Help needed for 17 month old on one nap.

[*Becky*]

Hi ladies,
Decided to lock the other thread as it was getting v long and the original issue seems to be better...for now!
Ok so DS is 17 months and we are in the world of one nap with some 2 nap days. I am struggling to work out the correct A times that he needs and nights seem to be getting shorter so am thinking he is possibly getting OT.
Yesterday was our first good one nap day and he slept 2 hours - mummy was amazed and v happy but he then did a 10.40 night which has always meant OT here. So yesterday was this...

A 6.15am
S - 11.55-2pm
Bedtime 7pm

A today at 5.40am
I think this is where I have gone wrong as I decided to stick with one nap and put him down at 11.30am but he is fighting it so I guess he is OT and I guess I should have done a 2 nap day - I am preparing to do wiwo. I really don't want to put him down for one nap earlier than 11.30am, ideally 12pm as it leaves so long before bed and he is not one of those lo's that will do really long nights to catch up.

I guess where I am confused is that yesterday looked like the perfect day to me and I don't understand why we got an EW. Is this just him getting used to the longer A times?

Thanks
bx

[*Becky*]

he did 1.35/40 in the end so it will be a while till bedtime but could have been worse I guess!

[*Becky*]

sorry - it was 1.25. Woke happy though.

[scucci1979]

I know for my lo when we were not strictly on one naps, she would easily become OT. If you think he is getting OT, can you let him sleep a little bit longer for his one nap or move bedtime earlier?

I wish I could help! Love to hear what others have to say.

[*Becky*]

well he is a chronic short napper and always has been although yesterday he proved me wrong for once! I am going to see how tonight goes - if it is bad then 2 naps tomorrow, if not then will stick with one I guess and hope things even out a bit.
Thanks Sabs x

[Kay Dee]

Hmmmm, if he's waking happy then maybe not OT? What worked best for us was always sticking to one nap and doing set bedtime (7pm) and set nap time (12pm, moved closer to 12.30 once he was sleeping to 7am). That way it wasn't too long till bedtime if the nap wasn't a full 2hrs. If nap was really bad we'd have a v. low key afternoon but try not to do bed too early. Early bed always just meant even earlier mornings here. 2 nap days were a complete disaster

xx

[*Becky*]

Thanks. Yes I would like to try set nap and bedtime but when he is waking so early it is hard. I did not want to push too far today seeing as his night sleep was 10.40 which is low for him. We have a set bedtime of 6.30pm and it has to be a really bad day for us to go earlier. I think sticking to one nap is probably the way to go but will have to see. We have good nights generally so a bad one would def mean OT here.
bx

[~Emma~]

 Hi,

 Personally I would just stick to one nap. Whenever I tried 2 nap days it just seemed to screw things up and make the process even longer. Kinda like 1 step forwards 2 steps back. Even when I went consisantly to one nap we got EW, still do sometimes if I'm honest. That first week of just one nap was the hardest but once he got used to only having one we got our long nights back. Even now if he has an EW I still just 'ignore' it and shoot from 5 hours from actual wake up time (6.30/7).

 For us whenever I tried a 2 nap day it seemed to reinforce EW as he 'expected' to go down for an earlier nap. He's a wee stinker like that, always been prone to EW and they are easily enforced by early naps.

[*Becky*]

Thanks Emma - yes DS has always been prone to EW's too.
I think I would really like to stick with one nap now as I also think he will adjust quicker if I am not changing his routine every few days. I got a good nap after 5.45 A and an 11 hour night so I guess I have that knowledge - whether he will do it again is another question!
Weirdly, although I KNOW he is tired, when he woke from the nap today he was sitting chatting to his animals and he nearly always wakes crying from naps and always has done....confusing lo!

[~Emma~]

 I have found this time to be the most confusing. Before it weas all about cues and now its more 'set' iykwim. He is truly at an age where he likes to know what comes next. On the days we have EW I just power on through the whinging! I set ourselves a time,  saying to myself ''no matter how tempting, DO NOT put him down before say 11am.'' He knows he will get a nap eventually I am sure of it!

 Yesterday we had EW and DS went to nursery that morning, he woke at 5am and they gave him 2 naps. One at 9.30 for an hour and one at 2.30 for an hour. Well my god has it screwed things up! He EW this morning  but I just ignored the time and stuck to regular nap time ( that was after nearly 6 hours A!) and he was fine. Slept for 2+ hours and we even got a nice 7.15pm bedtime. I know he can do it now. It hard to take the leap but once you do dont go back!!

 I think if you have a LO prone to EW, like Brodie then there is an element of just getting on with it despite the EW. Sometimes he just has then for NO reason whatsoever, routine can be rock solid and it just happens!

[*Becky*]

The silly thing is I stress about him being OT but this is a kid who has slept 1.45 max all day on two naps since he was one so it is not the amount of day sleep that is causing a problem...it is either one of three things.
1. Teeth may be playing a part as we always get EW's with them.
2. He may be struggling a bit with the longer A times.
3. He may actually need a longer A before bed after a restorative nap of 2 hours than I am doing...
I think today the A was def too long as he did fuss quite a bit for the first time on one nap and he looked v tired.
I agree with everything you say though - I need to be brave and push on through but it scares me !!!!!!!!!!

[~Emma~]

Its probably a mix of everything. We are the same over here with teeth. When its really bad we get NW but teething pain usually means EW for us too. Meds never seem to help either, I tihnk once he gets into that light phase of sleep and wakes thats it!

 Are you going to go for 1 nap today?

[*Becky*]

I am because of the time change but I def think he is tired. He slept 6.30-6am which is really good for him BUT we had a very unsettled night with lots of crying out although never such that I had to go in to him. Plan is for one and then 2 tomorrow if he is just too tired I think.

[*Becky*]

Can I ask some bedtime advice please???
Today is
A - 7am (6am but clocks changed)
S - 12.30-1.55pm
Not sure what bedtime to shoot for - 7pm???
He is not happy now
Thanks
bx

[Kay Dee]

I'd go for 7pm. That's 6pm old time so still plenty early if he needs it.

Best of luck!