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Any parent of a new baby will tell you that many of their conversations revolve around sleep. Friends will ask if you’re getting much sleep, and with good reason: A new study has indicated that moms and dads lose as much as 44 days of sleep (six weeks!) in the first year of being a parent according to the Daily Mail.
The yawning gap
The study recorded the sleep habits of over 1800 married parents and found that on average they slept 5.1 hours per night for that first year of being a parent. This was then subtracted from the recommended eight hours per night to show the combined loss of 1 055.6 hours for the year.
Where does it go?
The main reasons given for the vanishing sleep hours were quite predictable:
Of course, most parents forget those crazy early months without sleep, and some even go through it all over again with another baby!
Want to know more about coping without sleep? Here are some helpful resources:
5 ways to get your child to sleep
6 reasons why your baby won't sleep
How much sleep do you get per night?
The yawning gap
The study recorded the sleep habits of over 1800 married parents and found that on average they slept 5.1 hours per night for that first year of being a parent. This was then subtracted from the recommended eight hours per night to show the combined loss of 1 055.6 hours for the year.
Where does it go?
The main reasons given for the vanishing sleep hours were quite predictable:
- Night feeds at 62% (of respondents)
- Baby crying or waking, 57%
- Worries for the safety of the baby, 45%
- Insomnia/other problems getting to sleep, 34% and
- Using the time while the baby is sleeping to do household chores, 27%
Of course, most parents forget those crazy early months without sleep, and some even go through it all over again with another baby!
Want to know more about coping without sleep? Here are some helpful resources:
5 ways to get your child to sleep
6 reasons why your baby won't sleep
How much sleep do you get per night?
