A false start bedtime is the name referred to when your little one wakes around 45 minutes after being put down to bed. There are 2 common causes for false start bedtimes including your child's nap schedule and how they fall asleep.
⠀ Your baby falls asleep for the night fine after your typical bedtime routine but then starts waking up shortly after. False starts happen when there is a build-up of cortisol, making it difficult for your baby to resettle between sleep cycles.
Adjust Their Bedtime
If your baby has a false start, seems wide awake, and wants to engage and play, you may need to adjust their sleep-wake cycle. Wake them up a bit earlier from their last daytime nap, have their wake window, then put them down for their nighttime sleep a bit later.
If your baby is falling asleep very quickly, within 5-10 minutes, AND has a false start, they are likely overtired. If your baby takes a long time to settle down for bed, takes 30 minutes or more to fall asleep, AND has a false start, they are likely undertired.
So, if you are seeing your baby wake up at the 30 minute mark, or the 45 minute mark, it's because they are shifting between sleep cycles and briefly moving into a lighter stage of sleep. This is often referred to as the '45 minute intruder'.
There are two main reasons for false starts: your baby is overly tired when they go down for bedtime, or your baby's bedtime is too early. Here's how you can determine which one is the reason for your little one's false starts and how you can best handle them.
Babies can take as long as 20 minutes to reach deep sleep.
When initially falling asleep, it's very common for a baby to take 20 minutes to reach deep sleep. If your baby wakes 5-20 minutes after initially falling asleep, it's likely because she did not reach a deep sleep.
Across the space of a day, an undertired baby will end up either catnapping in short bursts, causing them to become overtired by bedtime, OR they will nap well throughout the day but then be extremely difficult to get to bed at night because they are undertired and need more awake time.
He or she may fuss and cry. When your overtired baby finally does fall asleep, he or she may wake frequently, wake up screaming, and/or wake up early. A vicious cycle is created: as an overtired baby gets less quality sleep, they become more tired, exacerbating the problem.
Getting a baby to sleep under the best of circumstances can be tricky, but when your little one is overtired, it can be even more difficult. That's because overtired babies have a harder time settling down for sleep, sleep only intermittently and wake up more often throughout the night.
A baby wakes up when put down because infants are designed to sense separation. Professor James McKenna, the world's leading expert on co-sleeping, explains: “Infants are biologically designed to sense that something dangerous has occurred – separation from the caregiver.
A false start is when a baby fell asleep at bedtime but was unable to connect their sleep cycles. This causes a wake up. This wake up happens most commonly between 30-45 minutes after falling asleep. This is typically the time they are transitioning into their next sleep cycle.
At this age, false starts can be common. For babies who have a bedtime of 7:00-8:00 pm, they might even be treating that bedtime like a nap. This is developmentally normal.
It is usually best not to start an evening nap after 5-6 pm and – instead, move bedtime up a little during the transition phase. Most babies are sleeping about 3 hours total during the day at this point. By 18 months children drop down to one nap. This nap often occurs mid-day and may vary in length from 1-3 hours.
Late signs of fatigue
Crying is a late sign of fatigue. The “I'm tired” cry often has a cough-like sound in it. It may sound a bit like this: “wah, wah, WAH – cough – WAH – cough – WAAAAAAH!” Late signs also include furiously rubbing the face/eyes/noise.
It's important to remember that an overtired baby will become well-rested once you focus on helping baby get more sleep, day and night. There is an end in sight – your baby will sleep! Also, it's okay to remove yourself from the situation. Really, anything relaxing will do.
Even a small catnap to reset can help – the amount of time doesn't really matter. Don't put them in their bassinet or crib for this catnap. Instead, try a contact nap. Overtired babies are usually clingy, so letting your little one sleep in your arms or putting them in a baby wrap carrier can help soothe them.
Assuming your baby's circadian rhythm is scheduling a 6 A.M. wake up, then her body starts to secrete cortisol three hours prior to that. And at this point, the melatonin production has ceased for the night. So baby hits the end of a sleep cycle around 3:00.
A false start occurs when your baby wakes up mere minutes after you put them to bed for the night. Anything shorter than an hour (usually within 30 to 45 minutes) is typically considered a false start. It is too short for them to have gotten a full sleep cycle and can leave everyone feeling cranky and tired.
Self-soothing for babies
Babies typically learn to self-soothe around 6 months. Check out what else to expect from your baby. Follow their milestones here! There is no age-related milestone for self-soothing.
How long to let a baby cry it out? For the cry-it-out method, you let your baby cry until they fall asleep, and rest assured they will. Some babies may protest for 25 minutes, others 65 minutes, and some even longer. It's important not to put a time limit on it (that's a different sleep-training method).