Five week old-short naps!!??

[Elke]

My five week old daughter began taking short naps a few days ago . Previously she was easily sleeping for 1 1/2 hours and is on a 2 1/2-3 hour Easy. She is swaddled and sometimes uses a paci to calm her into a nap but often falls asleep without it in. Yesterday I went in when she awoke (usually after 45 minutes) and I would ssh/pat her into another 45 minute nap which seemed to work most of the time. I don't know if this is the right thing to do and it certaintly isn't convenient. Anyhow today is not off to such a good start...

Why is this happening?? What can I do?? Any suggestions??

[Elke]

I should also add that I had had problems with Otness which led to me not being able to get her to sleep for an hour (we were previously on a 3-3 1/2 EASY.) With some of your help I realised that my DD is only capable of 45 min-one hour A time.
Despite my DH and my MIA telling me that babies should be awake for a longer period of time between feeds, I began a routine of only BF, nappy change and a few minutes of staring at each other until my DD began to yawn, after which I begin the four S routine. Now I am able to get her to sleep within 20-30 minutes !!

I am including this info because I don't think the problem is OTness in this case. What else could it be?

[deckchariot]

{{{{{{{{hugs}}}}}}} to you honey!  It looks like you are right on track with the short A time, so well done there!!!  5 weeks is really little to have sleeping all sorted out.  Generally in the first week or so, bubs are so tired from the whole birth experience, that sleep may actually be easier than it is later.  Babies brain sort out day and night sleep differently.  Night sleep develops first (0-3 mos) and then day sleep later (3-6 mos), so she's just really young to have her naps down.  At this age, consistency is key - having a set winddown routine, swaddling, and using shh/pat.  She will get it.  Hang in there!!!

hth
michelle

[Elke]

Thanks for your support. We are having really difficult day. Somehow I got my DD from probably UT to OT and now I haven't been able to get her to sleep for FOUR hours. I haven't the energy to continue Ssh/pat-she won't fall asleep! Has she become immune? She has been sucking on her paci queitly for about 30 minutes and has her eyes WIDE open! What should I do, leave her there in peace?

[deckchariot]

If you need a bit of a break from sleep training, it's ok to take a day or two off.  I'm quite sure that your dd is not immune to shh/pat.  It just takes time.  We started sleep training the day we brought Abby home from the hospital, and by 6 weeks, she was doing nighttime independently, and naps came in the 4-6 weeks after that.  So at 5 weeks, I'm not surprised that you're having a tough time.  It's just really hard when they're really little.  But shh/pat does work.  It really does.  We would often take a break for the last nap of the day and just get Abby to sleep however we could (swing, stroller, rocking) just to get a decent nap in before bedtime, and then start fresh the next day.

Here's a link with stories of success from shh/pat that might be an encouragement to you:
http://babywhispererforums.com/index.php?topic=106837.0

And please do come here for support.  We've all been there with a bub who won't sleep.  Trust me, the time invested now will pay dividends for a loooooooooooooong time.  You can do this!

hth
michelle

[ahart]

I could have written this exact message. I started EASY with my son at 4 weeks and was amazed at how quickly he took to it. He goes down easily for naps and puts himself to sleep with very little fussing. The first week he was taking 2- 2.5 hour naps, then at 5 weeks old he started waking after 45 minutes. I've mostly been getting him up and then putting him back to sleep 20 minutes later when he yawns and shows signs of being tired. I have a 3 year old as well so it's impossible to sit in the room doing shush-pat for an extended period of time trying to get him back to sleep. His night sleep has been great, so I'm hopeful the days will fall into place.

I have a question about when to intervene when they are fussing/crying. Generally,at the beginning of a nap, he just fusses and settles himself, but sometimes it escalates to a cry. When i've intervened with shush pat, it seems to get him more upset. Sometimes I've let him cry for 2 minutes and he is able to put himself to sleep. On on occasion, I was not able to get to him immediately and his crying escalated to fairly hysterical for several minutes, but before I could get there, he put himself back to sleep. This made me wonder if I'm intervening too soon. I don't want to let him cry it out, but if he can put himself to sleep after crying a few minutes, should I let him? and should I try this when he wakes up after 45 minutes from his nap? When do you intervene with shush pat?

Also, since i'm new to the site, can someone tell me what OT and UT are? 

[mom of two]

ahart...i've been wondering the same thing about when to intervene in naps...my lo seems to be going through the same exact thing right now...that is reassuring that it is developmental because I could have written your guys' posts a few weeks ago since my lo is a bit older. 

[deckchariot]

OT = overtired, UT = undertired

In terms of intervening, that's where it's helpful to try to figure out what your lo's mantra cry is.  You don't want to intervene if it's a mantra cry.  you do want to intervene if it's the "I need you" cry.  It took me two months to figure out the difference.   A mantra cry is very rhythmic and does not escalate.  For my daughter, it was a bit like talking/crying.  It's different for every bub.  Here's a link that may help:  http://babywhispererforums.com/index.php?topic=64160.0

Also, at 6 weeks, most bubs go through a major growth spurt, so that can affect sleep.  I just want to encourage you moms that you are doing great.  It's just really hard when they're so little.  I know when we were in the midst of that (and I wrote several frantic posts during those early weeks) I felt like I  must be doing something wrong.  But now looking back, I realize she was just really little and I was a bit over-anxious to have it all sorted out.  It will come together.  You are still getting to know your bubs and they're getting to know you.  Just be as consistent as you can, take breaks when you need to, and get as much support as you can (IRL and on here).  You are all wonderful mums!!!

hth
michelle