3mth old - day time naps and how much awake time?

[marie11]

Hi my child is 3mths old.  I also have a toddler and so finding easy harder to follow this time around as LO has to come in the car to take toddler to and from daycare twice a week and we also have one toddler play thing a week in a morning.  We dont have family nearby so leaving LO with someone is not an option.
Night times are going well - LO sleeps from around 8pm to 3am, wakes for a feed and is back down within 20mins till 7am.  LO was doing good day time naps through the day but for the last week they are very very short. I have been monitoring and he can wake anywhere from 10 - 45 mins later.  He also seems hungry but not sure if that is because of short naps?  Can offer him a BF anywhere from 90 mins to 3hrs after the last one.  
I have read through threads and see that short naps can be due to being OT or UT and poss hunger.  
I know our daily routine is not perfect but when we are home I do try to follow 3hr easy.
I usually pop LO down about 1hr - 1hr 15mins after getting up as seems scratchy - could this be mistaking boredom for tiredness? What is average awake time for 3mth old pls?
Would just like some feedback as to what experienced hands out there think our problem is?
I dont do as much out and about with toddler now but feel she still needs some things in her life and so its just trying to hit a happy medium.
Thank you!

[claires mum]

The average A time for 3 months is around 1 hour 20 mins - 1 hour 30 mins.  If your LO is sleeping 45 mins then that would usually indicate that he needs slightly longer A times (only increment by 10 minutes for 3-5 days).  If he's sleeping less than 45 mins ..then that would indicate that he's OT. 

He's sleeping very well at night..well done!  How many hours sleep per day does he usually have?

[marie11]

Thanks for reply - he was getting about 4hrs per day, now 1.5hrs if we are lucky. sounds like OT...........

[claires mum]

Absolutely...he would be OT with such a small amount of daytime sleep.  Do you recognise his tired cues yet?  If so, then just put him down as soon as he shows them to you.  Forget the clock and be guided by him...he needs to fill up on some sleep over the next few days.

[marie11]

Last night he slept from 8pm to 6am which was great! I figured this was a great start to our day and that he couldnt be OT after that so it was a fresh start. Heres how the morning went....

6am wake, feed, change etc
7.10am Sleep
7.50am Wake - I left him to resettle and thought he had but then after 20mins he cried on and off till 8.30am.
8.30am - Got him out of bed
8.50am - Feed, change, activity
10.10am - Sleep
10.30am - Wake!! I was out and my husband was home - he also left him to resettle but said he was getting too upset so got him up.  He then fell asleep in my husbands arms for an hour!!

My queries are -
He must be able to self settle as he surely doesnt stay asleep all night, so wondering what is happening in the day? Also he was able to do longer sleeps last week - why not now??!!
And after a long night sleep I didnt think he could be OT but he only did short 1st sleep.
Should I have got him up adter his 45min sleep 1st thing instead of leaving him as he was probably awake on/off from 7.50am??
I am just a bit confused by it all!!
But his little eyes are so red by the end of the day.....

Thank you again!

 

[claires mum]

Between 1-3 months the average sleep requirement is between 15-18 hours in total.  You would be aiming for 3*1.5 hour naps during the day + a catnap.  The average A time is 1 hour 20 - 1 hour 30 minutes.  OTness usually doesn't disappear with just one good night of sleep though..it takes a few days to get the sleep bank filled up iykwim.

Those 20 minute naps do sound like he's still OT. 

Do you have a wind down routine?
Is his sleeping environment dark and quiet (or have white noise in the background)?
Do you swaddle him?
What happens during his day naps...can you observe any patterns?  Perhaps he's jolting himself awake ..you can try to extend the naps by being there and putting pressure on the jolts or shh/pat if needed.

[marie11]

Hi there
Unfortunately I havent been able to watch him as much as I would like to as I usually have my 2 and half year old in tow and she would wake him up if she came in with me!!!:)
He did stay in his bed for 2 hrs this morning and I kept sticking my head in, he seemed to be awake for 50% of the time with his eyes half open and moaning but not crying so I let him be.
He keeps having good nights so hopefully we can get back to an even keel to help with his OT.
I usually give him a cuddle in the living room whilst my toddler is around then ducking off to his bedroom for a few mins quieter cuddle, draw his blinds and pop him in sleep bag and swaddle. He is very drowsy when popped down, but always opens his eyes when laid down and has a cry for about 5mins but then goes off.
Thank you for all your replys - much much appreciated!

[claires mum]

Well I'll keep watching for your updates and hope that the OTness corrects itself.  I understand how difficult it is when you have another toddler who wants to *help*!!

I'm thinking that you may need to be in your LO's room during the day naps and help to extend the naps.  Perhaps you could do this over the weekend when you have someone else around to occupy your other little bundle of joy?