Are you suffering from babylag?

Are you hit by Babylag? Getty

The latest buzz word on the parenting scene is Babylag - the extreme exhaustion that comes with being a new mum or dad.

So if you've ever fallen asleep in the shower, found your keys in the microwave or got half way up the stairs and forgotten if you were going up or down, you're not alone.

New research from JOHNSON'S® Baby has found three quarters of new parents suffer sleep deprivation in the early weeks and months of parenthood as they adjust to life with a sleep-thief in the house.

The poll of 1,000 mums with children under four years also found nearly half don't get the recommended eight hours of kip each night with a third being woken three or more times.

'Babylag' - defined as 'the indescribable, can't-keep-your-eyes-open, desperate-for-a-nap feeling only experienced by new parents' - is also the cause of many weird new-parent fails.

One mum admitted hanging dry washing on the line (not productive) and confusing the washing machine for the fridge and finding a new home for the milk.

Commenting on the findings, sleep expert Dr Dev Banerjee said: "Any parent can empathise with the experience and consequences of sleep deprivation caused by having young children or babies up during the night. The term 'babylag' seems very fitting as the symptoms experienced by parents are akin to clocking up numerous transatlantic flights and suffering extreme jet lag.

"When parents are woken up regularly in the night they rarely enter the final stages of 'deep' sleep, denying their bodies the chance to re-charge and prepare for the day ahead. If that is happening night after night it can lead to slower reaction times, poor concentration and affect memory recall and problem solving."

As we all know, sleep is worth its weight in gold, but for some new parents, there really is a price to be paid for a good night's kip: one in five new mums said they would cough up £500 for a night of blissful, uninterrupted slumber, and just under a third would give up chocolate for a month.

Now that's commitment to the cause...

You can see how 'baby-lagged' you are with the fun online quiz at Johnsonsbaby.co.uk

So, go on, how much sleep do you get each night?

More on Parentdish:

Funny pictures of babies who will sleep ANYWHERE (expect their cots, of course)

Brilliant baby moments

Eureka!
 It's so fascinating to see your little one learn about the world, not to mention her own body. If you're lucky, you might even witness the expression on her face when she realises her hands are attached…and she can use them to bat stuff with! (I witnessed the very moment my daughter realised her feet were attached, when she bit down hard on a big toe.)
Family ties
 There will be a particular moment, perhaps not even straight away, and perhaps when you are doing the most mundane of things, when you’ll look at your partner and your baby, and it will hit you for the very first time that you are "a family".
Making scents
 You might have heard people talking about the intoxicating scent of a baby's head before and wondered what on earth they were going on about. But take a big whiff of your own little nipper, and you’ll be away with the fairies! No, you haven't just gone gooey – some experts think babies' heads give off pheromones that send oxytocin coursing through your veins (dads, too). Breathe it in, it doesn't last forever!
Touching moments
 Feeding your baby is always a great time for bonding, but it's the little unexpected things they do - such as clutching at your hand, pawing your breast (or, as mine did, pinging your bra strap) that make it memorable.
Getting the giggles
 Some babies do it early, others make their parents wait and work bloody hard for it… but the first time your baby really laughs from their belly, your heart will sing! Who'd have thought daddy could ever be THAT funny? Seriously.
Here's lookin' at you!
 Most babies arrive a bit puffy and spend the first few days with their faces screwed up, trying to make sense of the shapes they’re suddenly seeing. But when those dark eyes actually find yours, you’ll be blown away by the feeling that this brand new little person knows you to your very soul.
Mini me!
 Many parents find it easier to see their newborn as an image of their partner - but the first time you  recognise a part of yourself in your baby (perhaps a wonky yawn or the way they lift their eyebrows) is a strange, yet lovely, sensation.
Snooze fests
 There is nothing more peaceful than reclining with a sleeping baby on your chest: soft little breaths, squidgy cheeks, a perfect pause in time… Zzzz.
Simple things
 You wouldn't be normal unless you sometimes missed the old days, when you could drop everything and head out for a night on the town. But the realisation that you really would rather be snuggling at home with your baby than out strutting your stuff makes you feel as warm as the cup of cocoa you're clutching.
The 'awwww!' factor
 From hiccupping (seriously adorable) to learning to kiss you back, there will by myriad moments of supreme cuteness. But possibly the biggest "Awww!" will come when you use the bubbles in your baby’s bath to make him look like a gnome (and he beams at you because he has no idea what he looks like).
Adulation and adoration
 Who needs to be a superstar, eh? With your baby comes the stupendous feeling of being the funniest, loveliest, most important person in any room. And, of course, you are.