Major Reasons Why Baby Wake Up Crying

Babies may take time to learn how to sleep through the night without crying.

Although it can be normal for younger babies to cry when they wake up, if they cry each time they wake up or for a longer time, you may feel perplexed. In such cases, it is good to know why babies wake up crying.

Read this post to know about the causes and a few tips to stop them from crying when waking up.There is no particular age when a baby stops crying when they wake up. Older babies tend to sleep for long without interruptions. However, if they are disturbed by anything during sleep, your baby may wake up crying.

Sleep needs may vary depending on the infant’s age. A newborn tends to sleep several times for a shorter duration.The duration gradually increases,while the frequency of sleep decreases with age.

Older babies tend to sleep for longer during the night. That means babies who are nine months old may have longer nighttime sleep than a three-month-old baby.

Most babies may sleep for six hours at a stretch and cry due to hunger when they wake up. Babies usually do not sleep throughout the night before the age of four to six months of age.

* Sleep cycles

Sleep cycle changes throughout the sleep and may range from a deep sleep to a light state of rest. It is normal to wake up from sleep and fall asleep again. Babies struggle to fall asleep by themselves if they wake up during sleep and often cry for parental or caregivers’ assistance to fall asleep again.

* Physical discomfort

An illness or physical condition can make it hard for babies to sleep due to pain or discomfort. Difficulties due to teething, infections, or other diseases could make your baby cry and wake up from sleep.

* Separation anxiety

The fear of being away from the parents or caregiver is called separation anxiety. Although it is one of the developmental milestones, some babies can be extremely clingy and have sleep problems during this phase. Separation anxiety could cause a baby to cry when they wake up from sleep. If your baby requires co-sleeping, feeding, or holding to fall asleep, they are not yet ready to sleep on their own.

* New milestones

Babies may get excited when they learn new skills such as crawling, turning head, walking, sitting, etc. They tend to try their new skills in the crib at night and often end up crying since they may find it hard to fall asleep again.

* Hunger

Babies who are not fed adequately during the day may wake up crying in the middle of the night due to hunger. You may often notice this behavior when they are growing and need more food than before.

* Dirty diaper

Babies may cry if they have a soiled diaper, since it may irritate the skin.

* Sleepy

Babies who wake up from sleep may cry if they are tired and sleepy but are unable to self-soothe to fall asleep again.

Babies may also wake up and cry due to general sleep disturbances, such as temperature changes in the room, mosquito bites, noises, etc.