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Moms and Sleep: A Sleep Survival Guide for Moms at all Stages of Motherhood

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How sleep deprivation affects your life as a mom

The purpose of this lens is to give you some important information about sleep (or, rather sleep deprivation) -- information that can dramatically improve the quality of your life whether you're pregnant, a new mom, or a mom who hasn't had a decent night's sleep since you welcomed your first child.

Once you see the types of topics we'll be discussing in this lens -- sleep deprivation and postpartum depression; how sleep deprivation can impact on your relationship with your partner; how sleep deprivation can impact on your enjoyment of motherhood -- you'll see that sleep has a critical role to play in your physical and emotional health as well as your ability to be the type of parent you want to be.

The majority of this lens is devoted to sharing strategies for helping you to maximize your opportunities for sleep -- and the quality of your sleep -- while you're waiting for baby's sleep cycles to mature and your baby to start sleeping for longer than two-and-a-half hours at a time.

Much of the material in this lens is drawn from one of the chapters on mothers and sleep in my book Sleep Solutions for Your Baby, Toddler, and Preschooler. (Yes, the book is mainly about babies, toddlers, and preschoolers, but I start out by giving mothers the tools to take care of their own most urgent sleep needs first so that they will have the patience, creativity, and problem-solving skills needed to solve their babies' sleep problems. (Research has shown that sleep deprivation takes a toll on your ability to think creatively, solve problems, and make good decisions.)

- Ann Douglas, Author of Sleep Solutions for Your Baby, Toddler, and Preschooler; mother of four

Sleep Deprivation and Postpartum Depression

What every mom-to-be needs to know

A 1992 study by researchers at the University of Edinburgh found that having difficulty sleeping late in pregnancy and then going through labor at night increased a woman's risk of developing PPD. And in two separate studies conducted in 2000 and 2003, sleep researcher Amy R. Wolfson has identified two sleep-related "red flags" that may indicate that a particular mother faces a greater-than-average risk of developing postpartum depression:
  • an excessive need for sleep in late pregnancy (more total sleep time, getting up later in the morning, and spending more time napping), something which could either be an indication that the mom-to-be is experiencing poor quality sleep at night, that she is struggling with prenatal depression, or both;
  • severe sleep disruption during pregnancy and immediately after childbirth.

    • It's important to let your healthcare provider know if you're missing out on sleep, experiencing symptoms of depression, or both.

    "Our first middle-of-the-night fight about Ferber"

    How sleep deprivation can affect your relationship with your partner

    One of those not-so-fabulous "baby's first year" moments that's definitely not meant for the baby book.

    Wondering what you can do
    to keep your relationship with your partner
    on track while the two of you
    are getting by with little or no sleep?

    Here are some insights into what causes conflicts to rage over the issue of sleep -- who's getting enough and who's not; and why disagreements about whose sleep training method is best can get so heated and personal.

    Getting the Facts about Babies and Sleep Can Help You to Be a Better Rested New Mom: Study

    Sleep education helps new moms get more sleep and to feel less stressed about sleep

    Research conducted at the University of Toronto has revealed that getting the facts on babies and sleep can help you to be a better-rested new mom.

    Women involved in the treatment group in the study -- which was reported in the Dec. 1 issue of the medical journal Sleep -- were provided with information on the following topics: "maternal sleep hygiene; strategies for increasing maternal sleep; maternal relaxation techniques, such as progressive muscle relaxation and deep breathing; acknowledgement of the challenges of parenting and sleep deprivation; and information on infant sleep structure, cues, sleep promotion, and self-soothing.

    The moms who had received information and support (weekly phone calls) from a nurse at the hospital were getting an hour of extra sleep by the time their babies were age six weeks. And only 33% (as opposed to 73% of moms who weren't benefitting from extra help) described the amount of sleep they were getting as a problem.

    Given that most new parents report that they aren't well informed about the realities of sleep deprivation after baby, anything that can help to prepare you for the "sleep realities" of life after baby would help to reduce the new parent shock that makes the early weeks of parenthood so challenging for so many parents.

    More:
    Sleep research targets newborns

    Moms and Sleep

    Sleep solutions for moms: tips, strategies, and more - Compiled by Ann Douglas, author of Sleep Solutions for Your Baby, Toddler, and Preschooler

    Sleep is the stuff of which dreams are made -- especially if you're a sleep-deprived mom.
    Sleep Solutions for Moms, Babies, and Toddlers
    Tips on helping to soothe yourself to sleep once you've settled your baby or toddler.
    Sleep Solutions for Moms of Multiples
    Sleep advice for moms of multiples.
    Good Night and Good Luck
    Sleep strategies for moms of babies and toddlers.
    Thoughtful Things to do for a New Mother
    Practical suggestions on how friends and family members can pitch in to help a new mom get more sleep.
    The Secrets of Sleep-Savvy Moms
    Strategies that can help you to be a better rested new mom -- even before your baby is sleeping through the night. Excerpted from the chapter on moms and sleep in my book Sleep Solutions for Your Baby, Toddler, and Preschooler.
    Sleep Deprivation in Pregnant Women
    Why sleep is so difficult to come by when you're pregnant -- and what you can do to be a better rested mom-to-be.
    Moms' Six Biggest Sleep Mistakes
    Parenting Magazine identifies "moms' six biggest sleep mistakes" and then offers tips on avoiding them.
    Attention All Moms: Getting the Sleep You Need Will Improve Your Health and Well-Being
    A short, newsy item on the health benefits of getting more sleep as a mom.
    More Than Half of Moms Say That More Sleep Would Make Them Better Parents
    52 percent of America's moms feel that more sleep would make them better parents and 65 percent feel they would be happier, according to a study conducted by Braun Research.
    Why Moms Can't Sleep
    Redbook examines what it calls "the silent sleeplessness epidemic" amongst moms and offers strategies for dealing with the problem.
    The Tired Moms' Guide to Better Sleep
    Parents.com explains how lifestyle habits can conspire against you when it comes to getting that good night's sleep you so desperately crave.

    Sleep Links: Useful and Reliable Sources of Sleep Information

    Where to find answers to your top sleep questions

    National Sleep Foundation: This is definitely the place to start if you're a newbie to the world of sleep. You'll find glossaries (so you can learn to "speak sleep"), sleep studies (so you can feel reassured that other moms are missing out on their zzz's, too), practical tips, and much more. A very consumer-friendly site.
    National Institutes of Health: Sleep: This website isn't quite as warm and fuzzy (hey, it's a government site: what do you want?), but it's easy to navigate and you'll find all kinds of well-rearched information on sleep.
    National Library of Medicine: PubMed.Gov: This one is for the hard-core research junkies only. Enter terms like "insomnia" into the search box and you'll get hundreds or even thousands of hits in medical journals dating back to the 1960s. In most cases, you'll have access to journal abstracts; in other cases, you'll be able to access full-text for free. Go wild, information addict!
    Reuters Health: Ever wonder how it is that all the newspapers on the planet end up publishing the same health story on the exact same day? A lot of them get their feeds from this place -- and you can access the stories directly right here. You can also search for all recent articles on sleep, in case you were sleepy one morning and got behind in your sleep reading.
    Canadian Sleep Society: What's going on in the world of sleep research in Canada.
    American Academy of Sleep Medicine: What's going on in the world of sleep research in the U.S.
    Sleep Research Society: A summary of sleep research that's ongoing. Pretty intense reading for most of us, but the science grads in the crowd may gravitate towards this one.

    40 Facts About Sleep

    From the National Sleep Research Project in Australia

    "A new baby typically results in 400-750 hours lost sleep for parents in the first year."

    "Some studies suggest women need up to an hour's extra sleep a night compared to men, and not getting it may be one reason women are much more susceptible to depression than men."

    Find out more.

    Anjali from the Dotmoms interviews Ann Douglas, author of Sleep Solutions for Your Baby, Toddler, and Preschooler

    An excerpt from the Dotmoms sleep interview

    Anjali: I remember when my own children were sleeping so badly, I felt such pressure from friends and family members to get them to sleep better. Do you think society puts too much pressure on parents of very young children to form "good" sleep habits? If so, why do you think this is?

    Ann: We live in a quick fix society so it's hardly surprising that those around us want to provide us with quick-fix solutions when they see us struggling, even when, in the case of the world of babies, quick-fix solutions conspire against the natural rhythms of mothers and babies.

    What makes it tougher is that the sleep advice comes at you from all directions. Well-meaning family members are quick to pass along a lead about a new sleep training method they heard about on an afternoon talk show or in the evening newspaper, without knowing if the sleep training method described is right for you or your baby. It can be frustrating to deal with the flood of unsolicited and often conflicting advice about sleep, particularly when you're completely sleep-deprived and feeling emotionally fried.

    continued

    Moms Love Sleep This Much....

    $160,000 worth

    According to a recent study, moms peg the value of an extra hour of sleep each night at $60,000 a year. In other words, to get the same boost in quality of life as you'd get from that extra hour of sleep, you'd have to increase your income by $60,000 per year.

    Unfortunately, 68% of moms are chronically sleep deprived, falling short of the sleep we need at least a couple of nights each week.

    And understanding the facts about sleep can increase your odds of getting more of what you love (sleep!) a little sooner. That's why I chose to create this lens.

    Sleep Solutions for Your Baby, Toddler, and Preschooler

    The Ultimate No-Worry Guide for Each Age and Stage

    Written by the author of The Mother of All Pregnancy Books and The Mother of All Baby Books (and the creator of this lens)

    Sleep Solutions for Your Baby, Toddler, and Preschooler provides concrete strategies for tackling sleep issues as a family. The book examines the pros and cons of the major sleep training methods and how to go about finding the method that is likely to be the best fit for your family. The book offers parent-proven advice for troubleshooting the most common bedtime, naptime, and nightwaking problems in babies, toddlers, and preschoolers.
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    Sleeping With Your Baby by James McKenna -- Sleep Answers for Co-Sleeping Parents

    A research-based guide to co-sleeping by a sleep anthropologist and co-sleeping advocate

    Sleep anthropologist James McKenna, PhD, of the Mother-Baby Behavioral Sleep Laboratory at the University of Notre Dame has just written a guide to co-sleeping. This interview with McKenna focuses on his sleep philosophies and his research into mother-baby sleep interactions. On a personal note, I had the privilege of interviewing James McKenna for an article for The Chicago Tribune a few years ago and was really impressed by his work as well as his commitment to mothers and babies. Find out about the book here.
    - Ann Douglas

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    anndouglas

    I am the author of numerous books about pregnancy and parenting, including The Mother of All Pregnancy Books, The Mother of All Baby Books, The Mother... more »

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