9.5 mo constant OT please help with naps.

[toocuteboop]

Hi.  My lo is 9 and half months and never really gone through the night!!  We have basically always had to do pu/pd, pat shh, rub back to get him to sleep.  I've never been able to bf to sleep if I wanted to!!  He just doesn't want to sleep, wants to look around and play.  Night before last he slept through 7:30pm-5am bf then slept til 8:30am!! AMAZING!  Then only had two short naps in day of 45 mins and 1 hr.  Last night did same hours but was awake crying for 2 hours!!  It seemed to be colic wind!  Have no idea why.  Today he again only slept for 2 short naps.  The last three days and nights have been the same.  We have done some sort of EASY for quite a while, but his naps are all over the place.  He never gets enough sleep so seems to be in constant OT.  He never cries though, he will look tired and may grizzle for a min but then carry on.  Only time he cries is when trying to get him to sleep.  He goes down a dream at bed time, put him in cot and he settles to sleep and we hear him stir around 10pm but he settles himself, so he knows how to do it.  His morning nap is usually 2 hours after waking and that has until the last 3 days got us 1.5 hrs nap.  He doesn't seem to be able to go long in the morning, but will keep going after that nap.  Please help!

My main problem is knowing when to put him down for a nap.  He will show sleep signs in the morning after 1.5 hours but we make it to 2hrs maybe 2.5.  After that nap he can be yawning not long after waking and rub eyes, scratch ears, go quieter.  So I can't tell when to put him down before I hit OT.


T

[*Jo*]

HI there, are you able to put up your whole day in EASY format for us to look at? even just how yesterday or today went?

Just wondering what baby type your LO is? is he Angel, spirited etc?
does he have any medical issues ie reflux?
do you ahve the room darkened or have white noise playing?
have you tried HTTJ or W2S??

[toocuteboop]

Today we had even less sleep again!  Only one 40 min nap.

EASY for last couple of days:

E 5am bf
S 5-8am
E 8:30 Breakfast 9am bf
A
S 10:50 25 mins naps usually 40 mins or over.
E 11:20 snack
A
E 12:50 lunch
A
S 2:15  bf to sleep after an hour of trying to get him to sleep in his cot!  Never normally feeds to sleep but kept crying then was due a feed! Only slept 40 mins
A
E 5pm dinner
A 6:30 bath
E 7pm bf
S 7:20 sleep.
   12:30 am-2:30 awake crying.

This is pretty much the same for the past 2/3 days.  The first night he woke up it seemed like colic bothering him which has come from no-where.  He had colic when he was little which went at about 4 months.  He also had reflux which has gone.  Now the only problem is eczema which is pretty much under control and doesn't seem to bother him.  I don't think he is teething at the moment, he had his 3rd and 4th teeth come through a week ago.

Always goes into cot awake at bedtime and goes to sleep without dummy.  Usually does with naps but this week has been crazy with only short naps and nightmare getting him to sleep.  Always had problems getting him to sleep and used to only get 45 mins a few times a day but a while ago I worked on getting him going hour and half which he was until this week.  Saying that... day before last his nap was 2 and half hours then that night he slept through!! Since then he has been going to sleep about 7:30 having bf at 5am then waking at 8am.  Before this he was waking for the day between 5:15-6:15.

We had hime going through the night at 7 months, but then he hit a load of milestones at once as well as getting first two teeth, going on holiday then a cold!!  So we are still recovering from all that.

He has never become sleepy, just looks tired but can just keep going and will cry if I try to put him down if I don't get the timing right.  I appreciate any help!

[toocuteboop]

......  I don't know what type of baby he is.  He is very happy and alert very interested in everything, loves people.  Doesn't want to sleep he knows there are things to do outside the room.

I have blackout blinds in our bedroom.  They don't completely shut the light out, but it is certainly dark.  There is nothing in his cot to distract him.  He keeps standing up.. We have tried laying him back down continually and laying him back down as soon as he sits up, but doesn't seem to do anything.

From past experience timing is everything in him just laying straight down and settling himself to sleep, but that has all gone to pot and I have no idea when to put him down now. 

I've never tried w2s as too afraid he will just wake up as it's such a mission to get him to sleep.  More recently I haven't needed to until last few days.

I am trying to think if there is anything else I can tell you to get a full picture!  He never seems to wind down to get to the sleepy stage.  We try singing lullabyes and holding him in the darkened room before laying him in cot, we're lucky if we get a yawn.  If he does rest his head on our shoulder it is literally only for a second!  Since 2 months he hasn't let us cradle him!  Always wants to be up and looking around.  The problem I am having putting him in cot to sleep for naps at mo is he stands up and becomes all happy and looks full of energy and chatty!!  If he cried I would stick with it, but he throws me with looking so awake.

[toocuteboop]

should also say a month ago when we went on holiday i started bf him back to sleep again which I have only stopped a week ago, so I think the main part of crying in the night is wanting to be fed.  Is unusual for it to go on as long as it has been though and constant crying.  When we do get him to sleep it can be only a few minutes and he's awake and crying again!

[*Jo*]

well he sounds just like my boy, Spirited! and Caleb did the same things at wind down that yours does, it used to throw me for a loop! what we found at this age is that less wind down was better, so a quick story, quick cuddle, say phrase and into bed.

I would try darkening your room even more, with even a small amount of light Caleb just cant shut off, he gets distracted by something and wont go to sleep, hes better now but under 12 months old it had to be pitch black in his room. It does sound like he could be teething though, have you tried giving pain meds once before a nap to see if that makes any difference? I would try about 20 mins before a nap so that if he is in any discomfort that should be gone by the time hes due to sleep.
If he doesnt cry, I wouldnt go into him at all. although I did that once and he chatted for 45mins before I just eventually got him up, still if hes happy then leave him. I know hes not sleeping and thats what you want him to do but give him a chance to fall asleep by himself, he may surprise you! if not then you know thats not an option for the next day.

For your first A time it is quite low, it is possible that hes going to nap UT and then ends up OT by the next nap. Try extending his A time in 15min lots every 3 days and see if that helps