Going back to work: how to get your baby’s sleep ready

Build the day from its fixed points

On sleep need, the American Academy of Sleep Medicine recommends 12 to 16 hours in every 24 hours for babies aged 4 to 12 months, and 11 to 14 hours for children aged 1 to 2 years, naps included. Where your baby falls within that range determines how much flexibility your evening has.

If the only way your baby falls asleep is on you, your return to work is a good reason to change that now. Actually Sleeping writes the plan around your return date.

What makes the return to work tough on sleep

• Another person is putting your baby down. If your baby only drifts off on you or while feeding, there’s nobody at daycare who can do that. Naps there become short, and evenings become difficult.
• Evenings run later. Plenty of parents want to keep their baby up for extra time together. Slightly later is fine; much later usually leads to an overtired baby who has a harder time falling asleep and wakes up earlier.
• Mornings start earlier. Your commute, not your baby’s body clock, now sets the wake-up time.
• Feeding shifts. Pumping, bottles from a caregiver, or extra feeds in the evening and overnight.
• Fresh germs. The early months of daycare often bring one cold after another, and each one disrupts sleep.

In a study of more than 10,000 young children, the more nights per week a bedtime routine took place, the better the children slept. Running that routine yourself is a dependable way to reconnect after a workday.

About feeding

Any change to feeding is a decision for you to make with your pediatrician or a lactation consultant. Don’t cut night feeds simply to suit a work schedule.

Getting the timing right

Beginning a plan two to three weeks ahead of your return lets you see progress before early mornings add pressure. Starting partway through your first week back is generally harder.

Fitting Actually Sleeping around your return date

Dr. Sam writes a custom plan for your baby that’s built around your real return date, commute and daycare schedule. You get bootcamp-style coaching before the first night and daily 1:1 check-ins. The plan teaches your baby to fall asleep in a crib and for more than one person, and we coach naps until they are solid. How night feeds are handled depends on your baby’s age and is set in your custom plan. Hear from families in our 129 client video reviews.

We guarantee that your baby will sleep 8–12 hours through the night within 14 days of consistent, correct implementation of your sleep plan. If that doesn’t happen, we refund you in full. If your return date is approaching, book a free consultation and bring along your new schedule.