New parents have surely gone through the sleepless stage in taking care of their little ones. Babies have a total of 16 to 17 hours of sleep every day including naps and this decreases as they get older. They seem to cry a lot whenever they wake up from deep sleep or even short nap -- carrying this behavior even in their toddler years.
Infants and babies wake up crying because of several reasons. They cry because they are hungry, chilling, or feeling uncomfortable and disturbed. However, when babies reach the toddler years, the crying behavior as well as its causes also change and vary. They start to experience sleep inertia, anxiety awakenings and sleeping discomforts.
The first mentioned cause is sleep inertia. This is the state where the baby feels groggy when he or she wakes up -- feeling half asleep as discussed in the Valley Sleep Ceter. Though this is likewise common in adults, some parents' forum pages attest that most young children are also experiencing sleep inertia.
As posted in an article from Big Sky Lullaby page, sleep inertia occurs on children that are disturbed in their sleep. Children will then experience the feeling of sleepiness and wakefulness at the same time which causes them to be disoriented. They cry because they feel like they lack too much sleep.
Another cause is anxiety awakenings. As babies reach the toddler years, they develop the feeling of fear being away from parents -- giving them an unsecured feeling according to Live Strong. This explains why toddlers cry when they wake up after naps without the presence of their parents or a guardian. They are afraid and wanting for their parents' presence to feel secure. Toddlers will overcome this eventually when they grow older.
The most common cause of waking up crying in babies is sleep discomfort. There can be a lot of reasons why they feel uncomfortable. It could be that they feel wet, too cold or warm, or unwell -- waking them up because of pain.
So, to all moms and dads out there, it is important to check their diaper and room temperature before putting them to sleep. If the cause is illness, seeing a doctor is always the best solution.
