18.5 month old - time for a routine tweak?

[Sam-n-Max's Mommy]

Hi ladies,

DS has changed his sleeping patterns in a big way lately.  Our typical routine looked like this:

WU 6-6:15
Nap 12:30-2 (maaaaaybe 2:30)
BT 7 or 7:30 (only 7 if nap was less than 1.5 hrs)

So we were looking at 10.5-11 hrs of night sleep and 1.5-2 hrs of nap.

The past week and a half has been different...it's looked like this:
WU 6:30-6:45
Nap 12:30-1:10
BT 7

So 11.5 hrs of sleep and 30-40 min of nap.

The total amount of sleep is about the same, it seems like it just shifted.  I love the longer nights, but I feel like he should sleep more during the day.  He hasn't really been cranky during the day, but I feel like it could catch up with him.  He wakes up crying, but I think he may be UT and that is why he is taking such a short nap.  Does that sound about right?

I tried moving the nap earlier (because I initially thought OT), it didn't work.  I moved it a little later (12:45), it didn't work.  I'm thinking maybe 1pm...if that works and he ends up sleeping longer, then I'll need to move BT back to 7:30 or maybe even 8? What do you think?

Thanks!
Nicole

[Sam-n-Max's Mommy]

So he went down at 1pm today and then awoke at 1:40  . I patted for 10 minutes and he fell back to sleep for 10 minutes.  Ugh.  Even though he gets the same amount of sleep as before, I'm just worried that the lack of day sleep will start to catch up with him (even though he hasn't been cranky at all in the afternoons).  Plus, he is really active so at least an hour of downtime would be nice for me!!!

[sianie]

Hi Nicole!

Yes, that is a small amount of daytime sleep for his age....some LO's go through some sleep regression at around 18mths old & this is usually due to developmental leaps (mental & physical), teething (canines coming through can cause sleep issues) & also a change in sleep needs....any of these ring any bells?

For my LO's waking up from a nap crying usually means OT &/or some sort of pain/discomfort.

Are you getting any NW's at all?

[Kay Dee]

Hiya, just wanted to add that my 15month old is on a similar routine. She only has 40mins in the day around 1pm and then sleeps 7.15/30pm - 7ish am. She's always needed less sleep than average and any time I've tried to extend her naps it's just ended up disrupting her nights. So I think some kids just need less. My friends LO totally dropped her nap at 18months

Oh and she's always grumpy/crying when she wakes up but cheers up after a few mins and is fine for the rest of the afternoon.

x

[Sam-n-Max's Mommy]

Sorry it has taken so long for me to reply.  So (too) much going on over here...

Sian and KDee - thanks! I am pretty sure it's not teeth because he just has the 2nd year molars left and his dentist said a few weeks ago that there were no sign of them coming in.  It *could* be developmental.  He is speech delayed (which is likely being caused by some underlying neurological issue (ie motor planning issues) ).  However, he has started speech therapy and I have started working with him (in play) all day long, so part of me wonders if he's either overstimulated or on the verge of something. 
We are getting a few NWs here and there.  He usually resettles himself within a minute or two, but he does cry out in the middle of the night at times.  I thought that maybe his sleep needs were changing, but for the most part he has been tacking on what he has missed during the day in the night. 
I thought that maybe he was working on dropping his nap (even though it is so so so early for that), but he is falling asleep within 10 minutes.  Plus the extreme crying makes me think OT, but I don't know how to resolve.  I have been putting him in his crib at 630 and for the most part he'll fall asleep between 645 and 7 and sleep til 615/630 (maybe a touch later here and there).  I try to extend the nap, but it is very rare that I can do that with shh/pat anymore.  He is hysterical when he wakes up so it's got to be either OT or discomfort.  I just don't know what discomfort he might have as I haven't introduced new foods recently, no teething etc. 

I wouldn't mind the shorter nap if I felt like it didn't bother *him*, but I feel like it must with the excessive crying when he wakes up (took a REALLY long time to calm him today after he woke)

It's been going on for 3 weeks now...I keep hoping that it will work itself out, but I don't know how else to help him.

Thanks to you both.

[sianie]

Hi....it does sound like it could be a combination of some OT & developmental issues going on. My DS is a little bit older than your LO & we have had some wonky sleep as he has had a leap in his speech....it could be as you've said, that things like speech therapy etc are quite OS for him & he is 'processing' everything he is learning whilst he's asleep.

You could try bringing his nap a bit earlier to say midday...if he is OT then an earlier nap might help him to sleep longer...night be worth a shot?

[Sam-n-Max's Mommy]

Thanks, Sian!  It is TOTALLY worth a shot .  I will try that for sure.