Do they outgrow short naps?

[louloulou13]

Sorry if this has been asked before but do most babies outgrow short naps? My LO only naps for 30mins at a time at 16 weeks, I have tried to extend with little sucess. Just want to know if there is light at the end of the tunnel so to speak?

[Dree]

Unfortunately, your LO is not even completing 1 sleep cycle. They need to sleep 45 min to complete 1 cycle. If they wake up happy then you have nothing to worry about. BUT if they wake up crying then then did not sleep enough. Do they need a diaper change. I used to change my dd diaper before and after naps. She slept longer that way.

What I do suggest is to walk into your LO room and put your hand on them at the 30 min mark. Caress their forehead, this used to help my dd go back to sleep.

Good Luck
Dree 

p.s They do eventually grow out of it. My dd at your LO age would sleep 45min about 3 to 4 times a day. Now that she is 2yrs old, she sleeps for 2hrs in the afternoon. This will happen to you too...PROMISE.

[marensmama]

30 minute naps generally indicate that the LO is OT, so should have less A time than what you're giving him.  If you can post your routine, I'll take a look and see if we can tweak it to improve the naps.  Dree mentions the wake to sleep method which lots of people have success with, but it doesn't work for everyone.  You could also try pat/shh to extend the nap.  Is your LO swaddled?  Does he have any props? 

Some children are serial short nappers, but they generally sleep for 45 minutes and wake up happy.  I think 30 minutes is too short and perhaps a change with the routine combined with a nap extension technique may help.

[caf_uk]

my dd would sleep for exactly 30mins about 90% of the time.  I could set me watch by it...  She woke up generally happy and rearing to go so i gave up on trying to extend.  She did eventually extend herself but not until she was about 1.5-2 years old!!

[louloulou13]

Thanks, her naps have inproved a little, she is now sleeping 45 mins generally. She isn't swaddled and we stopped using a dummy 3 weeks ago. She sucks her fingers to self soothe. I usually hold her for 5 minutes before putting her down then shh/patt to sleep. I have tried rubbing forhead and shh/patt and W2S but she wakes so suddenly and so fully that none have worked well, she will nodd off for 5 more mins but then wakes grumpy. her routine looks like this-

0730 wake and breastfeed
0800 nappy change, cuddles, playgym, quiet songs
0900-0930 nap (45 mins, wakes happy)
1000 ish - play
1030- breastfeed, nappy change, clothes off play on floor.
1200 - nap (45mins, wakes happy)
1300 ish- baby bouncer
1330- breastfeed, nappy change, play or go out shopping etc
1500- nap (usually 40 mins, sometimes shorter, sometimes wakes grumpy)
1545- cuddles, play or walk
1630- breastfeed
1700- solids feed
1715- clothes off play
1745- shower
1800- breastfeed
1900- bed
2200- dreamfeed
0400- wake, feed, sleeps on and off till 0730

[Shdef]

I looked up a few sample routines for that age:

Wake at 6.30/7am and play in cot
7.00am Breastfeed
9.00am Nap
10am Breastfeed
11.30 Nap
1pm Breastfeed
2.30 Nap
4pm Breastfeed
5.15 Nap
7pm Bedtime routine and breastfeed
10.15pm Dreamfeed - slept till 6.30am


Or this one:

E  7:00 wake and bf
A
E  8:15 breakfast
A  until 8:45 then wind down in room
S  9:00 nap (sometimes 1-2 hours, usually 45 min)

E  10:30 bf
A  until 12:30
S  12:45/1:00 nap

E  2:00 bf
A  until 4:15
S  4:30 nap (always 30-45 min)

E  5:15 bf
A
E  6:00 dinner
A  7:00 start bedtime routine, bath, massage, pj's,
E  7:20 bf
S  7:30 bed

E  usually woke 1-2 times to bf  1:00am, and 4:30am.  always right back
    to sleep.


I would say a bath might be more calming than a shower at that age 

The self-soothing and the extention to 45 min is a good sign, so well done.

BTW, Scotty only properly grew out when he turned 8 months and switched to two naps.

Good luck!!!

[louloulou13]

Thanks, for that, it is a big help.

Would love to give her a bath but we don't have one and she is too big for baby bath

Will look at tweaking her rountine abit after looking at these ones