Usually, the fear of the dark hits home for kids around the ages of 2 or 3, when they're old enough to imagine, but not wise enough to distinguish fantasy from reality, Berman says.
Fear of the dark is very common among toddlers. It's also a sign of a child's developmental progress, says Maureen Girvan, an instructor of early learning and child care and teacher education at Red Deer College in Red Deer, Alta. “To younger babies, when they can't see something, it no longer exists.
When does a fear of the dark typically start and end? Children are most often afraid of the dark starting at around the age of about 2 through the preschool years, although it can appear in older children as well. A fear of the dark usually lasts for a few weeks to a few months.
To answer our question - NO. Babies don't have a fear of the dark. Sometimes when we are sleep training, once we walk into the child's room they actually start to cry. This is short-term and actually a good indicator to you that they are beginning to learn the cues for sleep.
Your baby also may become afraid of objects and situations that she used to take in stride. At this age, fears of the dark, thunder, and loud appliances such as vacuum cleaners are common.
If your child is under 2 years old, any upset overnight is not due to the darkness in their room. Developmentally, they are not yet capable of being afraid of the dark. Consider this, your child spent almost 10 months in the (dark) womb. Babies are quite used to the dark!
Babies truly sleep best when a room is really dark. I know that some families worry their baby may be afraid of the dark, but I want to reassure you that these fears typically don't develop until age two or older. Night lights in the nursery aren't necessary for baby sleep.
Your baby's intervals of crying should be no longer than 10 minutes. And with the bedtime fading technique, you put your baby to bed a little later each night, shifting bedtime back by 10 to 15 minutes, until your little one is tired enough to fall asleep on their own, even with a bit of crying.
Q: Why does my 18 month old keep waking up at night? A: The most common causes of night waking at this age are overtiredness and sleep onset associations. Children who skip naps or go to bed too late may be overtired, resulting in more wakings.
Babies are just starting to understand the meaning associated with a fearful face between 5–7 months of age. Generally, 7-month-old babies pay more attention to faces with fearful expressions (compared to happy or neutral expressions).
“The reason is because they begin to engage in more imaginative play. Scary images and events multiply the chance that they will feel fear and anxiety during this period. Some people never quite work through this and, even as adults, feel a sense of anxiety in darkness."
A: Fear of the dark is quite common, especially at this age.
Any change can cause a child to feel insecure and fearful. Finally, your child's temperament is important to consider. Children who are by nature more fearful and cautious, or, who get overstimulated easily, are more likely to develop fears.
They fear what might be under their bed or in the closet. Many are afraid of the dark and at bedtime. Some are afraid of scary dreams. Young kids may also be afraid of loud noises, like thunder or fireworks.
Your newborn needs to eat every few hours because her stomach is so tiny. Most babies cry at night because they are hungry.
The 12-month sleep regression is a change in a baby's sleep schedule that occurs around the time they turn one year old. Sleep regression can seemingly appear out of nowhere. Even with consistent sleep training, a baby can suddenly develop adverse sleep habits that lead to crankiness, fussiness, and sleep deprivation.
Important Language Milestones
18 month olds should use least 20 words, including different types of words, such as nouns (“baby”, “cookie”), verbs (“eat”, “go”), prepositions (“up”, “down”), adjectives (“hot”, “sleepy”), and social words (“hi”, “bye”).
18 month olds benefit from a regular schedule, including 11 - 12 hours of nighttime sleep. Bedtime should be fairly consistent at this age, with most 18 month olds going to bed between 6:00 and 8:00 PM.
By 18 months, most toddlers have transitioned down to 1 nap. At this age your baby needs 1.5 -3 hours of daytime nap hours total and 11-12 hours of overnight sleep.
Crying it out
It's OK to let your baby cry if the baby doesn't seem sick and you've tried everything to soothe your baby.
“Assuming there are no medical issues, there is no harm in a baby's excessive crying,” he says. “They may get a hoarse voice, but they will eventually get tired and stop crying. Your baby may also get a little gassy from swallowing air while crying, but that's OK.
Following on from this point, Bilgin and Wolke (2020a) conclude that leaving infants to 'cry it out' has no harmful impact 'while a parent is present… and they monitor the infant's crying' (p. 1192).
Around 3 months old, your baby's body will begin producing melatonin. Melatonin is the sleepy hormone that helps induce sleep and helps your baby fall into more of a regular sleep cycle. When your child is in a dark room, their pineal gland in the brain begins to produce melatonin.
They concluded that "TV viewing among infants and toddlers is associated with irregular sleep schedules" for kids' bedtimes and naptimes. Many theories exist as to how television viewing might affect sleep. It may be that the bright lights of the television before sleep affects the sleep-wake cycle, they write.
Most babies don't start sleeping through the night (6 to 8 hours) without waking until they are about 3 months old, or until they weigh 12 to 13 pounds. About two-thirds of babies are able to sleep through the night on a regular basis by age 6 months.