Episode 7: Newborn Sleep Insights

Today, Craig and Arielle unpack the often mystifying world of newborn sleep—those crucial first three months. The inspiration for this episode was Craig’s new niece, who was 2 weeks old at the time of recording. Whether you’re navigating the unpredictable waters of infant sleep or just curious about what’s normal, this episode promises to arm you with the insights you need to feel a bit more in control—or at least to understand that sometimes, chaos is just part of the parenting package.[00:00:00] Introduction and disclaimer[00:01:09] Welcoming listeners back and introducing the episode’s focus on newborn sleep[00:02:12] Discussion on the erratic nature of newborn sleep[00:03:22] Personal story about sleep expectations with a newborn[00:08:21] Explanation of active sleep in newborns and advice for parents[00:10:41] Impact of external factors like maternity and paternity leave on sleep[00:14:26] Transition to detailed discussion on sleep cues and signs of tiredness in newborns[00:21:08] Exploring the science of sleep cycles and the development of circadian rhythms[00:26:35] Discussion on the “witching hour” and strategies to cope with it[00:32:23] Month-by-month sleep development and expectations[00:37:38] Review of sleep tools and technologies affecting newborn sleep[00:42:35] Closing remarks and where to find more resourcesNotable Quotes:Craig Canapari MD: “Things will get better with time, even if you’re really struggling. It’s funny, my older son was one of those babies that we took him home from the hospital. My wife had a c-section the first night. And he slept six hours overnight.”Arielle Greenleaf: “I think one of the biggest things I wish I had known back in the day was I didn’t know really about active sleep. And so I think when she was coming, she’s going through that, what did you call it?”Arielle Greenleaf: “I always tell newborn parents, don’t rush. They will tell you if they need you. They will, they have lungs and they can scream.”Craig Canapari MD: “A newborn, that could be anywhere from 13 to 14 hours per or 20 hours within a 24 hour period. So if you have a baby who’s natural sleep needs at that point is 20 hours a day, you are gonna feel like a parenting genius.”Links and Resources:Sleep and Wakefulness by Nathaniel KleitmanWhy room sharing is important for safe sleepAAP Safe Sleep GuidelinesPeriod of purple cryingHow many wet diapers per dayHappiest Baby on the BlockBringing up Bebe- and Le PauseWirecutter article on the SNOOConnect with Us! Send us an email about questions, feedback, or ideas for future topics. TranscriptEp 7 newborn sleep audio[00:00:00][00:00:00] Speaker: Welcome to the Sleep Edit, a podcast devoted to helping tired kids and parents sleep better. We focus on actionable evidence-based sleep advice, so everyone in your home can sleep through the night. Now, a quick disclaimer, this podcast is for general informational purposes only and does not constitute the practice of medicine, nursing, or other professional healthcare services, including the giving of medical advice.[00:00:27] No doctor patient relationship is formed. The use of this information and the materials linked to this podcast and any associated video content are at the user’s own risk. The content on the show is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Users should not disregard or delay obtaining medical help for any medical condition they have.[00:00:52] Or that their children may have, they should seek the assistance of their healthcare professionals for any such conditions. Nothing stated here [00:01:00] reflects the views of our employers or the employees of our guests. Enjoy the show.[00:01:09] Craig Canapari MD: Well, welcome back to the sleep edit. I am Dr. Craig Canapari.[00:01:12] Arielle Greenleaf (2): And I’m Arielle Greenleaf.[00:01:14] Craig Canapari MD: We are going to talk today about a challenging topic for a lot of parents, which is specifically newborn sleep In the first three months this is very top of mind for me because my brother and his wife just had their first baby[00:01:28] Arielle Greenleaf (2): Oh, congratulations.[00:01:30] Craig Canapari MD: I’m an uncle now five times over, which is pretty[00:01:33] Speaker 9: Yeah.[00:01:33] Craig Canapari MD: I know I’m an expert uncle at this point. Top uncle uncles.com.[00:01:40] Arielle Greenleaf (2): That’s great. I think you’d be a great uncle.[00:01:44] Craig Canapari MD: I am a great uncle, honestly, I give good gifts, like the sorts of gifts that the parents don’t really want to give for their[00:01:51] Arielle Greenleaf: right.[00:01:52] Craig Canapari MD: Like Nerf guns and stuff like that. Do we do cool stuff when I get some testimonials on here from my nieces and [00:02:00] nephews?[00:02:00] Arielle Greenleaf (2): We’re gonna talk about newborn sleep, specifically sleep in the first three months of life for infants. A challenging and confusing time for parents who are frequently sleep deprived and have a lot of support,[00:02:12] Arielle Greenleaf: Yeah. And I think, the number one thing that I like to share with newborn parents is just that newborn sleep is erratic. And it’s, it can be frustrating because you may see programs or google schedules or methods of, scheduling your newborn and it’s just not biologically like it’s normal for a baby, a newborn sleep to be erratic.[00:02:42] Some people have unicorn babies and they bring them home from the hospital and they sleep through the night right away. And others, like my own they are waking every one to three hours, day and night to feed and. That’s normal. So I think it’s really important for us to [00:03:00] set expectations when it comes to newborn sleep in that it is slowly, actually, it quickly matures.[00:03:06] A lot happens over the first three months when it comes to a lot of things, but certainly with sleep.[00:03:13] Craig Canapari MD: Yeah, I think that, things will get better with time, even if you’re really struggling. It’s funny, my older son was one of those babies that we took him home from the hospital.[00:03:22] My wife had a c-section the first night. And he slept six hours overnight. And I woke up in the morning and I was worried that he was dead, and I ran to his room and he was okay. But I think that there’s a massive range of what is normal sleep in a 24 hour period.[00:03:38] So for a newborn, that could be anywhere from 13 to 14 hours per or 20 hours within a 24 hour period. So if you have a baby who’s natural, Sleep needs at that point is 20 hours...