Hi All,
I feel like I should be able to fix this but for several months we have been getting short naps. B is a 9.8kg 6mo this week, EBF with a few solids offered in the last few weeks but no real interest from him on a regular basis. This is our schedule(ish) lately:
E: 7am
A: 3hrs
S: 10am for 30mins
A: 10.30am
E: 11am
A: 3hrs total
S: 1.30pm for 30 mins
A: 2pm
E: 2.30pm
A: 2.75hrs total
S: 4.45pm for 30mins
A: 5.15pm 1hr 45 in total
E: 6.30pm
S: 7pm
Usually NF x2 at random times usually around 10-12ish and 3-4ish. Occasionally 3 NF. He never goes more than 4.5hrs since being a sleepy baby. He goes straight back to sleep either while he is eating or after when he is laid in his cot. He settles in the day and at BT independently about 80% of the time and the rest of the time needs about a minute of patting in the cot. He sleeps with white noise in a blacked out room and in a sleep bag. We have never swaddled.
He does have reflux but I think this is well controlled now and has been in general. We have recently upped his dose as we were getting NW and problems settling for naps and after NF but this has resolved. He doesn't have any symptoms of this that I can tell (except the short naps!)
If I were looking at this I would say we were getting OT naps however we were doing 2hrs A time and at 4mo getting 1.5-2hr naps but then they started getting shorter and shorter until 30mins only and I started stretching the A time. We now get 3x30mins instead of 4x30min naps and if anything our nights are better - getting some 4.5hr stretches instead of 3-4hrs.
I have tried to extend his naps but my problem is he wakes happy. He always wakes happy whether OT or UT. He is in general a very happy textbook boy always smiling and laughing.
I did try to go in at 20mins and help him at the 30min mark but he gets easily disturbed and he just ended up waking up completely. I also have a spirited 2.5yo so sometimes it is difficult to spend too long extending.
He is not a good sleeper in the buggy or carseat and never has been even when we were getting 2hr naps consistently before 4mo so I can't even AP a decent nap that way. The only way I can sometime extend is if I feed him on the bed he will go back to sleep for another hr but this is 50/50 whether he will or not and only something I do very occasionally. I did try to feed before a nap but he isn't that interested and even when he does take some it didn't help.
Any thoughts greatly appreciated.