5 mo old 37 min naps

[lize566]

My lo has never been the best sleeper. However at daycare he take 2 hr naps usually, sometimes even a 3 hr nap. And as much as possible I adhere to the same schedule, but I can't seem to figure out his tired signs. He is usually doing 1.45-2 hr A times but it seems like no matter how I adjust them he wakes up after 37 minutes. And yes it is that precise! At daycare the A time before his longest nap is usually only 1.5 hrs but he gets a lot more stimulation there. Is he OT at home bc I'm stretching it too long? What does 37 min naps mean??

[Papaya]

37 mins sounds very close to one sleep cycle so I think perhaps they might be UT naps. Have you tried longer As at home - 2hr15? That would be about average for a 5 month old.  Is my baby ready to increase his ‘A’ time? (incl. 'A' times for younger babies)

As you say, he's a lot more stimulated at daycare so might need longer As at home than there. What do you think?

[lize566]

Okay I did a longer awake time this morning. He fell asleep with help right at 2 hrs. Up crying in 37 minutes its really close to feeding time, and he's rooting, so I'm feeding him. He nurses more often on the weekends bc I think my supply has dropped since I only pump once during the day at work. Yesterday's nap were never more than an hour, and by 3 pm he was soooo OT and very difficult to settle. I doubt he goes back to sleep after eating he seems pretty awake. So now how long of an A time should he have? Based on experience I would probably look to put him down again in an hour but I still usually have a fussy baby and short nap : / I dread weekends!

[lize566]

Nap #2, 40 min after almost 2 hr A time. Now this was after a 37 min nap, so I find it hard to believe he isn't OT by now. I'm trying to extended it anyway possible, but it's not looking promising. This is so frustrating!!

[Papaya]

Did you manage to extend hun?

How long has he been doing the 37 min naps now? It can take a few days for them to adjust, so I would stick with the 2 hour A time for another day or two, then try increasing by another 10 mins if naps are still short. I think I would do a bit longer than an hour next A though, perhaps 1hr30ish.

Do you think hunger could be an issue...?

[lize566]

Never could extend, after nap 2 yesterday he didn't eat or sleep for 5 hrs. It was awful. Slept good last night. This morning we did 1 hr 45 min, he went right to sleep as opposed to fighting every nap yesterday, and just woke up after 35 min. I don't think hunger is an issue bc he doesn't seem hungry or even eat that well when I tried to feed him.  He naps just done at daycare, but has been doing short naps for me every weekend for a while now....a month maybe? He may he 1 or 2 long naps in there but never much more than an hour. I just can't figure out the difference between here and daycare!

[lize566]

Nap 2-38 minutes, a time was 1 hr 20, he fell asleep in carseat while I was at the dr but was fussy and obviously tired

[lize566]

7:20 woke for day
E 730
A 1.45 hr
S 9:05 am   9:40 am (35 min)
E 10:10 ( early then it should've been but I had dr appt)
A 1 hr 20 min   
S 11:03- 11:45 am (38 mins)
A 1 hr 15 min
E 12:50 (again, early, but he acted hungry and his last feeding was short bc it was early)
S 12:57 -1:35 pm (36 mins   ) fell asleep nursing
A 2 hr   
S 3:29-4:22 pm   (46 mins) difficult to go to sleep, fussed most of his A time, dozed in my lap for like 5 minutes
E 4:30

So there is our schedule for the day. He still seems tired, kinda fussy not himself. Any thoughts

[ZacsMumme]

Hugs honey, I agree with Nuala. Those A times need stretching
Any discomfort you think? Reflux? Teething?
Have you started solids recently? - is the stimulation different at daycare maybe? - do they pd at same times as you?

[lize566]

To answer your questions, he does have reflux, but I'm pretty sure it's under control with meds. Maybe teething, but we gave him tylenol during 2 of his screaming fits he had over the weekend and it didn't seem to make a difference. We've done solids off and on. About a month ago we tried oatmeal for 3 days, he was super gassy and fussy so we stopped, tried pears a week or so later for 2 days, same result, then started carrots last night. So far so good, and he seems much more developmentally ready.

So I can see why you say to stretch his A times, but we had meltdowns (like an hour or more of screaming) every day this weekend and the only thing I can figure out is that he was OT. I even had to drive around to calm him down and get him to sleep one night.

Here was his easy today:
E 7:10
A 1 hr 50 min
S 9-10:30
E 10:30
A 1.5 hrs
S 12-2:30 babysitter said he was getting fussy so she put him in his swing, he cried for 7 minutes then was asleep
E 2:30
A 1.5 hrs
S 4-4:30
A
E 5:50
A
E solids, 6:30ish
A total A time was 2.5 hrs
S 7, woke up after 35 minutes, pu/pd, back asleep in just a few minutes.

The schedule at daycare is working for them. Eat times can't change unless they change drastically, which in order for me to nurse right away when I get home from work, he really doesn't need to eat any later than 2:30, so I don't think E times can change much. The only thing we could do it stretch A times out, but since he is taking such good naps, do we need to? And how does this affect home? I try to stay on the same schedule, but he doesn't go down as easily at those times, so I've been trying to stretch A time more. And sometimes he wants to nurse more b/c my supply drops as the week goes on I think. The only change we are trying to make is to move the 3rd nap back to more like 4:30-5ish.

[ZacsMumme]

So if good naps at daycare but not home on same A times...what else is different
. Sleep environment maybe? How/where does he sleep at home vs daycare?
I also wonder if the reflux is bothering him a little. Often it flares with solids and during teething so discomfort could be playing a factor as well

[lize566]

He sleeps in his carseat or swing at daycare, he sleeps in his carseat at home. This was out initial attempt at recreating daycare sleep!  He sleeps in different rooms there, depending on the day (it's an in home daycare). Babysitter usually lays him down when she she tires signs, about the same time every day, he may cry for 5-10 minutes she said then goes right to sleep. I usually get him to sleep first bc Im not good at letting them cry, but now that I know how long it usually takes him (yesterday was 7 minutes) I will try it. Obviously there is more doing on during his A times there bc there are more kids, bc I thought about overstimulation, but that doesn't really make sense, unless it's about the toys he plays with here.

My dr said solids would help with reflux, or is that only true for cereal? Either way, he ate last night and was only up at 10 (I don't df) 3:30, then stirred at 5:30 but went right back to sleep with paci. She does wrap him a little differently so I guess I could try that.

[ZacsMumme]

I would try getting him out of his carseat at daycare and at home. It's probably not a good long term solution and it isn't that good for the to sleep in at position for long periods or frequently.

When you say she leaves him to cry, is she with him soothing? It not this is really CC and I can't advise you on that as at BW we don't support leaving a baby to cry alone. I do think though that maybe the reflux is bothering him, and maybe reviewing medication would be a good idea. Discomfort affects sleep a ton, and typically once discomfort is managed babies are much easier to teach independent sleep to with shh/pat or other gentle methods.

Solids can help with reflux...or make it worse. Tough huh! For my Z it made it worse. I would certainly avoid cereal first though as it is harsh on the tummy, maybe try pear or sweet potato first.

The paci may also be part of the problem ... They do wake for it at this age and are not quite able to replug themselves.

You could try W2S on the naps at approx 23 mins, or HTTJ if he jolts as he comes out of deep sleep. Here's the link
How do I address habitual wakings? (wake-to-sleep and other methods)
What do you think Hun?

[lize566]

We are going to try no carseat this weekend, since his night time sleep is ok. He naps in his swing at daycare since he's been sleeping in it at home. I think I might try w2s. He doesn't really jolt himself awake anymore. He was also fussy the last 2 days over there and didn't sleep great, so I'm wondering if it's teething. I don't know how to make sure the reflux is not bothering besides his typical signs, which he is not showing.

But I am going to try w2s this weekend, I will let you know how it goes thank you so much for your help!

[lize566]

Well I went in at 25 minutes, and he was already awake, so I just laid my hand on his side and I thought he was going to go back to sleep but the he woke up, rolled over and squealed. I dont think A time was long enough but he was acting tired and went right to sleep (in his crib and by himself I might add!) so I'm afraid to push him very much bc he is a bear when he gets OT. He woke at 7, ate at 7:25 then fell back asleep for 40 minutes (as did I or I would've tried to keep him up :-/ so he had just under a 2 hr A time. I'm feeling very discouraged by this 25 min nap my 2 yr old is probably feeling very left out bc I spend so much time with the baby and my husband works nights do he sleeps when he gets home. Not really sure what my game plan is for the rest of the day yet. Any thoughts?