HELP...I'm in 2-1 nap transition hell!!!!!!

[chirojaz]

Oh my gosh, I can not get him out of this OT loop!!! Today he took two 40 minute naps and when I tried to put him to bed at 7, it took 35 minutes of screaming and shhh/pat before he fell asleep.  I know tonight is going to be rough with wake ups   What should I do tomorrow to try and get him out of this OT loop and get a good nights rest so I can try and get him on one nap?!
Should I give him a shorter am A time like 3.5 hours and just let him sleep as long as he wants and then do a catnap? I just feel like after a catnap he gets so OT from the day   Any suggestions are much appreciated!!!

[jessmum46]

Honestly, cold turkey is what I would do now. Two naps are not helping your cause. Set nap at 11.30, up to 3h.  BT as early as 6/6.30pm. And ride it out for a week x

[Martini~]

Oh Hon, I get you so much. We are currently going through 2:1 or we are almost done I hope and here it's easier or maybe more difficult as DS is in the nursery. Easier as nursery is able to get him through the morning but more difficult as when I say "not earlier than 11:45 put down" they do earlier some days and I get stupid 1:15 nap and with BT at 7pm it's a challenge!

[Truly Blessed]

Morning Hun,

I also get it, and understand how you feel, the 2-1 was a while ago for us, but having gone back and found the thread I have been reminded how bad it got before I was advised to just go for it and push through. I also think this time has come for you, it's not easy, but honestly how much worse can it be. I would maybe even go for set nap time and not A time, that way his body clock has some chance of getting a grip.

((HUGS))

x.

[Jodes112]

Its like a vicious cycle atm you will get short nights until you break the 2 naps into one. Its rough at first but eventually it does settle out!

It is a scary step at first for mums too but once through the worst it does get easier!

And remember you can always put to bed early if your scared of OT creeping in xx

[chirojaz]

Thank you all for the support.  Last night he did wake once but was up at 6:40am (11hr night including the night wake) so I decided to bite the bullet and put him down at 11:30am, was asleep at 11:35 and slept until 12:50.  I guess I will shoot for a 6pm bedtime?  I'm hoping we will get a 12hour night out of him but if we don't and he is up before 6am should I stick to the 11:30 nap time or make it earlier?  This is my dilemma, I feel like things are just going to keep getting earlier and earlier with him not taking a solid long nap
He did wake happy after his nap today, is there any way he was UT when I put him down? My instincts tell me no because he never gets 5 hours A time but was just curious what your thoughts were. 

[jessmum46]

If he woke happy it could be UT but I wouldn't tweak on the basis of one day.  6pm bedtime, try to stick to 11.30am for a good week, 15 mins earlier if falling apart but no earlier x

[chirojaz]

Well, he has had 2 night wakes already tonight at 9:45 and 10:45 so obviously totally OT at bedtime.  I have a feeling he is going to be up at like 5/5:30 am tomorrow since I put him to bed at 6pm.  Should I really keep him up till 11:15/11:30 if he wakes that early?!!!! I am so frustrated with the process

[Truly Blessed]

Good morning Hun,

Should I really keep him up till 11:15/11:30 if he wakes that early?!!!! I am so frustrated with the process

Yes Honey, if you go 'cold turkey' you have to follow through. I know how hard it is, but just try and remember, nothing else is helping anyway, so the idea is that this way you get him there soon rather than later. Obviously it's you call though, your boy.

So, what time did he wake  (Scared to ask  )

I've been looking over our 2-1 hell to remind myself what I did once I made the jump, and super early BT was our saving grace. EBT often didn't help so much, it was having the nerve to go really early that paid off. No guarantee, but worth bearing in mind Hun. If you gave it a shot and he did pull just 1 whopper night, it's a super springboard YK 


Lots of ((HUGs))

x.

[jessmum46]

Yes I think we did one 5pm on a total shocker day and a handful of 5.30s.  DD was younger but that gave us 13-13.5h nights on occasion and helped us keep going.  Don't be put off by OT NWs, they are inevitable during transition really.  Just keep the end goal in mind, your LO is more than old enough to handle one nap, it will just take a while to settle xx

[Jodes112]

Great advice from everyone. Keep it going you can do this (as hard as it seems this is normal and WILL settle) big hugs & keep it up mamma xx

[chirojaz]

So he had three night wakes last night and woke up at 6am.  I just put him down at 11:30.  Thanks for your suggestions.  I guess I have been afraid to put him down earlier than 6pm because he doesn't seem to tack on his sleep so I don't want him waking up at 5:30am  
I'll keep you all updated, thank you all so much for your support. 

[Jodes112]

As long as the EBT is not a constant/fixed thing, it shouldnt become routine. Some days naps will be rubbish which is when you can use EBT. On better nap days, aim for a later (if only slight!) BT.

My DD would never tack on right up to the 2-1. I couldnt believe it. If we had to do EBT she would use the night to catch up on that lost sleep & sleep over 12 hrs!

Hopefully he may suprise you. Good luck xx

[chirojaz]

Ok, so today was better but I APOP.  to recap, he woke this morning at 6am, I put him down at 11:30 and he nap 40min, was up for 10 then napped for another 40min. I decided since it is the weekend and my husband was here to watch after our daughter I would APOP to see if I could get a longer nap (I know, I know, I probably shouldn't have but I just wanted to get him out of an OT loop and put him to bed a little later since we have guests coming over for dinner).   So he slept for another 45 minutes, so totally just over 2 hours of sleep.  He was up at 2:15 so I'm thinking bed at 7:15.  Hoping to get NO wake ups  

What I'm wondering is if he does sleep until like 6:45/7am tomorrow should I still stick with the 11:30 nap time or maybe try and push him to 12pm since today he had 5.5 hours A time?

[Martini~]

It depends on you but in general I would push for final routine. So nap at 12 and BT at 7pm. Frankly for establishing a routine I would stop counting A times and it can ruin your confidence when you see how long they are up or how short they slept:))). So just everyday try for a nap at desired time let's say 12 or 11:30. If he has extremely EWU, try a nap slightly earlier but 15 at most. Than aim for set BT or if you think EBT is working go for it.

We never tried/did EBT and we always go for 7pm BT so matter what was the sleep and etc. I have some OT nights here, but no EWU. Even if he is tired and will wake after 6am not at 7am, I have not problems with him waking at 5am which would make nap at 12 very difficult.