"My baby used to be a good sleeper, but now he wakes up at night."
- Jane, Lincoln

It can be crushing when a baby who was sleeping well suddenly starts to wake up again. You’ve had a taste of good sleep, and now you feel ripped off!

Unfortunately, there are almost always some blips in the sleep process—times when your baby wakes up even though he is not sick or hasn’t been thrust out of sleep by an unusual event, such as a loud thunderstorm. These blips can occur during developmental milestones, when the baby is learning to roll over, sit up, or stand up. He’s excited and may want to share his happiness with you! Wakings may also occur during teething (although teething is overrated as a cause of serial wakings) or when a baby suffers from jet lag. Sometimes babies start waking up for reasons that no one fully understands.

Of course, if your baby is waking up because he is sick or in pain—you can probably tell by the cry, which tends to be much more insistent or higher-pitched than usual—go to him and help him. If you have ruled out these causes and the baby is younger than six months, you may also need to attend to the baby. He’s still very little and profoundly dependent on you. If he’s already proven that he doesn’t need to eat at night, try not to rely on food as a soothing method. Instead, comfort him with as little fuss as possible. In a few nights, he may resume his good sleeping habits. As a last resort, you can try letting the baby fuss for five or ten minutes before responding to him, especially if the cry sounds sleepy—he may settle down on his own. If that doesn’t work, you may need to wait until he is old enough to learn self-soothing techniques (see chapter 4).

If the baby is six months or older, you have a slightly different set of tools in your kit. Try giving the baby a few minutes to return to sleep before going in. Then respond as neutrally as possible. Try patting the baby without picking him up, or talking to him in soothing tones. If the baby has pulled himself to a standing position and is unable to get down (it really happens), or if he has a foot caught between the crib slats, assist him and then try to leave the room. I recommend doing this in as matter-of-fact a manner as possible. Try not to speak, don’t smile, avoid making eye contact, and don’t linger, because you don’t want your baby to get the idea that it’s time to play. If the baby is still waking up after a few nights, you may choose to teach him self-soothing techniques. If you have already gone through a self-soothing routine before, there’s some good news: it should proceed more quickly this time.