The 8 to 10 month regression (crawling and separation anxiety)

This guide is general information only and isn't a substitute for medical advice. If you're concerned about your child's health, or they're unwell, please see a doctor.

Somewhere between eight and ten months, a lot of babies who had settled into decent sleep suddenly start protesting bedtime, waking overnight, and standing up in the cot at 4am practising their new tricks. Several big developments land at once here, which is exactly why sleep wobbles.

What's driving it

This window is packed with change: crawling, pulling to stand, and often a nap transition from three sleeps to two. On top of the physical leaps, separation anxiety is often in full swing. Raising Children notes it can start at around 6 to 7 months and peaks at about 14 to 18 months, so at this age your baby genuinely notices and minds when you leave the room.

Add it together and you get a baby whose brain is too busy to switch off, and who wants you close when the lights go out.

The cot gymnastics phase

Expect practice-crawling and pulling to stand in the cot, sometimes at bedtime, sometimes in the middle of the night. It looks like a sleep problem, but it's usually a skills problem: the new ability is so exciting the body won't rest.

Give plenty of floor time to practise crawling and standing during the day, so there's less need to rehearse at midnight. If your baby stands and gets stuck, calmly help them down without turning it into a game or a long chat.

Handling the separation anxiety

Warm, boring consistency is your friend. Reassure without building a brand-new habit you'll have to undo later, since a week of rocking or feeding back to sleep can outlast the regression that started it.

• Keep bedtime calm, predictable, and connected, with a little extra cuddle time built into the routine.
• Respond to genuine distress, but keep overnight visits short and low-key.
• Hold your nap structure steady, since overtiredness makes separation anxiety louder.

How long it lasts

Many babies settle within a few weeks once the new skills feel ordinary, though the timing varies a lot. If sleep is still in pieces after several weeks with no improvement, or nobody in the house is coping, that's exactly what a sleep consultant is for.

In the meantime, protect your own sleep where you can by sharing the night load, because this stretch is genuinely tiring and it does pass. If possible, avoid introducing sleep supports that you don't want to continue long-term: the same crawling, standing baby who is keeping you up will usually, within a few weeks, be the one sleeping soundly through the very skills that caused the disruption.

Sources

• Raising Children Network, Baby sleep 2 to 12 months
• Raising Children Network, Separation anxiety

Last updated: July 2026. Sources include Red Nose Australia and Raising Children Network where cited above. This guide is general information only. For individual concerns, see your GP or child health nurse.