What Is Newborn Day-Night Confusion? (and How to Get Through This Phase)

What do vampires, raccoons and your brand new baby have in common? They’re all born nocturnal animals. The big difference—besides the blood-sucking and dumpster-diving—is that baby’s night-owl tendencies are temporary and due to what’s called newborn day-night confusion.

Like most new parents, even though Victoria, an Upton, Massachusetts mom of two, had heard about this phenomenon, the reality hit her family hard. “I did not fully understand how challenging it could be until I experienced it firsthand,” she remembers. “I was definitely caught off guard by how exhausting it could be, especially with sleepless nights.”

While day-night confusion is nearly inevitable, your family doesn’t have to stay stuck in perpetual midnight mode. There are plenty of practical, expert-proven strategies that can help reset your little one’s internal clock—and get your family’s rhythms back in sync. Here’s what you need to know about this day-night confusion phase—and how to survive it.

What Is Newborn Day-Night Confusion?

Day-night confusion, also called day-night reversal, is exactly what it sounds like. It occurs when newborns flip their sleep schedule—snoozing through daylight hours only to become alert and active after dark. The good news? Newborn day-night confusion is temporary.

When Does Day-Night Confusion Start?

Day-night confusion often begins right after birth, though many exhausted parents may not even notice it at first. That’s because newborns sleep about 16 to 17 hours a day, but in short bursts of one to two hours. This round-the-clock pattern of brief sleep-wake cycles can mask the larger issue of reversed days and nights until it becomes more obvious during those long nighttime hours when the rest of your household is trying to sleep.

What Causes Day-Night Confusion?

You can trace a lot of newborn day-night confusion back to life in the womb. “During pregnancy, a mother’s movements during the day naturally rock babies to sleep,” explains pediatrician Harvey Karp, MD, bestselling author of The Happiest Baby on the Block. But at night, when moms-to-be settle down to rest—and that soothing motion stops—babies typically become more active. In fact, research shows that 79 percent of pregnant individuals experience strong fetal movement at night. “This prenatal pattern often continues after birth, resulting in day-night confusion,” says Karp.

Adding to the circadian mix-up: Hormones. “Newborns don’t secrete melatonin, the hormone that makes us sleepy at bedtime,” says sleep consultant Carrie Bruno, RN, IBCLC, founder of The Mama Coach, a network of nurses and nurse practitioners supporting families across North America. “They don’t experience the surges of cortisol, the hormone that keeps us awake in the day either.” All of the above factors conspire together to leave you with a baby with no sense of day or night.

How to Ease the Effects of Day-Night Confusion

While your newborn’s mixed-up sleep patterns might feel overwhelming, it’s important to remember that it’s completely normal. During the first two months of life, babies don’t have any discernible sleep schedule thanks to their still-developing internal clock. Moreover, there aren’t even any official sleep recommendations for babies between 0 and 4 months. But take heart: You’re not destined to endless nights of wakefulness. By creating clear differences between day and night activities—and embracing a hefty dose of patience—you can, in fact, help your little one begin to sort out their schedule. Follow these expert-backed strategies to get everyone more rest soon.

Get outside in the morning

“Better nighttime sleep starts during the day,” says Karp. “Make sure your baby gets exposure to natural light—ideally first thing in the morning—to help reset their internal clock.” Christina, a mom of two in Burbank, California, swears by this tip. “We started going on morning stroller walks on day two, which is why I think our newborn day-night confusion didn’t last very long.”

Watch for sleep signs

Implementing a rigid sleep schedule with a newborn is pretty close to pointless. That said, paying attention to baby’s natural rhythms can help you spot their “wake windows,” or the time they can happily stay awake between naps. The goal: Get your newborn down for a nap before the window closes and they start showing signs of being overtired, like rubbing their eyes and yawning. After all, overtired babies have a harder time getting the sleep they need, which only makes it harder to resolve day-night confusion. (According to Cleveland Clinic, a newborn’s wake window is typically 30 minutes to one hour, expanding to one to two hours by the time they’re 1 to 3 months old, and then stretching to an hour-and-fifteen minutes to two-and-a-half hours by the age of 3 to 4 months.)

Support cluster feeding

Some newborns may want to feed every 30 minutes to an hour in the evenings. This is called cluster feeding, and it’s totally normal. In fact, cluster feeding is thought to be baby’s way of filling up for a longer sleep at night. Because of this, it’s a good idea to “plan your evening around letting your newborn cluster feed and doze,” advises Bruno. But don’t forget to watch for feeding cues so you can try to end feeds before baby falls into deep sleep. “Baby will tell you when they’re done by slowing at the bottle or breast,” Bruno adds. “Ending a feed before baby falls fast asleep can help baby sleep longer.”

Tune into optimal feeding patterns

Newborns need to eat frequently throughout the day and night. But strategic daytime feeding can help promote longer stretches of nighttime sleep. For example, some experts recommend waking your newborn from a daytime nap if it’s been more than three hours since they’ve eaten.

Set realistic bedtime expectations

“The internet tells us that babies should go to bed at 7 a.m., but this doesn’t work for newborns,” says Bruno. Instead, pay attention to when your newborn wakes for the day, then count 12 to 13 hours forward. “That’s a ballpark for when baby’s bedtime should be,” she says. For instance, if baby wakes at 9 a.m., they’ll be ready for bedtime around 10 at night. “Trying for a bedtime that’s much earlier than that will only bring tears and frustration,” says Bruno. Note: By 3 to 4 months of age, bedtime can start to move earlier.

Create a wind-down routine

“Even when babies are too young for a consistent bedtime, they can still benefit from a calming and predictable bedtime routine, like a warm bath, gentle massage and sweet lullabies before you send them off to Slumberland,” says Karp. For the best results, Bruno suggests starting your dim-the-lights, white-noise, wind-down routine about an hour before you plan on putting baby to bed. “When parents lean into this, their evenings become so much easier to handle—and their newborn goes down so much easier,” says Bruno.

Use womb-like cues at night

Because newborns are very accustomed to the sleepy, calming environment of the womb, it’s important to mimic it at bedtime. “Swaddling, white noise and gentle rocking can do this,” says Karp. “In fact, these soothing strategies activate baby’s calming reflex, which is their internal ‘off switch’ for crying and ‘on switch’ for sleep.”

Be boring at night

When your baby wakes in the middle of the night for a feed, keep the lights dim, feed them, burp them, change them and then lovingly place them back in their bassinet, resisting the urge to talk or coo to your little one. Shushing and gentle rocking is fine, but remember the goal is to calm not to stimulate.

Take turns

“One of the most helpful things for my family during this time was swapping overnight shifts with my partner when we could,” says Victoria. “That way, I wasn’t doing the midnight feedings and soothing alone every night.” If you’re breastfeeding, your partner can still help by handling middle-of-the-night diaper changes, burping and settling baby back to sleep. For bottle-feeding families, consider having one parent handle everything until 2 a.m., while the other takes over until morning. (If you’re a single parent, consider enlisting help from a trusted family member or friend for occasional overnight support.) Getting a solid four-hour block of sleep can make a huge difference in how you cope with day-night confusion!

When Does Day-Night Confusion End?

“Most babies begin developing a consistent circadian rhythm by 8 to 12 weeks of age,” says Karp. “Around this time, their [brains] start to produce melatonin, which helps signal when it’s time to sleep and when it’s time to wake.” But if you hit the 12-week-old mark and baby is still in their night owl era, don’t panic. Bruno notes that, for most, newborn day-night confusion usually resolves by 16 weeks.

If you’ve got a baby that was born prematurely, the answer might be a little different. ​“You’ll need to consider their ‘adjusted age’, which is the age they would be based on their due date,” reminds Karp. “So, while babies born full-term may start to have consistent sleep-wake patterns by 8- to 12-weeks, premature babies will need a few extra weeks to get there.”

Newborn day-night confusion can definitely seem endless. (“It felt like forever!” attests Victoria.) But remember this topsy-turvy period is expected—and temporary. By following baby’s cues while gradually establishing day-night differences, you’ll help them develop healthy sleep patterns. Most importantly, be patient with yourself and your little one during this adjustment period—sleepier nights are ahead!

Please note: The Bump and the materials and information it contains are not intended to, and do not constitute, medical or other health advice or diagnosis and should not be used as such. You should always consult with a qualified physician or health professional about your specific circumstances.

Plus, more from The Bump:

The Benefits and Drawbacks of Contact Naps for Newborns and Infants

Can a Newborn Sleep Too Much? Here’s What to Know

When Can Babies Sleep on Their Stomach Safely?