Why Your Child
Keeps Waking Up
Most parents assume night waking means something is wrong. The truth is more interesting — and more fixable.
Babies cycle every 45–50 minutes
Adult sleep cycles run 90 minutes. Infant cycles are half that — which means twice as many transition moments where incomplete sleep skills cause a full wake. This isn't a behavior problem. It's developmental architecture.
73%
of families see improvement within 7–10 days of a structured plan
A Typical Infant Sleep Night
7 PM bedtime → 6 AM wake. Each valley is a cycle transition — a potential wake point.
The 2 AM wake-up isn't random. It coincides with the transition from deep sleep to the first long REM cycle — exactly when a baby who hasn't learned to self-settle will call for you.
Sleep Pressure Mismatch
Nap timing and duration directly control how much melatonin builds by bedtime. Off by 40 minutes and the whole night shifts.
Sleep Onset Association
If your baby falls asleep nursing or rocking, they expect the same conditions at every cycle transition — all night.
Cortisol Timing
Overtiredness spikes cortisol — a stimulant. Paradoxically, the more exhausted your child is at bedtime, the harder it is to fall asleep.
Sleep Architecture
by Age
Every sleep problem has a developmental context. Find your child's age below — then notice whether their current pattern fits or fights the biology.
* Wake windows are the time awake between sleep periods. Exceeding them causes overtiredness → cortisol spike → harder sleep.
Recognise your child's pattern?
Most families reading this can already spot the mismatch — the wake windows are off, the bedtime is too late, or the nap schedule is fighting the biology. That recognition is the first step. The next is a personalised assessment.
If your child's pattern fits one of these rows but the nights aren't improving on their own — that's exactly what our assessment is designed for.
Your child's pattern is solvable.
Our board-certified specialists have worked with every pattern in this chart. A 20-minute assessment maps your child's specific profile to a plan that actually fits your family.
Start Your Child's Sleep AssessmentThe Assessment
Three gentle questions. No phone number required. Your specialist reviews before your consultation call.
How old is your child?
This helps us match the right specialist and approach.
Your Custom
Sleep Plan
Not a generic sleep training method. A plan built around your child's specific age, temperament, and the patterns you documented.
Dr. Claire Whitmore, DBP
Developmental-behavioral pediatrician and lead specialist at Lullaby. Trained at UCSF, with a focus on infant and toddler sleep disorders. She's reviewed over 2,400 family sleep diaries and believes every case has a pattern — the job is finding it.
Sleep diary review
7 days of nap and night patterns analysed for your specific child
Specialist video call
45-minute consultation with a board-certified pediatric sleep specialist
Written custom plan
Detailed schedule, bedtime routine, and response strategies — in plain language
2-week check-in
Live Q&A to adjust the plan as your child responds
Families who slept again
“Our 14-month-old had never slept more than 90 minutes in a row. By night eight of the plan, she slept eleven straight hours. I cried in the kitchen at 6 AM.”
Priya Nair
Mom to Anika, 14 months · Night waking
“We'd read every sleep book. Nothing worked until we had someone look at our specific schedule — the problem was a 20-minute nap timing error.”
Marcus Webb
Dad to Eliot, 8 months · Short naps
“As a pediatrician I refer families here when the usual guidance isn't enough. The assessment process is thorough, the plans are evidence-based, and families actually follow through.”
Dr. Sarah Okonkwo
Pediatrician, Chicago · Referring physician
Ongoing
Support
Sleep isn't solved once and forgotten. Regressions happen. Teeth come in. New siblings arrive. We stay in the picture.
Async messaging support
Text your specialist any time during the plan. Most questions answered within 4 hours.
Plan adjustments
Children change. If a regression hits or a new concern emerges, your plan updates with them.
Resource library
Age-specific guides, regression calendars, and nap transition timelines — always accessible.
Parent community
A moderated group of families in the same phase. Not advice — just people who understand 3 AM.
Tonight could be different.
Most families see meaningful change within 7–10 days. The assessment takes 3 minutes. No phone number required.
Free Download
The Wake Window Cheat Sheet by Age
A one-page reference for every age from newborn to 3 years — nap counts, wake windows, total sleep targets, and the regressions to watch for. Email-only, no phone.