The dreaded 45 minute nap

[jnduff]

My LO is 4 1/2 months and on a pretty good 4 hour easy.  He is pretty good at putting himself to sleep but we still have crazy days and bedtimes every now and again.  My problem right now is he is doing 45 minute naps.  The pat/shush has never really worked for us and seems to make him more upset.  Typically he will start to fuss and I go in and scoop him up and gently bounce him to calm down and then sway for a minute or so.  This calms him down and resettles him. I am just afraid that I am starting a new habit for him to get back to sleep on his own.  Any ideas or suggestions of what to do?  Most of the time I know he is still tired and will nap a bit longer so I am thinking it is not an issue of being under tired. Help!!!

[danaadell]

I'm glad you got to 4 hour EASY -- we still haven't! (Our babies have the same b-day if you remember from another post).  We are still stuck on 45 minute naps as well. No advice--just another mom in the 45 minute trenches... :-)

[weaver]

The classic sh-pat doesn't work for all babies, it can be tweaked to hum and rub, or whatever works for you and him.  Spiriteds and touchies tend to need it tweaked most.

I would avoid always doing the same thing for the 45 min nap - I mean, the scooping and bouncing every time, yes, I think you're right, that could become a habit, and be a real pain for you!  Will he settle if you leave him in the cot?  With a hand laid on him? Or a back rub? Something that is easy for you to reduce in the future.

The other thing to consider (you may have thought of it already) is whether he needs you to intervene - is he upset? is he just mantra-ing? talking to himself? Have you tried leaving him, will he settled himself?

I would try some of these tips:
How do I address habitual wakings? (wake-to-sleep and other methods)

and then also cut myself some slack   If he will sleep in a sling, or a buggy, then get it ready while he's asleep, and when he wakes up, pop him in there, and head out. With any luck, he will drop off, and end up with approximately the right amount of sleep.  And you'll get a nice walk.  When I had one 2yo and one baby, I used to do this for the am nap, and then 'work' on the pm nap when LO1 was asleep.

[jnduff]

Oh no...still not on 4 hour....I just one day switched him because he was waking like 2-4 times per night plus the 45 minute nap.  I didn't even do it gradual...one day I woke up and started it from there.  Good luck I hope things improve for you.

I have not tried to just leave him...when I peak in he is awake with eyes open not looking for paci or anything.  I try to resettle him before scooping him up but usually have no luck.  I might try going in at the 30 minute mark and see if I can barely wake him to reset cycle.  I know my other two did the same thing but for the life of me cannot remember what. I did to fix the problem...I just remember working on the same thing and eventually we got on track.  I will check on the link you sent, thanks!