10-Week-Old Baby Development

Your sweet baby is 10 weeks old and everything from naps and feedings to those middle-of-the-night changes are starting to feel normal. Here's what you can expect for your 10-week-old baby, plus tips on how to manage everything like a pro.

The Basics of 10-Week-Old Baby Sleep

Your baby hasn't exactly started calendaring their appointments yet, but around 10 weeks, you might notice that their schedule becomes much more predictable. Infants will spend approximately 75% of their day sleeping—that's between 14 and 17 hours a day, but it's not all at once.

A typical 10-week-old infant routine might look like this:

Once your baby wakes up in the morning, you can expect them to eat, play, then go down for a prelunch snooze after about two hours of awake time, say, around 9 or 10 a.m.Your little one will repeat the eat-play-nap pattern in the afternoon with a second nap that begins around 1 p.m.Your baby will go for yet another nap in the late afternoon or early evening, say, around 4 p.m.

As their sporadic sleep patterns consolidate into more defined naps, they'll also doze for increasingly predictable lengths of time, generally about 1 to 1 1/2 hours per nap. But don't worry if your baby sleeps for only 30 minutes at a stretch or seems nowhere close to sleeping through the night. Sleep patterns change every few weeks at this stage, and they'll develop these habits eventually.

How To Help Your Baby Develop Healthy Sleep Patterns

Helping your baby develop a reliable sleep routine is a great way to create a predictable schedule, which can make all the difference when juggling life, work, and your baby. Consistency is the key to creating any routine, especially when it comes to sleep.

Here are some tips for developing a healthy sleep routine for your 10-week-old baby:

Stick to the same schedule as much as possible every day with the main activities like eating, naps, baths, and outings happening at roughly the same time.Aim to put your baby in the same spot (such as their crib or bassinet) for most naps.Create cues to help your baby learn their schedule, such as dimming the lights for nap time or drawing a bath before bedtime.

As great as creating a reliable schedule can feel, don't be too strict or rigid about it. Babies thrive on routine, but you'll still want your little one to stay a little flexible for when the schedule inevitably needs to be adjusted. You'll appreciate your little one's ability to have a naps in the stroller when you're running errands or in the car seat after an appointment instead of having a meltdown about missing that normal nap spot.

While keeping a schedule can help you feel a bit more in control as a new parent—and can help you predict what your baby's going to need next—every so often, it's nice to chuck the routine out the window and go with the flow. Bonus: It'll help you stay calm on days when your baby is nothing but unpredictable.

How to Deal With Sleep Deprivation After Baby

Keeping Your 10-Week-Old Baby Healthy

You try everything you can to protect your baby from illness, including wielding a bottle of hand sanitizer at anyone who comes within 50 feet of them. Still, your little one is bound to catch a cold sooner or later.

In fact, babies have immature immune systems, which means they tend to catch more illnesses than you do—averaging eight to 10 colds a year before the age of 2. Unfortunately, most infant cold medicines have been proven ineffective at best and harmful at worst, so usually, the illness just has to run its course, a process that can take anywhere from a few days to a few weeks.

That said, you should still be in contact with your baby's pediatrician, so that you can monitor the illness together. Most of the time your baby will get over the illness on their own, but there are times when additional treatment may be needed.

Your baby's doctor might suggest a variety of at-home remedies to help your little one feel more comfortable while the virus runs its course. Here are a few tried and true methods to help your baby feel better:

Bulb syringe: Use a bulb syringe or nasal aspirator to unstuff your baby's nose. When a cold clogs your little one's nose, they might have a hard time eating (because they have to breathe through their nose while sucking). If that's the case, use the bulb syringe before feeding time.Saline nose drops: Squeezing saline nose drops into your little one's nasal passages thins the mucus, making the bulb syringe more effective.Humidifier: Set up a cool-mist humidifier where your baby sleeps to moisten the air, which can help soothe irritated nasal passages and break up some congestion.Hydration: Keep your baby hydrated by offering feedings regularly, especially if you find they are eating less. (Don't offer your 10-week-old any liquids other than breast milk or formula unless advised by a pediatrician.)

When to Call the Doctor

Call a doctor immediately if your baby has any of the following symptoms:

Your baby seems to be getting worse, not betterCoughingWheezingTugging on ears (this could indicate an ear infection)ListlessFewer wet diapersCrying, fussy, or otherwise seems uncomfortableHas a rectal temperature above 100.4 degrees F, which is considered an emergency in babies under 3 months of age7 Newborn Vaccines Your Baby Needs

Tips for Managing Life With a 10-Week-Old Baby

Ever feel utterly overwhelmed by life with a 10-week-old? If so, you're not alone. Between household chores, errands, work, and a new baby with nonstop demands, feeling snowed under is practically part of the job description.

But that doesn't mean you should do it alone. The first lesson of new parenthood: Ask for help. When you're asking for help from friends or family, be specific about what you need. Rather than simply telling them you're overloaded, suggest some specific tasks they can take over. Maybe they can throw in a few loads of laundry, take charge of dinner, or handle the 11 p.m. feeding so you can get more sleep.

Alternatively, you can ask them to line up a babysitter (or babysit themselves!). With someone you trust at the helm for a few hours, you can spend some quality time alone or with your partner. A few hours sans baby can feel luxurious, and that will go a long way toward helping you keep your head above water the rest of the week.

Key Takeaways

Your 10-week-old baby is likely beginning to develop more of a predictable sleep routine—and that's exciting news! Help your baby along by creating a predictable schedule, which can also help you manage all of your responsibilities. If you feel overwhelmed, don't worry, that is 100% normal. Reach out to friends and family for help and advice.