Support for Short Nappers

[momtothomas]

To all you posting that your babies "outgrew" the 45-minute nap thing...  When did this happen?  I posted this question a month or so ago and got a couple responses, but I'm still very curious.  I can't WAIT for it to happen for my DS!!!

[Sarah - Enfys' Mum]

Enfys outgrew 45 minute naps at 5 months of age (to the day actually).  Apart from days I work and her daddy puts her down for a nap an hour (!) early.  As long as I make sure she's up long enough, she's fine.  Probably one nap every two days I'll hear her at 35 to 45 minutes; within 10 minutes she's back off again.  I think it helped a lot when I started closing her bedroom door when I put her down for a nap and left it closed.  I used to trawl up and down the hall looking in at her and now I don't.  I assume she's sleeping!  If not, she's darn quiet!  How old is Thomas?

[momtothomas]

He's 6 months and one week old, but he was born a month early, so more like just over 5 months...  Every now and then he'll make it past the 45 minute mark on his own while at the sitter's house, but never for me!  He's had a cold for 10 days now, so that's throwing everything out of whack anyway.  I just look forward to the day when he'll make it longer than 40-45 minutes on his own.  This afternoon, he slept 45 minutes, woke up unhappy, and I had to calm him down (shush, let him cry some, pick him up, etc) for almost an hour, at which point he fell back asleep for an hour.  I've read everything in the world, lurked on these boards, asked around... and I can't get him to be consistent.  I guess he's just got my stubborn and strong personality and will outgrow it when he chooses!

[~*~Little Miss Sunshine~*~]

Mine still hasn't outgrown them and he'll be 7 months on Thursday  

[ElsMom]

Swedish Mom, I try to extend naps every day, but have only been working at it for 2 weeks.  I find it harder on the weekends, because DH is home and there's more likely to be noise in the house, and I want to be out of DD's room doing something even worse than on the weekdays!  This morning I was tired, though, and since she'd had 2 good mornings out of 3, I just stayed out (well, I went in at 30 minutes and reset her lullaby music, but I didn't wait around).  She stayed asleep for an hour and a half!  So I'll probably take tomorrow morning off, too, and hope for the best.  The afternoons may take a bit longer, but at least if it's just once a day instead of twice, I get a little more Y time.  I'm hopeful that since I only had to work at the morning naps for 2 weeks, maybe I'll have the same good luck with afternoons.  But of course, it's probably not anything I've been doing at all, just DD being ready on her own!   

[SwedishMom]

I just read through the whole thread and now I realize that I don't remember much at all of what I read hahaha! That's a sleep deprived mother for you. And to think that I'm trying to talk dh into have a third lo...He refuses by the way  I can't wait for David to get a bit older so he won't need as many naps (and sweaty sush/pat sessions).

Today is a weird day. Our day starts much later, he has gone back to having 'night' between 11 pm and 10 am. This morning when we came home about 10, I fed him and he promptly fell asleep again for another hour. After 45 min awake time he was cranky so I put him in the crib for sleep, he was out efter maybe 10 seconds. I don't what's going on.

I haven't started putting David in his crib for bedtime yet as he is really OT and cranky at that time, I'm afraid it will be a disaster if I try to put him down in the crib when he is in such a state. It's really hard to read his cues by then which is weird because he is pretty easy to read during the day. Maybe I should put him to bed right after the last nap with no A time at all? I'll keep experimenting until I get calm and peaceful go-to-bed sessions and then it's time for the crib. Oh well, maybe I'm just being a coward.

[SwedishMom]

PS. pbmom, I hope you are feeling better! DS

[pbmom]

Brooke is 19weeks and re: 45 min naps...she does not make it past that mark on her own (well - once a week maybe).  In fact, everyday I have to plug her and she'll go right back off, but she still requires me to come in and help.  I think this is partly b/se she is still swaddled. 

Her am nap is ok.  For the pm one, I guess we have a bit more time before she will be able to do it alone (supposedly by 6 mos this nap sorts itself out - although we see that sometimes it doesn't from our other friends here).  It seems to be less and less that I have to go in as the weeks go by - it used to be like 10 times each nap.  BUT, this way is so much better than before when she would completely wake after a short nap no matter what I did and then when I had to hold her down.  Hated that, but it worked for us.  After a week she didn't need me to hold anymore, just to plug and sometimes roll her over.   

ps - mind you I say all this and I have just ran into her room on 3 separate occasions to replug (it's the afternoon nap) and this last time I had to turn her onto her side.  For some reason she side sleeps for naps and back sleeps for night.  I don't know. 

[holly746]

Ladies - Hi all im knew so please bare with me

Am having massive napping issues with my little fella. Some days he just wont sleep, others he sleeps lots and am trying to instill some sleeping plans as i am going back to work soon.
My dh thinks that by asking too many questions i am confusing myself and of course he knows best
I am also having lots of night wakening and have been talking to the ladies over there and they have directed me to you all for some good advice

Edward is 20weeks old today. its only really been that last four weeks that i have been enforcing some sleep and his night times seem worse now not better, before that he slept sporadically thru the day but we would have some good nights, now i try and get him to have at least 2 naps and apparantly that is not enough, he is always waking thru these naps and generally shoving his hands in his mouth whenever possible!

im sooooo tired..

the only saving grace is that at 7pm on the dot he goes to bed!

any help you can give me to extend the naps would be gratefully recieved

H

[teamcarbone]

Swedishmom- thanks for posting your routine.  It looks like you're feeding him every 3 to 3.5 hrs, correct?  At his age though 7wks right,  you really should be on a 3 hour EASY with a DF, which means feed every 3 hours and would work towards 3 1.5hr naps a day plus one catnap.  How is his night sleep?  I think you need to work on moving up his bedtime, if he's up at 8 then you should be putting him down around 8:30, then you could do a DF around 11:00.  I remember having the same issues with those long stretches of awake time in the evening, mostly because my DD was a Spirit/Angel and by the end of the day she was way over stimulated which made it very difficult to settle her down for bedtime.  Here's what you should aim for:

E-8:00-BF
A-8:30 or 8:45
S-9:30 nap (1.5hr.)
E-11:00-BF
A-11:30or11:45
S-12:30 nap(1.5hr)
E-2:00-BF
A-2:30or2:45
S-3:30 nap(1.5hr)
E-5:00-BF
S-Between 6-7 Here Tracy recommends a catnap around 40min. to get them through the next feed and bath.
E -8:00-BF
A-bath or bedtime routine
S- 8:30
E- 10 or 11 - Dream Feed

Of course this routine varies if your LO takes a short nap, which means everything moves up. 

Some advice for Spirited ones, they need long windown 20min at times, watch for the over stimulation and I usually keep a VERY dark room for sleeping.  I know this is a lot to take in so if you have any questions please let us know.  I think you need to first work on a routine then tackle the naps, that's just my opinion. 

[ElsMom]

Anybody know what a 25 minute catnap means?  We were doing so well today (1.5 hrs & 1.25 hrs with no extensions) and then the catnap was 25 minutes.  Did she probably just get enough sleep during the day, or could I somehow have gotten her overstimulated even though we were just playing low key on a blanket outside?  And I guess I need to put her down for the night early, since she was awake 30 minutes earlier than normal...??  Just when I get one thing figured out, she gives me something brand new I've never dealt with before! 

[teamcarbone]

Hi all...good news my DD has been taking 2 hour morning naps and a 1 hour afternoon nanp with A times up to 2hr. and 45min. long!  I'm not fussing over the short afternoon nap because she's getting a total of 3 hours during the day and I hate to admit but 12 hours at night  .  I read that at this age they tend to want take shorter naps because there is too much fun stuff to see! 

Welcome holly746, could you post your routine you might need to work on his A time.  I always second guess myself  with my LO and asked lots of questions in the beginning which can make you a little crazy so just relax and we're here to give you support and hopefully offer some advice that works for you and your DS.

Pbmom- How are you feeling? Brooke still doing okay with her naps? 

momtothomas- Sorry to hear your LO is sick, my DD just got over a cold and is doing much better with her naps.  Another mother gave me the advice to just make your sick LO comfortable and worry about getting back on the sleep training once he's feeling better. I remember month 6 was another transition period where I needed to adjust my DD's A time.  You said your DS will sleep long at the sitter's house how long is your DS awake before the sitter puts him down to sleep?  Just a thought.

Elsmom- Usually a 20 minute nap means overtired, but if she's giving you 25min for a catnap I wouldn't worry about it and put her down a few minutes earlier.  See how things go tomorrow. I finally got to the point where I wouldn't fight the short catnaps.  BTW-what EASY are you on?   Could she be ready to drop the catnap?  That was the first one to go for me. 

Roman's Mom- Sorry your LO hasn't outgrown the 45 minute nap monster....

[SwedishMom]

TeamCarbone,
 
My EASY routine has changed a bit both because David started sleeping through the mornings and I've rearranged the naps a bit. It now looks like this (give or take 15 min or so)

E 9:45-BF
A-10:15
S-11 nap 2hr, this is really a 1.5 h nap but I extend it and it takes some time.
E-13:15-BF
A-13:30
S-3:00 nap 1.5hr in stroller
E-4:30-BF
A-5:00
S-6:15 nap 1.5hr in sling
E-8:00-BF
S-9:15 or so catnap 30 - 45 min
E-10:00-BF
A-bedtime routine
S-11


I do the 4S routine for both naps and bedtime. This looks to me like a really really late EASY.  I want to work on moving the whole timetable forward so he wakes for the day 7:30 but I'll post a question on the EASY forum.

[SwedishMom]

I forgot to write that night sleep is ok (to me at least), he sleeps 3-4 h stretches. I don't have a DF since we go to bed so late so it's just one of the night feeds instead.

[pbmom]

Team Carbone - feeling much better here.  Brooke is doing better with her naps as I finally figured out exactly what she likes for winddown/sleep ritual.  If I change it even a tiny bit all hell breaks loose.  I do turn her on her side when she stirs at 30 min on morning nap, but she then sleeps total of 2 hrs.  Afternoon nap is a bit tricky.  Sometimes she goes on her own for a long nap (2 hrs) and others I am in and out helping.  Who knows?!  Glad to hear your lo is doing so well with nights - what's your secret??  Mine has been wacky this week with NW where we only had one before for food.  Not sure what it is...maybe GS...maybe teething...maybe developmental.  DD1 never did this so not sure.