TAMBA: Lower Ground Floor Offices, Hitherbury House, 97 Portsmouth Road, Guildford, Surrey GU2 4DL Twinline: telephone freephone helpline: 0800 138 0509 (10am-1pm and 7pm-10pm seven days a week)

Registered Company No: 3688825 | Registered Charity No: 1076478

The average amount of sleep per day for a one month old baby is about 16 hours, but this is an average and it can range from 8 hours to 20 hours.

Sleep and Multiple Birth BabiesHOW MUCH SLEEP DO BABIES NEED?

If your babies have been born prematurely, they will not follow the ‘normal’ pattern of sleep development according to their birth age, you will have to consider their corrected gestational age – i.e. how old they would be if they were born at term. Try to avoid comparing your babies’ sleep patterns with those of other babies born at the same time as there is a lot of variation in how sleep patterns mature.

My baby sleeps in the day rather than at night? For babies born at term, they begin to distinguish between night and day at about 3-4 months of age, when many of them develop the ability to sleep for a 5 hour stretch, such as midnight to 5am. It is not typical for babies to begin sleeping through the night (such as 10pm to 6am) until they are 5 months or older, and more than a quarter of babies still haven’t reached this stage at 12 months.

And once babies start sleeping through is that it? Do they stay that way?Unfortunately not, most babies experience periods where they sleep through, and then revert to night waking for several weeks. This might happen when they are having a dramatic growth spurt such as at 4 months, or when some other developmental milestone is happening such as when teething begins.

How can I encourage my babies to sleep well? This depends on what you mean by ‘sleep well’. Some parents want their babies’ to be adaptable, and to be able to fall asleep wherever they are whenever they are tired. Others prefer their babies to have a regular time and place for sleeping. If you are in the second group you can try to help your babies establish this sort of pattern. This can start from birth, though techniques will vary according to the age of your child. Don’t worry if your babies sleep a lot during the day, think of it as them practising their skill. It will not stop them sleeping at night but will help them to sleep better. Things to consider regarding your babies’ sleep patterns:

Give your babies opportunities to sleep, with all the stimulation around them babies can find it hard to get to sleep unless prompted to do so.

Develop a bedtime routine from early on that fits with your family.

Differentiate between day and night. At night time keep lights low and give minimal stimulation if your babies wake. Unless they need feeding avoid taking them out of their cots.

Very young babies need contact with their parents to be able to relax and fall asleep. As they get older you can

encourage babies to get to sleep on their own (self-settling) rather than rocking or cuddling them to sleep.

Try not to rush to pick up your babies if you hear them stir. As babies sleep they go through cycles so will stir and seem to be waking at various times in their sleep. However if left alone they will learn to get themselves back into a deeper sleep (self soothe).

It is most helpful if one or both of the parents are the primary carers for the babies, so the babies become familiar with these one or two people and experience consistency. Other willing volunteers can help with other family members or household duties!

How can I develop a bedtime routine?Start and develop a bedtime routine early on. Even if your babies need to wake and feed in the night, this will help them prepare to sleep. The routine will develop as they get older but here are a few suggestions to get you started:

Exposing your babies’ to natural daylight throughout the day will help to develop their biological day/ night cycle and help to trigger sleep in the evenings.

Have a wind down before bedtime with quieter activities.

TWINS & MULTIPLE BIRTHS ASSOCIATION

Wash or bathe your babies and change them into pyjamas.

Feed them and put them to sleep in a darkened quiet room.

Give them cues to sleep such as the presence of a special toy or repeating a key phrase such as night, night.

Keep calm yourself, reduce stimulation and talk in a quiet voice.

Make sure everybody knows about the routine and that it is done consistently – even at weekends.

As your children get older you may wish to include a story after bath as part of the routine.

What about sleep training? Would this help our babies get into a routine and sleep through the night more quickly?All forms of sleep training are inappropriate for babies who are younger than 6 months of age, as their biological clock is still maturing. Once they are capable of sleeping through the night they will start doing so. Some sleep training advocates argue that babies need to be taught how to sleep and to do so on schedule. Studies of sleep training programmes that are implemented in clinics indicate that they can be successful in training babies to cease crying in the night, but whether the babies are learning to sleep normally is unclear. Critics argue that sleep trained babies have just learned not to call as their parents will not respond, and that this is stressful for babies. Parents should bear in mind that while their multiples are young they need to know their parents are nearby and responsive should they need them in order to feel safe and secure.

One of my multiples sleeps better than the other/s. What should I do? All babies have different sleep needs. Follow your babies’ cues, if one is sleepier than another then you may find it better to develop different sleep routines for each baby. If you start this from an early age you are less likely to experience protests when the children are older.

How do parents cope with disturbed sleep?Take regular naps when you are sleepy. They don’t have to be long, maybe 15 minutes but they will make all the difference. Place your babies in a safe place and shut your eyes. Planning to have naps in the day when you know you become sleepy means you are less likely to fall asleep by accident and put your babies at risk. If at work use your lunch break for a short nap. It is not necessary to catch up with all the sleep that you have lost. Just one period of uninterrupted sleep can restore you to feeling good so try and plan for this. Perhaps use an offer of babysitting to catch up on your sleep or if you have a partner, ask them to care for the babies for the whole night allowing you the opportunity to sleep, and do the same for them when they need it! Try and distinguish between tiredness and sleepiness, you may need to do something to relieve the tiredness other than sleep e.g. getting some fresh air or doing an enjoyable activity.

We’re here to listen…. If you would like some support with sleeping, please call our confidential, free helpline for all parents of multiples. Twinline is staffed by trained volunteers who are parents of multiples. It’s open everyday between 10am - 1pm and 7pm – 10pm.

Twinline telephone number 0800 138 0509

As a charity, Tamba relies solely on income from grants, company sponsorship, membership subscriptions, fundraising activities and voluntary donations to fund our services. If you would like more information on how to support Tamba, or would like to make a donation towards our work,

please call 0870 770 3305 or visit our website: www.tamba.org.uk