Yes! Sometimes It's Okay To Wake A Baby From A Nap

In our daughter Rowan’s first year, my husband and I repeated this scenario more times than I’d like to admit: Rowan would skip her nap during an exciting visit with Grandma and Grandpa, and we would leave shortly after dinner, smugly confident that we’d all have an early bedtime. Then, barely out of the driveway, I would sense quiet—too quiet—and turn around to see her napping away in the car seat. I’d gasp, my husband would curse softly, and we’d hotly argue over what to do next: Wake her up to endure a howling baby for nearly two hours while we drove home, or let her nap now, only to have a refreshed and playful baby who might stay up all night when we got home?

Every parent has heard the cautions about waking a sleeping baby, but is it ever better to cut a snooze short? We asked the experts about the following scenarios.

What the official guidelines say

What the American Academy of Pediatrics and the Canadian Paediatric Society say about baby sleep

• Back to sleep: The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) and Canadian Paediatric Society (CPS) say babies should always be placed on their backs to sleep.
• Safe surface only: Use a firm, flat crib, bassinet or playpen with a fitted sheet only—no pillows, loose blankets, bumpers or stuffed toys.
• Room‑share, not bed‑share: AAP and CPS recommend sharing a room but not a bed with your baby for at least the first six months.
• Smoke‑free: Both groups stress a smoke‑free environment before and after birth to lower the risk of SIDS.
• Newborn feeds: Drawing on AAP and public‑health guidance, most newborns need to feed at least eight times in 24 hours; very sleepy babies who aren’t gaining weight well are often woken to feed.
• Responsive feeding: Current advice favours responsive feeding—offering the breast or bottle when babies show early hunger cues, and stopping when they seem full—over strict clock‑based schedules.
• Long naps and night sleep: Paediatricians and sleep experts note that very long or very late naps can push bedtime later, so some recommend waking older babies from extra‑long or late‑day naps to protect night sleep.

Should I wake my baby if they haven’t eaten in a couple of hours?

• Newborns often lose weight in the first weeks. It's okay to wake them to feed every few hours until they've reached their birth weight.
• Once weight and feeding have been established, you can let your baby sleep for longer.

You should wake up your newborn to ensure she’s feeding every few hours, says Tracey Bridger, a paediatric endocrinologist in St. John’s. Regular feedings are important, at least until your baby has regained their birth weight. According to paediatric sleep specialist and University of Toronto associate professor Robyn Stremler, waking a newborn from long daytime stretches to feed helps signal to them to be more active during the day, which in turn helps shift those long stretches of sleep to nighttime.

However, Leigh Anne O'Connor, International Board Certified Lactation Consultant, explains that the new recommendation is to follow responsive feeding—feeding your baby when they show signs of hunger, like rooting, sucking on their hands, or looking around. "Responsive feeding helps babies learn to recognize when they're hungry or full," says O'Connor. "It lets them follow their natural cues, which is important for their growth and development. Just like adults, babies sometimes need more or less food depending on the time of day or how they're feeling."

Newborn sleep is heavily tied to feeding, which is why the first few months are such a blur. Dr. Gabriella Dauer, a paediatrician and Fellow of the American Academy of Pediatrics, notes that during the "fourth trimester," babies tend to sleep around the clock, often in short bursts lasting anywhere from 10 minutes to three hours. Their total sleep can easily reach 16 hours or more in 24 hours, and gradually decreases with age. She adds that, "you can help them start to distinguish day from night by keeping naps dark and offering plenty of natural daylight during wake hours."

Once your baby is healthy, gaining weight, and is feeding, peeing, and pooping regularly—usually after the first couple of weeks—you can relax a bit, says Bridger. Because newborns don't understand day or night, they can sleep for long stretches of time. This can be unsettling for some parents who worry about good sleep habits early on, but Victoria-based sleep consultant Donna McLachlan says there’s no need for a schedule in the first four weeks. "Babies need their sleep," McLachlan says, "so once they are feeding well, you can trust they'll wake up when they're hungry. O'Connor adds that responsive feeding also helps babies trust their own hunger cues, so they'll naturally wake up when they're ready to eat.

Should I wake my baby if they've slept past their naptime?

• Following your baby's cues is more important than sticking to a strict sleep schedule.
• But sticking with a general timeline can help your baby sleep better at night.

By about four or five months, when your baby has established a fairly regular nap cycle, McLachlan says it becomes possible for her to oversleep and throw off a healthy routine. “I tell parents when they have jetlag, they feel awful because they’re overtired and off their rhythm, and that’s how babies feel when they’re ‘off schedule,’” she explains.

Around 3 to 4 months, Dauer adds, babies' circadian rhythms start to mature, which is why parents often notice sleep beginning to consolidate at night. But daytime sleep is still a part of the equation: babies at this age typically get three to five hours of sleep across four to five naps, bringing their total sleep to 14-15 hours in 24 hours. Their wake windows are still short, so even one long or mistimed nap can shift the rest of the day's rhythm.

As babies grow, those wake windows lengthen, and their nap counts naturally adjust. Dauer notes that:

• 3-4 months: usually 3-4 naps
• 5-7 months: typically 3 naps, totalling 2.5-3.5 hours
• 8-12 months: generally 2 naps

Certified sleep expert Meg O’Leary of A Restful Night adds practical guidance for parents navigating these changes. “While these are general averages, every baby is different. Parents should watch their child’s cues and adjust nap timing and length accordingly. For example, a long, restorative nap in the morning may allow for a slightly shorter afternoon nap, while a shorter morning nap might require a longer midday sleep,” she explains.

She emphasizes that understanding your baby’s unique patterns is more helpful than rigid schedules. “Think of nap counts as a framework rather than a strict rule. Flexibility is key: as your baby grows, gradually shift nap times and lengths to fit their changing wake windows and your family’s daily routine.”

If naps consistently go off track—too short, too long, or badly timed—it can start to build sleep debt, Dauer explains. One-off days are usually easier to bounce back from, but repeated disruptions can make it harder for babies to settle into deep, restorative sleep both day and night.

Brittany Sheehan, a pediatric sleep consultant, explains why timing matters: "Sleep pressure is essentially our bodies' 'drive' to sleep, but there are ranges that are most ideal depending on the baby's age, to both make it easiest for them to fall asleep and stay asleep."

To keep babies on the right eat-play-sleep pattern during the day—which helps them sleep better at night—McLachlan recommends roughly sticking to a daytime schedule and waking them up if needed. In other words, don’t sweat an extra 20 minutes, but be prepared to wake them before they’ve clocked an additional hour or more of sleep during the day.

The one time when it’s a good idea to let your baby get some extra shut-eye at naptime? When she’s sick. Bridger says we all need a little extra sleep when we’re fighting off an illness—just make sure your baby is feeding enough to be nourished and stay hydrated. And ensure she’s not running a rectal temperature of 38˚C or higher.

Should I wake my baby when it's getting close to bedtime?

• Evening naps may not interfere with bedtime for babies younger than three or four months.
• As babies get older, those late in the day naps can also mean a late bedtime or broken sleep overnight.

It’s not uncommon for babies to fall asleep in the early evening, especially after a busy day. For very young babies, an evening nap might not interfere with bedtime at all, but for those over three or four months, it can make for a long night. Stremler says you can try to wake your baby from a late-day nap, but it might not work, so she recommends just trying again the next day to get that last nap in earlier. “If naps get messed up one day, it’s not the end of the world,” she says.

Sheehan points out the clear reason why late naps interfere with bedtime: "A significant amount of daytime sleep, or sleep very close to bedtime, can simply make it harder for a baby to stay asleep later on, as their body is telling them 'you already had enough, time to wake up.'"

But if you think your baby can benefit from a quick catnap in the evening before bed, think again. With the exception of newborns who drift in and out of sleep day and night, McLachlan says older babies may seem refreshed after a 10- or 20-minute nap, but they’ll soon become irritable because it’s just not enough rest. “A little power nap tricks their bodies into thinking they’ve had a restorative nap when they haven’t, which quickly leads to chronic overtiredness.”

Dauer adds that by around 8 months, most babies are on two naps a day and usually stay on this schedule until 15-18 months, when their wake window can stretch to six hours. This is typically when they transition to a single long lunchtime nap. However, she notes that if a long midday nap creeps too late or lasts too long—sometimes up to three hours—it can push bedtime later than ideal. In those cases, gently capping a nap or nudging it earlier in the day can help keep bedtime on track.

Bridger says if an evening nap becomes the new normal that keeps him awake until late —especially at six months or older—it’s a good idea to gently wake him and go through your nighttime routine (e.g. dinner, a little playtime, a bath, a story) to fill the time before getting to bed at a reasonable hour. Then, try to nudge his other naps to earlier in the day.

Should I wake my baby from their nap if I want them to sleep longer at night?

• Sleep begets sleep, as the adage goes.
• You don't want to sacrifice night sleep for naps, but an overtired baby is irritable and can have more trouble falling asleep than usual.

Unfortunately, waking a baby from a nap early doesn’t help her sleep more that night. In fact, the opposite is true. “If babies are constantly overtired, they fight sleep because their cortisol [stress] levels are so high,” explains McLachlan. “The more rested a baby is, the easier it is for her to get to sleep and stay asleep,” she says. Stremler adds that splitting up sleep throughout the day with naps is key to proper development because important brain activity happens during those sleeps.

According to Dauer, the total amount of sleep in 24 hours matters more than the exact nap schedule. Most newborns need 14-17 hours, and infants up to a year old generally need 12-16 hours, depending on their age and temperament. Naps are a part of that equation, not separate from it.

Sleep consultants echo this approach. Certified sleep expert Meg O'Leary encourages parents to think of sleep as a 24-hour total, which includes overnight sleep and naps. "It's important to prioritize overnight sleep, because that is when the most restorative rest happens. Naps do matter, and they help keep babies regulated and comfortable throughout the day, but we don’t want naps to interfere with strong overnight sleep," she explains.

She adds that the number and length of naps your child needs will depend on a few factors: average wake windows, how much of their total sleep needs they are achieving overnight, and your family's daily schedule. "I encourage parents to aim for about 11 hours of overnight sleep (which can include feedings if your baby still needs them), as this is where infants and toddlers get their most restorative sleep. Then, get the remainder of your child’s sleep quota through naps."

The bottom line

As for our family, we often chose tranquillity in the car over waking Rowan from her evening nap. It meant a late night for everyone, but within a day or so, our daughter was always back to her normal sleeping pattern again. “As parents, we drive ourselves crazy sometimes when we don’t need to,” says Bridger. “The key at any age is to get enough good quality sleep within a 24-hour period—however that works for the child and the family.”

Quick guide: When to wake your baby vs. let them sleep

0–4 weeks (brand‑new newborns)

• Wake: If they haven’t yet regained their birth weight and have gone about 3–4 hours without a feed, or if your health‑care provider has told you to wake them to feed.
• Let them sleep: Once your provider is happy with their weight gain and diaper output, it’s usually OK to let them finish a nap or a longer night stretch and feed when they wake.

1–3 months

• Wake: From very long daytime stretches (for example, a nap that’s running past 3 hours) so they can fit in enough feeds while it’s light out and start to do more of their long sleep at night.
• Let them sleep: If feeds and weight gain are on track and they’ve had a reasonable gap between feeds, you don’t need to wake them from every nap.

4–6 months

• Wake: From very late or extra‑long naps that push bedtime too late (for example, a nap that’s drifting into the evening or running much longer than their usual nap length). Gently wake, then move into your normal bedtime routine.
• Let them sleep: If a mid‑day nap runs a bit long, but there’s still time before bedtime to fit in feeds and some awake time, it’s usually fine to let them finish and adjust the rest of the day slightly.

6–12 months

• Wake: If a lunchtime nap is creeping past about 3 hours or running into late afternoon, and you know from experience it will mean a very late bedtime or split night.
• Let them sleep: On days when they’re clearly catching up (after travel, vaccinations or a run of rough nights), a little extra daytime sleep can help them reset—as long as bedtime doesn’t slide too late.

Any age

• Wake: If your baby is very hard to rouse, seems unusually floppy, pale or unwell, or you’re worried about how they’re breathing—call your health‑care provider or seek urgent care.
• Let them sleep: When they’re sick but still feeding often enough, having wet diapers and breathing comfortably. Just keep offering feeds regularly and watch for signs of worsening illness.

Experts

• Tracey Bridger is a paediatric endocrinologist based in St. John’s.
• Robyn Stremler is a paediatric sleep specialist and associate professor at the University of Toronto.
• Leigh Anne O’Connor, IBCLC, is an International Board Certified Lactation Consultant.
• Gabriella Dauer, MD, FAAP, is a paediatrician and Fellow of the American Academy of Pediatrics.
• Donna McLachlan is a Victoria-based paediatric sleep consultant.
• Meg O’Leary is a certified sleep expert with A Restful Night.
• Brittany Sheehan is a paediatric sleep consultant.