12 wk old getting tired only after 1 hr wake time

[heyyou9999]

My LO is currently on 3 hour EASY.  However, starting this week he only takes 45 minutes naps and wakes up happy.  However, he would get tired after only 45min-1 hour.  Should I be transitioning to a 3.5 hour EASY or may 4 hour EASY?

Should I just let him take 45 minute naps?  I would prefer him having longer wake time and naps.  With such short wake time, he's only cheerful the first 30 minutes and then really mellow for the rest of the duration.  Please advise. 

His night time sleep is fine with only one feeding.  He wakes up at 7 am and is in bed by 7:30 PM. 

[cityvic73]

It may just be a growth spurt and your baby needs a bit more sleep at the moment.  My dd slept LOADS at 12 weeks and settled back into her rythm.  Hope it's true for you, too. 

[~*~Little Miss Sunshine~*~]

I had the same thing happen to my ds (he is almost 14 wks).  I started to transition to a 3.5 hr EASY.  Your lo is still too young for the 4 hr EASY especially if he is breastfeeding.  He should be awake for about 1.25 - 1.5 hrs. You may have to slowly adjust the A time...maybe 15 minutes the first day for the first A time and see how that goes.  Unfortunately this is prime time for 45 minute naps, so transitioning to the 3.5 hr EASY may not fix the 45 minute naps all the time but it is worth a shot!!

[heyyou9999]

would you happen to have a sample of a 3.5 hr EASY schedule?  How long do you think this phase usually lasts?  I don't want my LO to get into a habit of 45 min naps. 

[~*~Little Miss Sunshine~*~]

This is my 3.5 hr EASY

7 am - Eat
7:30 - 8:15 Activity
8:30 - Sleep
10:30 - Eat
11:00 - 11:45 - Activity
12:00 - Sleep
2:00 - Eat
2:30 - 3:15 - Activity
3:30 - Sleep
5 or 5:30 - Eat
At this point I try to get him down for a catnap sometime between 5:30 and 6:00 - usually just a walk in the stroller for about 30 minutes
7 or 7:30 - Eat
7:30 or 8:00 - bed

Sometimes his naps are 45 minutes, other times they are between 1 and 2 hours.  If he wakes early and I can't get him back to sleep, I just try to keep his activity time to 1.5 hours and put him down a little earlier after a feed.  he never take three 2 hour naps during the day.  Like yesterday he napped for 2 hours, then 1.5 hours, then 1 hour, so I just worked around that.

It varies how long your lo will take 45 minute naps.  I too am afraid he will get used to it, but he doesn't take ALL 45 minutes naps (thankfully).  He may have 2 days where he will nap only 45 minutes, then the next couple of days the naps are longer, so I know he is able to take longer naps.  If you think the naps might be a problem, you could always try wake to sleep.

Babies spend the first couple of months sorting out their nighttime sleep then move on to work out their day time sleep (hence the 45 minute nap monster at this age).  I am told that it usually works itself out, but that could take a couple of months.  I know this is probably not what you want to hear, but again, if it becoming a HUGE issue, you can always do shh/pat or wake to sleep to try and extend the naps!

HTH

[heyyou9999]

Thank so much for your reply and schedule.  Unfortunately, for the last week, every single one of my LO's naps have been 30-45 mins.  When he wakes, he doesn't cry.  He just lays there, sucks on his hands, looks around for 10-15 minutes, sleeps for 5 minutes, and wakes up again.  When I come in to get him, he smiles and is ready to play, but then quickly gets tired. 

I tried the W2S, but it doesn't work.  I tried sh/pat, but that would only extend his nap for 5-10 minutes.  It seems like he is restless or something.  Is that possible? 

I will try to implement your 3.5 schedule and see if that is helpful.  May I ask how many ounces your LO takes per feeding?

[~*~Little Miss Sunshine~*~]

It is tough when your LO doesn't nap very well!!  It could be that he is not getting enough A time so he thinks he only has to take a short nap (I know it sounds weird).  Sometimes my ds does the same thing...like he is ready to go, but 30 minutes later he yawns and is tired again!

How long does your LO stay up first thing in the morning?  that might be the best way to start extending his A time - start with the first one before he has any short naps.  If he has a hard time staying awake in the morning (many babies do), you may just have to walk with him and not do anything stimulating.

As for how many ounces he takes a day, I am not sure since I breastfeed, but when he does take a bottle (his df and when he is at the sitter's) he will usually drink 4 - 5 ounces.

[nursekat]

Hi Heyyou!
Most babies aren't ready to transition to the 3.5hr easy until they are 4 months or older, and are showing signs of being ready.

Unfortunately, 45min naps are developmental and VERY common at your LOs age.  We struggled with it for several months starting at 3months of age.  I highly recommend going over to the NAPS forum and reading as many FAQs as you can find on the subject and joining the gals on the support thread.  There are a lot of things you can try to lengthen the naps in order to get proper daytime sleep in.

HTH!

[heyyou9999]

Just an update:

Instead of following his sleep cues (usually around 45min-1hr), I extended his wake time to 1.5 hours.  Now he sleeps like a champ.  However, yesterday he wanted to sleep for more than 2 hrs and I had to wake him.  I guess it's working too well.   LOL

Thank you Annipooh22 so much for your help.

[~*~Little Miss Sunshine~*~]

Glad I could help 

[heyyou9999]

Annipooh22:

Do you dreamfeed your LO?  or does he sleep from 7 pm straight to 7 am?  My LO goes to bed at 7pm as well and normally wakes at 6:30-7am.  At around 1-2 am he would stir a lot and suck on his hand vigoriously.  He wouldn't actually wake up, but I would normally feed him anyways because I am afraid that he's hungry.  Just wanted to know if he would be okay without the middle of the night feed.

[~*~Little Miss Sunshine~*~]

heyyou9999 - yes I do a dreamfeed at around 10:30pm