Short naps making it SO hard to go from 3-4hr easy!

[careenk]

My lb is now almost 4months and he has 30min naps most of the time.
I would like to get him to a 4hr routine but dindingg it so hatd as he wakes so early from every nap.

At the moment, I keep moving his feeds earlier due to him waking after 30min nap.

How do I extend the time between feeds if he wakes 90mins before hus next feed is due? If I do extend the time between feeds he will neep to nap again basically straght after his feed which again after 30mons he will just wake throwing me off track even more!

Finding it really hard at the moment. Any suggestions welcome!

Thanks x

[becj86]

Can you please post how the last 2 days looked? Its pretty hard to say what's happening without that.

Also, info re: how he is fed (formula/breast milk, bottle/breast), any medical conditions and previous sleep patterns - ice. is the 30min nap thing new?

Hugs xx

[careenk]

Ok, he was quite colicky for the first 2,5months with LOTS of crying and screeming but that is better now.  He was napping better then (maybe from all the screaming) but still not long enough.

The last week getting him to sleep for naps have also been better as he was so hard to get down without absolute hysterical crying. But that is better now. Takes me about 20mins with some crying and fussing but not as bad as it was.

Ok, so yesterday was as follows:

Wake at 6:15 am
6:30. Eat (breast)
6:45. Activity
7:45. Get ready for nap
8-8:40    Nap
9:45. Eat (breast)
10.    Activity
10:15 get ready for nap
10:30- 11:10 Nap
12:30 Eat (bottle)
Hardly any activity
12:45-1:30 Nap
Tried getting him to nap longer and sleep again without any luck
3:15. Eat (breast) and fell asleep for 10mins during feed
Took him out for walk in pram at 4pm to try and get him to sleep without luck
Eventually in bed napping at 5pm for 40mins

Then bath at 6:15, breast and bed

The day before was very similar!

He sleeps well at night and goes to bed at night without any major issues mostly.
Just the day times that is so off! My other son was so much easier and had no real issues with naps etc. maybe some short ones here and there but could eventually get him to sleep longer but with this bubba....he just gets hysterical if I even try and get him to sleep more.

I have also tried more and leas activity time, longer and shorter times before naps and nothing seems to get him to sleep longer.

Just not sure how to extend E times if he is already so tired with just the next 3hr E time.

[becj86]

E times is not usually the reason to extend - its more related to E extending as A time extends, yk? I think you may find that most of those naps were 40min. Now those can be developmental but they can also be UT and given he's not even pulling an OT nap after a 1:50 A time and a 40 min nap, I'd say almost certainly UT (maybe the reason for the screaming pre-nap...)

Perhaps try increasing A times to 2hr and holding there. Be ready to resettle an OT waking with shush/pat or hold through the jolts, so go in at 25min and watch for him to stir so you're resettling from just waking rather than from screaming. You may find he sleeps longer naps, you may find after a few days he needs another increase though that would suggest he may be lower sleep needs than average.