18 mo regression or routine tweak?

[Aishi]

hi all

dd is 19 mo now and for about 2 weeks we have been getting short naps (1h20-45) and bt shenaningans (45-60 min to fall asleep). She is IS, HSN, teething (giving meds), saying 50+ words, sensitive to OT...

our routine before wonkiness was

wu 7.15/30
A 4H45/5
NAP 2.5-3H
A 4.5-4.75H
BT 7.30/8
STTN

Routine is all over place now...wu and nap length varies. ive tried 5h-6h am a and 4.5-5.5h pm a but she still takes ages to settle at bt and seems ot by the time she falls asleep. we have early evening co, early wu/ babbling that she ss and earlier than usual wus...

easy today for eg...

wu 7
nap 12.05. IS asleep by 12.25-2.20
BT 7 Shushed to asleep at 7.45 co she was getting upset. asleep by 8. If I pd for bt later 5-5.25 h a she still takes 30-45 min to sleep...

wdyt is going on ladies and what should I do? ride out or tweak?

tia!! xx

[HenaV]

Hi!

It does sound like the 18m SR to me, sorry, probably not what you wanted to hear. IME its just about staying consistent with your routine and riding out. All the tweaking in the world didn't help us!

Is your LO OT now do you think? If she is that will further disturb her sleep?

Hena

[Aishi]

Thanks for replying Hena. Dont think she is ot as long as i get her to bed on time. Prob will be today tho. I tweaked before i saw this :/

Wu 7.20
a 6h
Nap 1.15-2.45 shes chattering away not resettling

From what ive read on forum other ppls los at this age were doing 5.5-6h am a time, 2h nap and 4h pm a time. Any thoughts when bt
should be since she only had 1.5h nap and is sensitive to ot?

also can i use this SR to my advantage ( since shes napping 1.5h regardless of a time) to set nap at 1.30. ds is starting nursery soon and it would save me a babysitter if i can push her nap later and pick ds up at 1with her asleep for 1.30...

tia! x

[HenaV]

You can certainly try for that if you think your LO can handle it. The idea re set nap is that they get OT to the extend they just sleep effectively to catch up. I myself would be wary of doing that as mynDD is susceptible to OT also. I did what I could, having tweaked u til I could tweak no more, to start consistent with Rs routine - my theory being she at least had a measure of stability even if I was bouncing off the walls!! If anything on days following bad nights I offered a slightly earlier nap (only by 15m) and same at BT if needed, but tbh that was it. A case of riding it out I'm afraid.

Hth x

[Aishi]

Thanks that does help. Guess ill see how bt and the night go and take it from there :/

so how long does this regression last ? x

[HenaV]

It varies. For us it was about 6 weeks. There is a support thread that you might find helpful. Fingers xd for tonight for you x

18 month sleep regression support thread - Part 2

H

[Aishi]

So that plan backfired :/ i pd at bt at 6.15 asleep by 7.10, few ss nws.and wu 6.40 (early for her after a short nap) then dozed till 7.20. Guess no point tweaking! How will i know when this is over? Is it a gradual process? and is she likely going to need a routine tweak? x

[HenaV]

That's not such a bad night is it given how things have been?

R just quite literally settled down herself. We didn't need to tweak but then she return 2 a e that brought all sorts of new issues. I do think its a matter of being consistent and riding it put. You can't fix this. You will know when your LO is there, honestly your will x

[Aishi]

Thanks for the advice and reassurance it helps alot! i.know it does seem like a good night but it was short for her and i know how easily she gets ot...i pd for nap at her pre SR 5h a, she took 10minto.ss and asleep by 12.25. she slept two hrs with brief resettle in early nap.

So will take ur advice and stick to routine till she sorts it out for herself thanks again x

[HenaV]

The 18m SR ime was a tough old time. I found myself constantly questining my judgement, worrying if I was making things worse, worrying that I was creating bad habits and generally really worried for R given that sleep wise she always seem to do so well, and much like your LO, need her sleep to be anywhere the darling she is! Its common. Just trust that you know what you are doing, and if in doubt , check in. Theres plenty of support here for you as there was for and any many others in the same situation.

Big hugs x

[Aishi]

Just want to check if its ok to apop through SR? i found last night if i get a time right and shush her over monitor i can get her to fall.asleep within 10 mins rather than her babbling for 45 min and getting ot..

She had co at 5 which i think was a bad dream cos she was upset but settled quickly till 7.15

wu 7.15
nap 12.30-2.55 co at 2.30 but ss
Bt 7.45 i pd at 7.30

think the long nap helped cu on ot cos she fell asleep quickly at bt too without shushing...

[HenaV]

I think so. I think that the only thing you need to be wary of is that it doesn't become a habit that you then have to work hard to break. That said, it sounds like you're smoothing the waters well so Id keep going as you are. I hope that things continue to get better for you xx

[Aishi]

Quick question

Is it normal part of regression that dd takes 45 min to fall asleep at BT? She used to fall asleep within ten minutes by sucking on her lovey. I've tried shorter and longer a times (with latter if I pd too late she still takes 45 min then gets OT which leads to ew). well it took 1h10 min to fall asleep when I tried shorter a time today...

Naps are unaffected if a time is right....

Thanks xx

[HenaV]

That was certainly the case for us. On the whole she was fine at nap times (probably because she was so wiped out by BT shenanigans and NWs!) but at BT R could take up to an hour or more. I just accepted it and left her to it. If she fussed then WI/WO sndvthennwe itvwas as though someone flicked a switch and she just stopped doing it and went back to falling asleep within 5mins or so if being put to bed.

Hth x

[Aishi]

Ah OK that helps. Thanks Hena!