The Impact of Object Permanence on Pediatric Sleep

Did your baby suddenly start sleeping worse instead of better around 6 months? The culprit may be a developmental psychology milestone called object permanence. Object permanence is the ability to understand that something continues to exist even when it can’t be seen. Prior to the development of this skill, once something was out of your baby’s line of sight, it simply fell off the face of the earth. Every time baby couldn’t see you, you had vanished. Kind of puts peek-a-boo in a new light, doesn’t it?

This psychological leap happens between 5 and 7 months for all babies and while it is a necessary part of human development, it can have some unpleasant night-time side effects. Suddenly, your baby can comprehend that even though you have put them to bed and walked out of the room, you are still out there but not physically with them. This is a frustrating concept for your little one as they don’t understand why you are there in an abstract, non-visual sense, but not there in a physical one.

Thanks to the development of object permanence, your baby is now capable of separation anxiety. Simply put, your baby now knows what it feels like to miss you. This sentiment is heart-warming in the afternoon but can be exhausting in the middle of the night as your baby can now wake up, remember that you were there when he went to bed, but you are not now, and (loudly) let you know he misses you.

The easiest way to get through this rough patch is to have consistent bedtime routines and not lapse into unhealthy sleep habits like letting baby fall asleep on you, picking baby up every time he fusses, or using sleep aids like mobiles.

By Hannah Mira, Founder of Bonsoir Bebe Sleep Consulting