Sleep Cues for Babies

The word “overtired” gets used a lot in the baby sleep world! We all know that an overtired baby has a much harder time falling asleep and staying asleep! As you begin to spend more time with your new baby, you’ll recognize they have a way of communicating they are tired, these are called sleepy cues!

Sleepy cues are most reliable in the early days of newborn sleep, prior to 4 months. After that, it' can be harder to identify cues as they can mean a lot of different things! If you can’t spot cues for your little one or they don’t show any, you’re not doing anything wrong.

In this blog post, we will cover

• What are baby sleep cues?

• Late tired signs

• How to know if baby is overtired

• How to read baby sleepy cues

• Newborn sleepy cues vs hunger cues

What are Sleepy Cues?

Baby sleepy cues are signs your baby gives that show he or she is ready for bed. Below is a list of possible sleepy cues, no baby will show all of these! As a parent, it is up to you to figure out how your baby is communicating they are sleepy! It can be tricky, but you will eventually start to see a pattern emerge every time your little one is sleepy.

Not every baby will exhibit baby tired signs, but most babies will show at least a few of them! You don’t want to see multiple cues as sometimes they will only show them when it’s too late. 

EARLY SIGNS OF A TIRED BABY:

• pulling at ears

• closing fists

• yawning

• fluttering eyelids or difficulty focusing – your baby might even go cross-eyed or seem to be staring into space

• making jerky arm and leg movements, or arching backwards

• frowning or looking worried

• Red eyebrows

• sucking on fingers – this could be a good sign and might mean that your baby is trying to find ways to settle to sleep.

EARLY TIRED SIGNS FOR A TODDLER:

• clumsiness

• clinginess

• grizzling or crying

• demands for attention

• boredom with toys

• fussiness with food

Once your baby is overtired, stress hormones such as cortisol and adrenaline flood your baby’s bloodstream which will make it harder for your little one to calm down and relax. The more tired your baby comes, the harder it is for your baby to relax and fall asleep! 

Late Tired Signs

When you see these signs, it’s often past their ideal wake window and they’re becoming overtired. Remember, we don’t want to see a TON of sleep cues; it’s ideal to spot 1-2 and then get them ready for sleep (if sleep cues are reliable for your little one, if they’re not trust the clock that it’s time for sleep)!

(Not sure how to trust the clock? Check out these blogs about wake windows and sleep needs!)

• Fussing

• Crying

• Difficult to settle

• Doesn’t respond to distraction

• Doesn’t eat well/difficulty latching

YOUR BABY MAY ALSO EXHIBIT SOME “AUTONOMIC” SIGNALS THAT THEY’RE TIRED AND THESE INCLUDE:

• Sneezing

• Hiccups

• Sweaty palms

• Quick breathing

• Blueness around the mouth in infant

How to Know if Baby is Overtired

• Have a hard time settling to sleep

• Takes brief cat naps/micro naps throughout the day

• Doesn’t sleep in solid stretches at night

• Very cranky and fussy throughout the day

• Unable to handle transitions to new activities, unable to tolerate things like teething pain as well

• More prone to meltdowns

• May fall asleep at random times during the day (in the high chair when eating, for instance, or as soon as they hit the stroller, even if it’s not naptime).

How to Read Your Baby Sleepy Cues?

Observe your little one over a course of a few days and look for these signs. Start logging when you see the sleepy cues and what cues your baby presents! You will begin to notice a pattern of how long they should be awake for. You should also couple this with their awake time for their age.

So how do you use cues and the clock to determine sleep times? Notice the pattern for when they are showing you baby tired signs and when they are falling asleep easily. 

If you determine they may not show you early tired signs, then it would be best to trust the clock and get them down before you notice the sleep cues.

That’s because some babies will only show their tired signs when it’s too late!

By tracking how long baby is awake, you will know when his or her next naptime should be. Or at the very least, you’ll know when baby might show signs of sleepiness. For example, if an older baby (not a newborn) has been awake for 30 minutes and begins to fuss and whine, then she might not be tired. Thirty minutes is too short of a wake time for an older baby.

Newborn Sleepy Cues vs Hunger Cues

Babies have early feeding cues, active feeding cues and late feeding cues. Typically, you want to try to catch the early feeding cues so that you have an easier time feeding your little one! The longer you wait, the fussier they may get and the harder it may be to get a full feeding in them.

Some early feeding cues consist of:

• smacking or licking lips

• opening and closing mouth

• sucking on lips, tongue, hands, fingers, etc.

Some active feeding cues consist of:

• rooting around on the chest of whoever is holding them

• trying to position themselves in a feeding position

• fidgeting or squirming a lot

• hitting you on your arm or chest, fussing or breathing heavy

Some late feeding cues consist of:

• moving head frantically from side to side and crying (red faced). 

Learning your baby’s sleepy cues and hunger cues is extremely helpful; as you can see from the lists above, these cues are very similar! Learn your little one’s rhythm and be mindful of when they need both food, comfort, and sleep. Do not be afraid if your baby cries, crying is their way of letting you know they need something!

While there are some clear signs a child is tired instead of hungry, it isn’t always that way! Fussing could go either way for example, whereas yawning is a more clear sign of being tired and rooting is a more clear sign of being hungry.

It can feel overwhelming, especially with a newborn who sleeps and eats all the time to try to figure out their cues!

Something that can really help is to listen to your baby intentionally and notice the different tones, sounds, and pitches for varying needs. It’ll take time and practice!

When they cry, pause to allow yourself a chance to observe and listen. This will help you determine what they’re needing in that moment. If you rush in with the goal to react instead of respond, you may miss a subtle clue to their need in that moment.

The pause technique is powerful, as you’re allowing your baby a chance to communicate to you, and then you’re responding based on the information you gathered from them.

Pro Tip Takeaways:

You may get some advice from parents, grandparents of friends suggesting to keep your baby awake all day, so they sleep better at night! However, if you have tried that, you know that will actually backfire with a very overtired baby who will in fact sleep worst at night. Getting your baby to sleep can be hard, but if they are overtired you will be fighting an even bigger battle! Use those sleepy cues along with their suggest wake time to ensure some sleep for all!