Napping Problems

[Jnguyen]

Hi,

I'm new to this forum and the EASY routine.  Yesterday was my first day trying it and it went fine, but there is one problem that is consistent and it has to do with napping.  My LO does not like to nap for very long and prefers to be held or nap in the swing.  When we put her in the crib to nap the longest she has gone is 40 minutes.  Usually, she will only stay in her crib for 10 to 20 minutes and then she cries, so we pick her up and have to repeat.  Sometimes, I just want her to nap so will put her in the swing.  Any suggestions on how we can get her to nap in her crib for longer periods of time?

Thank you so much for any advice or suggestions.

[Jnguyen]

I forgot to mention that she is about 10 weeks old.

[deb]

Hi and welcome!

There are some FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions) files that you might find helpful - here are the Sleep FAQ's: SLEEP

We went through something similar around 3 months with my first baby. Reflux was part of the problem, and we didn't have a swing, which made it worse. Here's what we ended up doing: How Tracy Helped Josie and her Family Get Past 45-Min. Naps!

If you can post your EASY schedule so we can see when your baby wakes, how long she's awake, and when she eats, we might be able to find a pattern that can help guide you.

[Jnguyen]

Hi Deb!

Thank you so much for the advice.

Yesterday (December 28) is the first day I tried the EASY routine and I pretty much followed the schedule outlined in the BW here is how it went:

4:00 a.m: EAT and then sleep
7:00 a.m: EAT
7:45 a.m: Activity (diaper change, tummy time, mat time)
8:15 a.m: Start nap process (not sure how much she actually slept as I didn't track it), spent some time in swing

10:12 a.m: EAT
10:45 a.m: Activity (diaper change, tummy time, mat time, talking time)
11:15 a.m: Start nap process (not sure how much she actually slept as I didn't track it), spent some time in swing

12:55 p.m: EAT
1:45 p.m: Activity
2:15 p.m: Start nap process (not sure how much she actually slept as I didn't track it), spent some time in swing

4:03 p.m: EAT
4:45 p.m: Activity
5:15 p.m: Start nap process (only around 20 min in crib)

6:01 p.m: EAT
7:00 p.m: Bath, bedtime ritual
7:15 p.m: Start nap process (in crib, but had spent time in arms)

7:58 p.m: EAT
Slept after feed

Diaper change
10:09 pm: EAT (breast and a bottle of expressed breast milk)

My LO slept until 5:00 a.m.

Day 2 (December 29):
5:07 am: feed for about 30 min, then had to burp and do a diaper change
6:15 am: Sleep in crib
7:10 a.m: Activity (because she work up)

8:00 a.m Eat for about 20 min
8:25ish a.m: Activity (tummy time, mat time)
9:15 a.m to 10:45 a.m: Sleep (8 min in crib, had to get her to settle, and rest of the time in swing)

10:45 a.m: Eat
11:15 a.m: Activity (diaper, tummy time, sitting and talking to dad)
12 to 2:00 p.m: Sleep (in car seat as we went out)

2:03 p.m: Eat
2:30 p.m: Activity
3:00 to 3:25 p.m: Sleep (in car seat as went home). I tried to put her in her crib to sleep, but she wouldn't.  Tried settling her and putting her in the swing, but she wouldn't sleep so we did Activity until about 4:15

4:15 p.m: Eat
4:40 p.m: Activity

It is now 5:10 p.m. on Day 2 and I'm going to try and put her down for a cat nap at 5:30 in her crib (let's see how this goes).  I plan to feed her again around 6:15 or 6:30, then do bath and bed time routine at 7:00 and then a final feed at 7:30 or 8:00 pm. I will also do a dream feed at around 9:30 or 10:00 p.m.

A couple of observations that may affect her napping is she usually falls asleep at the breast and then wakes up when we burb her.  Do you think that is affecting her napping?  Also, she likes to be carried and doesn't really like to nap in her crib (I do dim the lights, put on the sleep sheep so there is some noise).  I don't know what I can do to get her to sleep in her crib, as opposed to the swing.

[deb]

In our case, not being able to sleep while laying flat in bed was a sign (or would have been if I had known what to look for) of reflux; she slept better slightly inclined or upright, or on her tummy on my chest. Is she fussy when she lays down? Is she spitting up? (Although not all reflux has visible spitting up)

Also, as she's approaching the 3-month growth spurt, sleep is more likely to be all over the map when that happens, since they get hungrier more often. They also will get to be more efficient feeders, so she'll be nursing for shorter times soon.

The schedule looks okay to me, although to be fair it's been a long long time since I had little ones that age (my "baby" is 11.5YO now!). Hopefully you'll get some other eyes here. You might also want to put a link to this in the Naps board to get some more visibility.

[Jnguyen]

Hi Deb,

My LO spat up often when she was between 3 weeks to about 8 weeks.  I asked the doctor about acid reflux issues, but she said she didn't think that was the cause of the spit ups, but that it had more to do with my strong let downs.  My LO hasn't been spitting up as much lately.  Also, it is easier to have my LO stay in the crib at night than during nap time, so if it is reflux than wouldn't it happen every time I put her down?  Regardless, you may be right and it could very well be reflux so I will look into letting her sleep on an incline.

Thanks and happy holidays!

[deb]

We found that keeping DD upright for 15-20 minutes after a feed at that age helped a lot. It gave the milk time to leave the stomach (or at least start to) before she went horizontal again.

There's a Reflux101 Post around on the Colic/Reflux/Crying Board; you can see if any of the symptoms sound familiar to you. Not necessarily the case of course, but I didn't know about it until my DD was nearly 3.5 months old (and it was HERE on BW that I learned about it, not from my pediatrician!), so I always put it out there as a possibility when babies like to be upright.