14mo-is this UT or OT?! I'm so confused!!

[Nb1984]

Ok so I am totally confused!

My DD started frequent NW so I posted her a week or so ago about what to do & I started the 2:1 transition by shortening the AM nap to 30 mins from 45, and trying to bring her PM nap slightly earlier in the day.

She seems totally exhausted by me doing this, and is still waking about midnight and takes anything up to 3 hours to re-settle, it's now 2.25am and she's been waking every 20-30 mins since 12.30. I'm leaving her when she's just doing a fussy cry and sometimes she goes back off for 20/30 mins again, but then she'll wake & stand in her cot & just scream until I go in! She's slightly teething but her molar has broken in now, I've given her nurofen, over an hour ago now & I literally don't know what to do!!

Her day yesterday was this:

7am wake
7.15am 4oz milk
8.30am breakfast
9.30am nap (she took ages to settle, usually down by 9.15)
10am wake
12pm lunch
12.30 asleep
(again this nap is usually always 90mins but she woke after an hour)
1.30pm awake
5.30pm tea
6.30pm bath
7pm bath

And then it's anything from 12-1.30 she wakes and is then up for a couple of hours. I know yesterday the awake time until bedtime was a very long time, but the day before she napped 1-2.30 and still woke for over an hour in the night, should I not wake her after 30 mins in the AM? And do you think maybe she wasnt tired enough for the PM nap? Sorry, I feel all out of sync and I am not sure where I'm going wrong!

Thanks for reading x

[Tweakster]

HI there, well teeth can be a huge part of it but I also think she's in an UT/OT loop. 

2.5 hrs A time is really short, I'd bump that up to more before the short AM nap.

So something like:
Awake 7
Nap 10-10:30
Nap 1:30-3
Bed asleep by 7

That A time to bed is long.  It could be causing OT at night.

Are you medicating before bed and you can also try a DF of meds about 6 hrs after the first dose...?

[Nb1984]

Thank you!  That does make sense, I wondered if the first nap was the issue, that's a really good idea to move it a bit later. Today she's done 9.45-10.15 and now 1.45-3.15 so I'm hoping that makes tonight better!

I usually give her nurofen at 10pm but I felt like last night that disturbed her. Now she's slept better today hopefully tonight won't be a problem. Thank so much for your help xxx

[Nb1984]

Ok so since Saturday I have tried the new plan and it worked well on Saturday as she fell asleep in the car at 1.30, however, on Sunday and again today both my husbandand I have found it impossible to get her to sleep for the PM nap at 1.30! Both days we've ended up putting her in the car & she hasn't gone down til about 2pm, and then sleeping til 3.30 means she isn't that tired at bedtime.

Yesterday she did
7am awake
10am nap 40 mins
2pm sleep til 3.15
7pm bed

Then she woke at 12.30 and it took me til about 2.30 to settle her. She was going to sleep but waking again after 30 mins.

When we put her down at 1.30 she just plays in her for, stands up in it and cruises around the bars and throws things she can reach in her room, when she really cries if we go in she starts laughing?!?! Sorry, any suggestions you have would be fab!!

[Tweakster]

It could be that 40 mins is too long...shave it back to 30 mins or even 20 mins and move the PM nap backwards.

So:
Awake 7
Nap 10 - 10:30
Nap 1:30 - 3
Asleep 7

or
Awake 7
Nap 10:30 - 10:50 (wake her - she'll likely be tired and cranky)
*Nap 1 - 3  (start with a ~2 hr A time after a 20 min nap but be mindful that some need more some need less A time to PM nap)
Bedtime asleep by 7 (if PM nap is short, do an earlier bedtime until she starts elongating that nap) - you may also have to move bedtime out (closer to after a longer nap as some need a longer A time to bed after a good PM nap...so you would have a 7 - 8 schedule with 11 hrs overnight + around 2 hrs day sleep.  Very common in this transition.