Please help with 11.5 month old sleep

[bluefin]

I don't know what is going on with my 11.5 month old. We were doing great. This was our schedule until a couple of weeks ago:

W 7 AM
S 10 AM - 11:30 AM
S 3 PM - 4:30 PM
BT 8 PM

He started fighting his naps so I adjusted as below. I started putting him down 30 min later, but ended up having to wake him for both naps to keep him on schedule. I think he's increasing his A time, so his BT has been pushed back. I tried waking at 4:30 PM instead of 5 PM in an attempt to keep the 8 PM bedtime and he was HORRIBLY cranky.

W 7 AM
S 10:30 AM - 12:00 PM
S 3:30 PM - 5 PM
BT 8:15/8:30 PM

Then the past few nights have happened. He's started waking hourly and yesterday didn't go down for his 1st nap until 12:30 PM, and then only slept 30 minutes. Got him down again for a second nap at 4 PM and woke him at 5 PM in hopes of having him in bed at his normal BT, but he fought BT until 9:30 PM. I took him to the pedi a couple of days ago to have him checked out after the first up-every-hour-screaming-night and there's nothing physically wrong.

Today I put him down at 10:30 AM and he babbled and finally fell asleep a little after 11 AM. I normally would wake at noon, but I don't think an hour sleep is enough for him to function without being cranky, especially given how bad his nights have been. Is he trying to extend A time again? If so, I'm caught between a rock and a hard place because I don't know if we should just let him sleep as long as he wants or try and keep on schedule.

I know typically it's a little early for him to be on only one nap (he's not walking yet and I assume when he does he really will need that second nap), but everything is so all over the place I have no idea where to start? It was like overnight that he went from being a decent sleeper to HORRIBLE. I thought at first he was teething, but now I don't think that's the case.

I read all of the 2 to 1 nap transition and know that's the direction we are headed, but I'm so tired I can't make sense of what I should be doing! 

Advice???

[bluefin]

Well I woke him at noon to try and have him down at 3:30. Have been trying for 30 min without luck. Sigh.

He needs sleep and I need a break.

[jessmum46]

Hi, sorry things have been rough for you.  I agree it sounds like you have hit the beginnings of the 2-1 transition - have you read this?  10/11 month old sleep gone wonky? Read this first! (you may well have done already)

I think probably the difficulty here is that as well as increasing his A time by 30 mins in the am, you effectively shortened his night by 30 mins so he has ended up rather OT.  Usually when approaching the 2-1 you don't aim to keep 2x 1.5h naps because that leads to a very long day and causes OT from not enough night sleep.  Rather you start to cut down on day sleep by choosing one of the naps to cap, either the am or the pm. 

I would let him sleep as much as he needs for a day or two to catch up, and then try for a slightly different routine.  Something like:

WU 7
Nap 10.30-11.30
Nap 2.30-4
BT 8

If he still resists BT at 8 and you think he is UT, I would cut back a little more on the am nap and bring the pm nap slightly earlier again so you get a longer stretch of A time before bed.

What do you think?

[bluefin]

That makes sense.

What happens if I can't get him down at 10:30? For example today I got him down at about 10:45. Would I still wake at 11:30?

[jessmum46]

I'd probably let him have an hour, then put him down for the pm nap as planned around 2.30.  If he has had more A time before the nap he may not need as much afterwards.  Like all these things it's going to take a bit of experimenting to get it right though

[bluefin]

Makes sense. I will give it a try. Thank you so much!

[jessmum46]

Good luck!