleep. Most parents find that right around the time their baby or toddler is learning a major skill, a sleep regression happens. During those sleep regressions, your baby or toddler suddenly begins waking at night out of the blue, for no apparent reason. We generally recommend that parents wait out these regressions, since they normally pass in a few weeks, and avoid developing new habits that can become long-term. Once they’re over, your baby or toddler’s sleep should return to normal.
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A Sleep Disorder or Medical Issue
Sometimes, your baby or toddler’s nighttime waking is a sign of something more serious. Nighttime waking can be a sign of illness or ear infections. Check your baby or toddler for symptoms (fever, runny nose, coughing, ear-pulling); if you suspect that she might be waking due to illness, consult your healthcare provider.
Nighttime waking can also point to a sleep disorder (although these are less common than other causes listed in this article). Sleep disorders include issues like sleep apnea, RLS (Restless Leg Syndrome), and SPD (Sensory Processing Disorder). Again, if you suspect that your baby or toddler might have a sleep disorder, contact your healthcare provider for further testing.
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A Bout of Teething
It can seem like your baby or toddler is teething constantly. And that’s not far from the truth, actually — babies and toddlers start cutting teeth around 6 months of age, and it doesn’t stop until age 2. 18 months worth of teething can definitely feel like an eternity!
When your baby or toddler is teething, the pressure and swelling on her gums can make her uncomfortable, causing her to wake more often at night. Review how to handle teething and sleep, here, for tips on what to do about your baby or toddler’s teething.
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A Food Allergy or Intolerance
Food allergies and intolerances can cause a host of physical problems, and disrupted sleep is one of them. Food allergies and intolerances often trigger digestive issues (like gas and bloating) as well as rashes and swelling; all those symptoms make for a bad night of sleep!
Food allergies and intolerances can develop at any age, but this may be an especially big problem as you start to introduce your baby to solid foods. For more information on how food allergies and intolerances affect your baby, and how to be mindful of allergy-causing foods as you start your baby on solids, review How to Introduce Solid Foods to Your Baby.
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A Late-Night Snack
This one doesn’t apply to babies so much; if your baby is hungry, you should feed her. With toddlers, however, it’s a different story. Keep in mind that food provides calories and that calories = energy. So what’s going to happen when you give your two-year-old a bedtime snack or middle-of-the-night feeding? He’s going to get a nice, big boost of energy, right at the moment when you want him to start winding down or in the middle of the night. Not good. Instead, make an effort to give your toddler plenty of (healthy!) food during daylight hours, and make sure that he eats an adequate dinner and a snack at least 30 minutes prior to bedtime. That should ward off any late-night hunger.
Nicole’s Note:
“We have a lot of clients ask us why their baby or toddler is waking and while, most of the time, it seems obvious (to us anyway), it isn’t always so obvious. I had one co-sleeping mama (with no interest in changing that) whose toddler was staying awake for 1-2 hours at night, even in bed with her. It turned out to be dairy intolerance. She was ever so grateful that we figured it out, because no one, not even her daughter’s doctor, put it together. We can’t typically stop ALL night-waking, since it is somewhat normal, but chronic waking or waking for long periods isn’t good for anyone.”
Christine Szczesniak says
My son, now 19 months, has been waking up in the middle of the night wide awake, and staying awake for 2-3 hours. Talking and rolling around, and standing up every 15 minutes or so for me to go lay him back down. No sleep associations whatsoever. He’s been doing this since about 6 months old. He’s teething right now, but it’s not an in pain wakeup as he’s had his share of this as well. He goes to sleep at 7, wakes up around 530-6am, takes a nap around 11. It’s very frustrating, especially since we have a two bedroom house and two other boys, no one’s sleeping!
Janelle Reid says
@Christine Szczesniak, thank you for sharing your experience with us. I am so sorry your son has been waking during the night for so long. Have you spoken with his pediatrician about this or considered a sleep study? Our sleep consultants would love to work with you as well to see if they can help with this issue, but it may be good to make sure there’s nothing going on behind the scenes medically (and hopefully there is nothing and it’s just a weird/bad habit). If you want more information on what we do, please email us directly at [email protected] and we can help from there! I hope this helps.
Candace says
Hello –
My 20 month old wakes up every night for around 1.5-3 hours and plays in her crib. She doesn’t cry so we don’t go in there, and she eventually goes back to sleep. however, because of that, she then sleeps in late every morning (usually 9 or 10 AM) and then takes a late nap (usually 1-2 PM) and doesn’t wake up until 4 PM. Then she has so much energy she won’t fall asleep until 9 no matter when we put her to bed. And the whole cycle continues. This has been going on for at least 6 months with little to no change during leaps, teething, sickness, etc. Regardless of all of the above she always wakes up to play. I’ve tried waking her up from her nap early to get her to bed earlier, I’ve tried waking her up in the mornings to get her on a better nap schedule, different Pjs, different house temps, etc. Regardless of all of those changes, she still wakes up to play every night. The doctor told me there isn’t much I can do since she isn’t waking up in the middle of the night upset and all I can do is wake her up in the morning if I want to get her on a better sleep schedule. The problem with doing that is I would have to wake her up every morning and she is really cranky then since she was up for so long in the middle of the night. Please help! I’m out of ideas!
Janelle Reid says
Hi @Candace, thanks for writing. I’m sorry you are struggling with your daughter’s sleep! Here is a link that goes in hand with what it sounds like your doctor recommended: https://www.babysleepsite.com/baby-sleep-patterns/4-times-wake-your-baby-sleep/
While I know it will make a bit of a mess initially, you may consider making it a gradual shift to take the edge off but to get her on a schedule that is better for everyone. If you need more help with this our sleep consultants are total experts! They would be able to help you get through this. If you’re interested in working with them on this you can view the different options and purchase a package here: https://www.babysleepsite.com/baby-toddler-sleep-consulting-services/
I hope this helps!
Carla Martinez says
Hi my son is doing exact same thing what finally worked for you?
Kristina says
My daughter does this every night for 2 months now and she’s 19 months! She’s sooo happy and playing in the middle of the night! I don’t know what to do to break the habit! Her naps have been extra long during the day because she’s exhausted… even when shorter thought she’s still waking in the night! I don’t know how to fix it either! I’m so stressed!!
K says
Our 13month almost 14month old wakes up every night at the exactly 22:00 crying… usually a dummy or a bottle works but we can’t seem to stop it. We’ve tried the “no bottle” routine, “cry it out”, soothing, we’ve done and checked everything that could possibly be wrong like room temperature, wet nappy ect ect.
A-Z so my question is, if teething…. can teething make him wake up every night at the (exact same time)?
Or is this really just a habit thing that’s not falling back into a routine? We are trying here ….
Janelle Reid says
@K, I am so sorry you’re son is waking up every night at the same time! Here is a link to an article with a few reasons to why your baby could be waking up in the middle of the night – https://www.babysleepsite.com/how-we-sleep/baby-night-waking-wont-sleep/
If you decide it is a habit he can’t break, we have a free guide with some tips to help break those sleep associations and get your baby sleeping through the night. Here is a link to download the guide: https://www.babysleepsite.com/baby-sleep-through-night-free-ebook/
I hope this helps!
CHARNITA DOWTIN says
My granddaughter is 3 1/2 yrs old and every night for approx. 6months now she falls to sleep for about an 1 to 2 hrs with no interruption, then she awakes yelling or talking to someone. I console her and usually lay down with her, which she falls back to sleep for 10-15 mins more for this pattern to go on all night. She talks, fight, yells and is constantly rubbing her eyes and scratching her head as if she very irritated. I’m exhausted, I do not know what to do. This is every night!! I’m concerned she is not getting the proper amount of sleep needed, I’m definitely not. Help me please!
Janelle Reid says
Hi @Charnita Dowtin, thank you for you comment. I am so sorry your granddaughter has been struggling with restless sleep and that in turn you are experiencing it with her! I am not sure what the cause of it could be so I would suggest talking to her doctor about it to see what they suggest next steps. Initially my mind went to night terrors, but as I am not a medical professional and am not looking at her full history, it is possible I am incorrect. But if you want to more read on the topic, you can read this article here: https://www.babysleepsite.com/night-terrors-nightmares/baby-toddler-night-terrors-nightmares-series/
If it turns out this has just become a bad habit for her to wake like this and you need help breaking the cycle, let us know. I do think working with a sleep consultant that can walk through this with you would make the process easier to manage (but again I’d speak to a doctor first). If you decide to go that route, you can view our packages online here: https://www.babysleepsite.com/baby-toddler-sleep-consulting-services/
I hope you find some answers and that everyone starts sleeping soon!
Sarah says
I have a 2.5 year old who has never consistently slept through the night. As a baby he would wake almost every 45 minutes through the night. We have tried numerous ways to sleep train him but nothing ever seems to work. We spent weeks putting him back in his bed each time he got up at bedtime and it never was getting any better. It takes him an hour or more to fall asleep. We’ve tried 7:30 bedtime all the way to 10. It doesn’t matter the time. And he never sleeps past 7. He will take a 1-2 hour nap during the day. Not only is getting him to bed a nightmare but then he doesn’t sleep through the night. He will wake many times and come to our room. We then take him back to his bed. Sometimes he will wake and be awake for hours before settling. We have tried giving him small amounts of melatonin but it gave him nightmares. It appeArs he never gets into a deep sleep. We just had another baby and this momma is at her breaking point! Any help would be appreciated!
Janelle Reid says
@Sarah, thank you so much for stopping by the Baby Sleep Site. I am so sorry to hear you have been struggling with your toddler’s sleep and haven’t seemed to have any positive changes. We would love to help. It does sound like you would benefit from working one-on-one with a sleep consultant so they can look at your specific situation and give you advise based on your son so you are not trying to do more guesswork like you have been. If you are interested, please look at our various package options online here: https://www.babysleepsite.com/baby-toddler-sleep-consulting-services/
I know it can seem like a lot so if you need help selecting the best package for your situation, please contact us here: https://www.babysleepsite.com/contact
Hang in there!
Hilary says
My son is 17 months and for the past 6 weeks or so he has been having frequent night time wakings. He will wake screaming and be inconsolable where we cant even hold him.
I am looking for any suggestions on how to help him? I am trying not to get into any bad habits but he has come into our bed a few times and will sometimes settle and other times hes just awake and ready to play. We have tried to sleep train again using extinction but he will sometimes make himself sick after crying for 5 minutes. I understand they go through the 18 month sleep regression and there is separation anxiety and everything else but just trying to get through this hurdle as best as possible.
We have a bedtime routine, we do the same bedtime each night but not sure what else to change.
Wake-6:00-6:30
Nap-12:00-2:00/2:30
Bed 7:00/7:30
Before bed he has milk, and he sleeps with white noise and a soother/blanket for comfort.
TIA
Danielle says
Hi Hilary,
Thank you for visiting The Baby Sleep Site! I’m so sorry to hear you’re struggling with these intense night wakings with your son. The first thing we always recommend with a sudden change in sleep like this is to check in with his pediatrician. Ear infections and other medical issues may not be obvious during the day, but can drastically affect sleep. If he’s cleared medically, then you may be dealing with the 18 month sleep regression, which can cause nap trouble, and night wakings like you’re describing. We have an article to help you here: https://www.babysleepsite.com/baby-sleep-patterns/why-18-month-sleep-regression-can-be-hardest/
Best of luck!
helpless momma says
My daughter is almost 16 months. For the past 2 or 3 months now, she “wakes” up anywhere between the 4th and 5th hour and she will stand up in her crib and yell. When I go to her, her eyes are open and she follows my movement as I walk over to her, but her eyes appear glazed and like she knows I’m there but is in a kind of trance where she can’t focus. When I try picking her up to console her and get her back to sleep, she fights me (I’m currently 8 months pregnant so sometimes this hurts) and I have to firmly say her name then she looks at me…really looks at me and sees me, then she settles down and cuddles into me. Sometimes she’ll wrap her arms around my neck and squeeze then give me kisses but usually within 3-5 minutes she’s passed back out and I can lay her down again. What is this??? and what can I do for her? It’s driving us all nuts because she goes to bed earlier than her father and I and then she keeps us awake for a bit because until she calms down and goes to sleep, we get back to bed and get to sleep we are still exhausted come morning. Thankfully her 9 year old sister can sleep through everything and she’s not disturbed, but I’m worried about when the baby gets here and her yelling possibly waking him and messing up his sleep schedule. I’d love any advice from people with a similar problem. I’ve read about night terrors/night confusion and I’m truly believing night confusion is what she has, but I don’t know how to deal with it. Thank you in advance!
Janelle Reid says
@Helpless Momma – Thank you for writing to us. I am so sorry you’ve been going through this, that is a lot to handle in addition to being pregnant! Here is a link to an article on dealing with your child’s night terrors that may provide some helpful tips: https://www.babysleepsite.com/toddlers/toddler-preschooler-nightmares-how-to-handle-part-1/
If you still need help, we are here! We have an amazing team of sleep consultants that would love to work with you on this. If it is a confusional event of some sort they likely cannot fix the problem, but they can provide specific tips on how to deal with the situation. I hope this helps! Hang in there and congratulations on the new baby!
Van says
My 3 1/2 year old has been fighting sleep. He lays in bed and yells for us for sometimes hours at bedtime, and does the same thing in the middle of the night if he wakes (which has been every night for weeks). He doesn’t appear to be afraid of anything and won’t even tell us what he wants. I’m exhausted. We also have a 5 1/2 year old and a 7 month old. Any insight would be appreciated. This tired mama is completely out of ideas.
Neosha says
@Van – Thank you for stopping by our sleepy little village and for sharing with us. We know how exhausted you must be, especially if this is happening quite regularly. The first thing we’d likely want you to consider is his sleep schedule to make sure he is being asked to sleep at the right times during the day and night as well as the environment before and during sleep. One of our consultants would be best able to help you through this – you can read more about them here to consider connecting with one:https://www.babysleepsite.com/about or consider our instant, Express Sleep Plan to get an action plan for his sleep immediately after filling in a short questionnaire. You can read more about that here: https://www.babysleepsite.com/express-sleep-plan/ Hang in there, Van!
Megan says
Hi my 11 month old has allergies to milk protein, soy and gluten. She has never slept through the night but now she doesn’t nap. She goes to bed around 8 and wakes up at midnight. She is up until 4 just talking laughing and playing. If she isn’t around people then she starts to scream. She lays back down around 4 am and when my alarm for work goes off at 6 she is up with a smile on her face ready for her medicine and morning bottle. She has acid reflux and gastroparsis. I am not sleeping but it doesn’t seem to bother her. She is the energizer bunny.
Debbye @ The Baby Sleep Site says
Hi @Megan – Thanks for visiting us! I am sorry to hear about your daughter’s extended night waking! She sure does sound like the energizer bunny! It is good news that she is happy when she has these episodes of insomnia! Have you checked out our free sample schedules? If it is a scheduling issue, some changes there might help! Here is the link: https://www.babysleepsite.com/baby-sleep-feeding-schedules/?utm_source=menu&utm_medium=schedules
Thank you again for using our blog as a resource. We hope that it is helpful!
Helen says
My 20 month old can sleep through the night but if he wakes up he is awake for 3-4 hours. He is usually calm and dozing in my arms but not fully asleep and I can’t get him back into his cot. Bed time is 7:30 and he usually wakes at 9pm. Wake up is 6:30 to 7am and he has a 1 to 2 hour nap in the day. TIA
Janelle Reid says
Hi @Helen, thank you for visiting the Baby Sleep Site! I am so sorry to hear you’ve been struggling with wake ups from your son, probably right before you’re about to go to bed. We would love to help, but I think we would need to take a look at his full history to be able to provide more specific advise. If you are interested in working one-on-one with one of our sleep consultants, you can look at the different options to do so here: https://www.babysleepsite.com/baby-toddler-sleep-consulting-services/
Hang in there and I hope you see some improvements soon!