Support Thread for 2-1 Nap Transition cont'd pt 6

[ginger428]

I can only dream of 3 hr naps but I know B has quite a lot to catch up on. We are getting10-10.5 hr nights with 1-1.5 hr naps.

Hmmm, you're more knowledgeable than me on this K, but capping the nap definitely seems to be worth a try. I'd say wake at 2:00 for a 7:00 pm BT. It might take a little bit to change his clock. I don't rememeber if nursery can push to 12 nap. If he ever wakes between 5:30-6 i'd say to do that.

[jessmum46]

Ha well he did it on his own today and slept 1h45 . Will go for 6.30BT as that's about 5h A after the nap and hope tomorrow isn't so horribly early.  Am doing my best to keep him in natural daylight until as close to BT as possible and then dark until 6am earliest.  Read a few things that say it's the light exposure more than anything which helps reset the circadian rhythm so here's hoping!

[ginger428]

Haha, we're doing the same! Out and about even if it's just right outside our apartment for a quick stroll right before bed. And same, bright lights at 6:15, 6:30.  Not sure it's working, but we'll keep trying.

5 A before bed sounds great, K. And with a shorter nap, he may give you his 12 hr night again! Here's to hoping!!!

[jessmum46]

Ha ha I'd be happy with 11h the way things are right now

[trimbler]

Hello all Katherine sorry if I said this before but I do remember DS needing his nap capped a little soon after he dropped the morning one. Then he was slightly more tired for BT and did a longer night.

Just joining in here as we're at the morning nap capping stage but everything's a mess at the moment with severe OT, so frequent NWs, EWs, OT 30min am nap (fixed time due to preschool drop off), OT 1-1.5h pm nap (fixed time due to preschool collection) and utterly miserable all day And now ill too She did at least do a 'better' night last night due to illness, I'm kind of hoping the illness will somehow break the cycle. Preschool finishes on Monday so can be more flexible after that. Other things - she's recently (last couple of weeks or so) started crawling around in her cot like crazy and sitting up, then tries to go back to sleep by laying her head down in front of her with her legs still out in front (little contortionist!), she now cries every time she goes to sleep and every time she wakes - how I miss those weeks of settling happily to sleep and waking up chatting softly! I also wonder about introducing a lovey - since going into sleeping bags around 6mo she's used the end of the bag as a lovey, but perhaps this is more uncomfortable/frustrating now she's longer... She did take to a particular bunny for a couple of weeks but is less interested in it now, I did give it to her one night when she was especially unsettled but it didn't seem to make much difference and I haven't done it again since, maybe I should try it again, maybe she'll find it's a less frustrating comfort item than her sleeping bag which obviously moves every time she does Any thoughts? But mostly I just need to somehow find a way of helping her to catch up on this major OT, just waiting for a nice long pm nap...

[ladymugg]

Sorry for the late reply trimble...

What is your eventual goal?  Is it like a 1 x 11.30 am nap?  If it is, that way not only would you get hopefully a longer sleep, but then it moves out towards the middle of the day and then would also have a nice side affect of not interfering with your pre-school drop-off too.  The nap time a lot of us are on around here is 11.30am (or thereabouts). 

My LO has a cuski toy as her lovey.  She absolutely loves it!  But she has had it almost from birth.  I think if your daughter takes to one then thats great as it is a good, portable sleep association that can go to daycare, to grandmother's house etc.  BUT if its not your daughter's bag then it won't achieve anything I guess?!

The sleeping bag thing.... my LO is in them and the longer they are the better.  I usually go next size up not only to make it a big cheaper so we can get more wear out of them, but also so that there is plenty of room and she doesn't get so tangled. 

Now your daughter is crawling and moving around in her cot, don't worry this doesn't last long IMO - maybe a couple of weeks.  If she isn't going to sleep I would just go in there, place her back in her sleeping position, tuck her in tightly if you use blankets with your sleeping bag (and if not, maybe just a larger sheet sideways to tuck her in tight), lots of shhshhhhsssshhh and night night, sleep time etc etc. 

Honestly though if your LO has been sick I would just focus on trying to get her back to the old normal and then go from there.  Don't stress too much about what has happened in the previous weeks, hey what happens happens, that is life eh!

Hope the above helps!  All the best

[newkidontheblock]

Read a few things that say it's the light exposure more than anything which helps reset the circadian rhythm so here's hoping!

What a coincidence that you mentioned this. You remember me saying this??? I actually felt that our EWs started because the sun was rising so early. Even though her room is pitch black, the sun was rising at 5.30 and it was affecting her body clock. Well, the past 3 days, it has been raining like crazy and it's dull and cloudy and we have been getting 7.30 WUs. Seems like there could be something to this, right?

[trimbler]

Wow Fleur that sounds lovely Shame about being stuck in though Our room is pitch black too so can't get my head around how the sun could be affecting her?

Thanks ladymugg, tbh I'm not quite sure what we're aiming for atm, as you say the illness is throwing everything off anyway so will just have to ride that out for now... I don't think 11.30am would work so well, we really need at least 12.00 but preferably 12.30 before we can go for one nap, since the CM goes out to groups in the morning, which don't start until 10 or something. Would also be nice to get to church, the earliest we could feasibly do nap after that is 12.30. With DS, he held onto his morning nap for quite some time, until he started refusing it. Atm we have WU at 6.30 to give us 3h before nap at 9.30, which will work for when DS starts school (CM also doing his drop offs) before morning groups/church, but when we go to one nap I reckon the latest we could practically move WU would be 7.15 - that just about worked with DS. So anyway, I'm really hoping we can do something similar with DD, but not sure how hopeful I am that it will work! I think our ideal atm would be something like:

6.30 Up
9.30-10 Nap 1
1-3 Nap 2 (will have to end by 3pm for school collection from September)
6.30/7 BT (based on her ideal TS before all this mess of 14.5h, but I suspect this is reducing now so 14h probably ok, once the illness/OT is done... From the last few weeks I know that 13h is way too little for her!)

[ladymugg]

Yeah I'd just get her re-sorted after illness and then worry about it again in a week or so when things are back to normal.

Not sure what you'll do about moving to one sleep given you have a few restrictions around timing due to your busy lives!  (I hear you mama).  Personally (and I mean this in the nicest, most suggestive way - I hate it how you can't convey tone that well in writing) I think you could get away with 12 or maybe even 12.30... but no later at this age because with that 6.30 am WU time you are looking at 6hrs A time before nap and then say if its a 3 hour sleep to 2.30, its only 4 hours A time before BT. 

Anyway whatever sleep time you move to I guess you'll be doing it gradually ie: moving nap time out by 15 minutes every 3 days or so?  And then when you eventually get to your end goal, I'm sure it will only be for a few months anyway until the sleep gets a little later in the afternoon as their sleep needs drop off and bedtime gets a little later. 

It is easy for me to say this as I don't have other children at the moment and no school schedules etc.  When we have activities on eg: playgroup goes to 12 pm for us - but I leave before then so we can have some lunch in her before bed.  I know its not ideal, especially with church (maybe there is an evening service or one another time you could go to?) but I'm sure as you know once you miss that sleep window and your LO gets OT, there may not be any sleep at all, or not for very long   Hard when its just one nap too I have learnt, as that 1-2 hours during the day is my "rush around and get EVERYTHING done" window!  ARGH!!  I'm talking about my own stuff as much as yours here, don't worry I'm not trying to tell you stuff you already will know!!

Hope that helps - sorry just jotting down some thoughts in the hope they'll help.

[newkidontheblock]

Our room is pitch black too so can't get my head around how the sun could be affecting her?

Ours too. Her room is like a cave. But I think the body just knows sometimes. Is it bright there? Here the sun was bright and shining at 5 am!

[ginger428]

How did ya'll hang the blackout liners? Ours blocks out 98% of the light... there's a small line on the top of the ceiling.  Perhaps I should adjust it for the morning.

[newkidontheblock]

DH has taped it down, put another layer on the pelmet and clipped the curtains together with clothes pegs

[ginger428]

Haha... hold down the fort! (old saying in the US) Then, how do you open the blinds in the morning to let light in?

Katherine, not sure if your "plan" entailed light therapy of sorts, but I'm desperate and am willing to try some things based on some info I found...
-Exposure to 30 min. of sunlight (even overcast is effective) between 6:30-8:00am (I usually take him out at 8:30/9:00 but apparently it's not as effective)
-Dimming lights in about 20min increments to mimic sundown 1-2 hours before bedtime (I was taking him out for a walk 40-60 mins before bed, woops)
-Exposure to as much light as possible when awake, especially blue light which is best in sunlight
-And today I fixed our curtains to make it 100% blackout

We'll see if it makes a difference during teething and SA!

[ladymugg]

I'm down in NZ so had that summer light coming in about 6 months ago like you ladies... I can only say all you have to do is keep that room dark like you already said, and keep that white noise on to avoid all the other outside activity going on when light (neighbors going to work, delivery vehicles, pets waking up etc).

Thankfully we live in a quiet cul de sac but not everyone does! 

 

[newkidontheblock]

Then, how do you open the blinds in the morning to let light in?

I don't. Lol. We have full length windows covering an entire wall and it was so bright. We had mat blinds with 2 layers of curtains but still too much. So now we've also put dark film on the window. I open a small portion of it to make the room dim while nursing and then we put on the lights/go out into the rest of the house which is super bright.

Hope some of your ideas work out, ginger. How would you expose him to blue light? As in normal light?