Bedtime Fading
The method involves initially aligning bedtime with the time the child spontaneously tends to fall asleep, to increase the likelihood of quick sleep onset. When the child falls asleep quickly and consistently, bedtime is gradually moved earlier. In research and clinical practice, bedtime fading is most often used as a supportive component combined with other sleep training methods, rather than as a standalone method.
How the method works
The parent first observes what time the child actually tends to fall asleep and sets that as the temporary bedtime. When the child consistently falls asleep within about 15 to 20 minutes, bedtime is moved 15 minutes earlier. The process is repeated gradually until the desired bedtime is reached. The method focuses on adjusting sleep timing rather than the degree of parental involvement. Bedtime fading is often combined with other strategies, for example with graduated extinction in Gradisar et al. (2016)³, since the timing adjustment addresses falling-asleep difficulties but not necessarily night wakings or other sleep problems.
What the research says
Bedtime fading has some support in research, particularly in paediatric sleep medicine.¹ The method is based on sleep physiological principles of sleep homeostasis. By delaying bedtime, higher sleep pressure builds up, which facilitates falling asleep. Studies have shown that the method can reduce time to fall asleep.² In the most noted study by Gradisar et al. (2016)³, bedtime fading was used in combination with graduated extinction, making it difficult to isolate the effect of bedtime fading alone. Overall, there is support that the method can be a valuable complement, but the evidence for it as a standalone intervention is limited.
Potential benefits
- Involves no crying – builds on natural sleepiness
- Can be combined with other methods
- Focuses on timing rather than behaviour change
- Can be perceived as a gentle and logical method
Challenges
- –May involve a temporarily late bedtime
- –Requires patience – the process can take several weeks
- –Not suitable if the problem is mainly night wakings
Sources
- Piazza, C. C., & Fisher, W. W. (1991). Bedtime fading in the treatment of pediatric insomnia. Journal of Behavior Therapy and Experimental Psychiatry, 22(1), 53–56.
- Mindell, J. A., et al. (2006). Behavioral treatment of bedtime problems and night wakings in infants and young children. Sleep, 29(10), 1263–1276.
- Gradisar, M., et al. (2016). Behavioral interventions for infant sleep problems: A randomized controlled trial. Pediatrics, 137(6), e20151486.