How do I protect my toddler’s sleep when a new baby arrives?
If you can, make big sleep changes, such as moving to a bed, well before the baby arrives; otherwise wait until the baby is settled at home, as the AAP advises. Expect some regression, and keep the newborn in their own sleep space. If your toddler’s sleep does not settle, Actually Sleeping works with babies and toddlers from newborn on, so both children can be covered.
Timing big changes
The AAP’s advice on preparing your family for a new baby is to finish toilet training or switching from a crib to a bed before the baby arrives if you can. If that isn’t possible, put it off until after the baby is settled at home.
The same logic applies to moving rooms or dropping a nap. Your toddler should not lose their crib and gain a sibling in the same week. If you need the crib for the baby, a second crib or a bassinet avoids rushing your toddler into a bed. A newborn can sleep in a bassinet in your room for the first months.
Expect some regression
The AAP says to expect your child to regress a little, such as toilet accidents or wanting a bottle again. It advises against telling them to act their age. Instead, give them the attention they need and praise grown-up behavior. The AAP also suggests setting aside special time for your child, such as reading, playing or talking together, or a one-on-one outing.
Sleep can follow the same pattern: more night waking, a harder bedtime, or wanting you to stay. That is a normal response to a big change.
A new baby is a big change, and some disruption is normal. When your toddler’s sleep does not recover, Actually Sleeping can fix it, alongside the newborn’s foundations.
Why it often does not settle on its own
The problem is rarely the regression itself. It is what exhausted parents do to get through it: lying down with the toddler until they fall asleep, bringing them into the big bed, letting bedtime slide while the newborn feeds. Each choice makes sense at the time. A few weeks later, the toddler has new sleep habits, the newborn is waking at night, and two children are taking turns keeping everyone up.
Bedtime also gets harder to run. A newborn often needs feeding right at the toddler’s bedtime, one parent is short of sleep, and the routine changes from night to night depending on who is free.
How Actually Sleeping helps a growing family
Two children who sleep badly is one of the hardest seasons of parenting. Actually Sleeping works with babies and toddlers from newborn on, so both children can be covered. Dr. Sam writes a plan for your toddler’s bedtime and nights that fits around the newborn, and the newborn’s plan starts with foundations, with night feeds kept as long as your pediatrician wants and the 14-day guarantee clock starting at 10 weeks. You get bootcamp-style coaching before the first night and daily 1:1 check-ins. Hear from families in our 129 client video reviews.
Safe sleep with a toddler and a newborn
- The newborn sleeps in their own crib, bassinet or play yard. The NIH Safe to Sleep campaign lists a sibling sharing a baby’s sleep surface as a high-risk situation.
- Keep toys out of the baby’s sleep space. Toddlers love to “share” blankets and stuffed animals. Explain that the baby’s bed stays empty, and check it before each sleep.
- No bed sharing with the newborn, even when a toddler is in the bed too. The AAP does not support bed sharing under any circumstances.
When the toddler and baby will share a room
The AAP recommends your baby sleep in your room for at least the first 6 months. After that, siblings can share. See a baby and toddler sharing a room.
If your toddler’s sleep has fallen apart since the baby arrived, book a free consultation with Actually Sleeping.
Want this fixed for your baby?
Actually Sleeping is 1:1 coaching: a sleep plan written for your baby by Dr. Sam, bootcamp-style coaching before the first night, and daily check-ins until it is working. 700+ families coached, 129 video reviews, and a written guarantee: 8–12 hours through the night within 14 days, or a full refund.
Frequently asked
Should I move my toddler to a bed before the baby comes?
Only if there is time for it to settle before the birth. The AAP advises finishing the switch before the baby arrives, or waiting until after the baby is settled at home. A second crib avoids rushing.
My toddler started waking at night after the baby came. Is this normal?
Yes. The AAP says to expect some regression after a new baby. If the waking has not eased after a few weeks, it has usually become a habit, and that is the part a plan fixes, for one child or both.
Can my toddler nap next to the newborn?
Not in the same sleep space. NIH Safe to Sleep lists a sibling sharing a baby’s sleep surface as a high-risk situation. The baby sleeps in their own crib, bassinet or play yard.