Advise needed is this right?

[madelineowen]

Hi would really appreciate some advise.

This is my second baby. I did follow the BW with my first but started late around six months and have forgotten a lot.

My LO is 5 months now and we have been experiencing some sleep problems.I know that a lot of it has been down to AP due to me feeling quite guilty over the rough time he has had.

Anyway i plan to start EASY next week when my husband can take some time of work to help with my older one.

He has been currently feeding every 3.5 - 4 hours and naps have been a nightmare. He's been a 45 minute napper for the last four weeks now. I started going into the bedroom today at around the 38min mark to hold him through his jolt. The first one went well and he managed 1. 1/2 hours. The next nap not so good he only managed 50 Min's. We are now on our third nap.  I went in held him and he went back off for another 40 Min's. When i got him up he was screaming so i took it that he was still tired. I managed to settle him and he went back off for another 35 Min's.

i feel that i can read him quite well so i new he needed more sleep but my problem is that i don't want him to have to much sleep so that it will effect his night time sleep. Although that's not all that great either at the moment. In the book it says that he needs two naps of 2-3 hours each, but on here a lot of people say two naps of 2 hours and a cat nap so I'm a little confussed? if he had two naps of 3 hours isn't that to much? and how long is a cat nap?
He usually goes to bed at 7-7.30, has a dream feed at 10 p.m., usually wakes at around 1a.m. for another feed, and then again at around 3-4 a.m. for another feed and then wakes at 6a.m. sometimes he will stay awake from 5 and fuss until 6. I have started to water these extra night feeds down and will continue to do so over the next few day's.(hoping that he will give them up)
I'm sorry if i have rambled but i wanted you to get a clear picture. Hope you can offer some advise.

Maddy

[marensmama]

The catnap is a 45 minute nap.  So at his age, he 'should' be having 2-2hr naps plus a catnap or 2-2/3 hour naps.  If he has started having 45 minute naps throughout the day, that usually indicates that he needs more A time.  However, those short naps are not restorative so he then is getting OT. 

So a sample EASY would be this:
7:00 E, A
9:00 S
11:00 E, A
1:00 S
3:00 E, A
4:45 S
5:30 A
6:30 E
7:00 bedtime

What does your routine look like?

So it's not unusual at this age to have one or MAYBE two NWs for a feed, but more than that seems like he's got some other issue (ie. prop issue or needing more daytime calories or day sleep messed up, interfering somehow with night sleep).  You mentioned that he has had a rough time, is that health related or some other issue that might be affecting his sleep?

[madelineowen]

Thanks for your reply regarding nap times, that help's a lot. He's not really on an EASY rountine as of yet but i have been writing things down for the last few days and this is a rough guide:

Up at 6
Activity-7.30
Feed-7.40
Sleep-8 for 45 mins then i have to resettle by walking him up and down and then he sleeps for another 45 mins

The rest of the day is pretty much the same.He roughly stay's awake 1.45 to 2 hours. Feeds every 1.30 - 2 hours nomore than 4-5oz.We have been really working on his naps this past week and this is what we have acheived.Two broken naps of two 45 mins. sometimes one in the morning, and a 45-50 in the afternoon and then another 45x 45 in the evening, so it looks like this.
45x45- 45-50 45x45 or 45x45-45x45- 45-50. Yesterday was the first day i held through jolts and never took him out of his cot or walked him up and down. We did well in the morning, only managed 50 mins in the afternoon and then did the same as the morning in the evening which went well. We always do a bath rountine in the evening before bed and this is usually 7-7.30. He has a d/feed at 10, wakes at 1 and then again at 3-4 for another feed. Which i have started to water down, hoping he will take more in the day.

I am wondering if the two 45x45 nap in the evening is affecting his sleep at night. Also i know that he is not really taking a lot of food during the day so this may also be a problem.Thinking of starting him on solids?

Right up until the last few days he was napping every 45 mins up for 30 mins to an hour and then back off for another 45 it was a nightmare, haven't really been out for weeks now.

As regards to his health. It really all started when i was pregnant i went into labour at 32 weeks, which they managed to stop, after giving me loads if drugs and steriods, this went on for another two weeks, so i had a planned c-section at 37 1/2 weeks. Three days' later he had two have an operation on his testicals.Five weeks later, after weeks and weeks of screaming and a terrible rash that developed on his body.The hospital dignosed him with baby eczmea ands really bad colic. We have the eczmea under controlly with cream and the colic has gone now. But we have to have regular check ups for his testical, as he may have to loss it when hes older. God ive really rambled, SORRY!

[marensmama]

Sorry it has taken me so long to get back to you!  So I have a few thoughts...

In terms of starting solids, he'll get more calories from milk (BM or formula) than he will from solids and if he has any reactions to food that will mess up your nights even more.  Eczema and colic can be related to food allergies/sensitivies, so TBH I'd be reluctant to start that right now.  I'd hold off a bit until you feel like things are more sorted so you can see if he's having a hard time with any of it.  I guarantee you that the 'need' to start solids are not the issue.  I waited until my DD2 was 8.5 months before starting solids because she had reflux issues, and really as long as you start them before 10 months or so they do just fine.

In order to follow EASY, he 'should' be fed upon awakening, not before he goes down for his nap.  You do risk feeding becoming a prop if you feed right before sleep, I wonder if that's part of your troubles?

If he has a 45 minute nap AND wakes happy after that first block of A time in the morning, then I'd give him 15 minutes more A time for that first block the next day.  If he's crabby upon awakening, then he's likely OT and the A time should be shorter.  Regardless of the cause, a short nap should be followed by a shortened A time for the next block so he doesn't get OT.

Let me know how you make out!