Author Topic: Help with W2S! Does it really work?  (Read 1135 times)

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Offline DS Morris

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Help with W2S! Does it really work?
« on: June 29, 2015, 08:35:16 am »
My 6 month old DD usually only has 30-minute naps.  After reading some of the other posts I realised that maybe I’ve been putting her down UT so I’m now trying to increase her A times so that she could make the 3-2 transition.  In the meanwhile, I’ve been using W2S though not very successfully.  Sometimes it seems to work but more often than not, she either wakes while I’m patting her or wakes as soon as I stop, or wake entirely. 

I would rather use W2S than PU/PD to extend naps because, for one, it’s easier and secondly, if left unattended for too long, my 2 year old DS would either get into mischief or come upstairs to get me so I really need W2S to work. 

Has anyone used W2S to extend naps and has it worked?  If she wakes after 30 minutes, when should I do W2S? 
As I write, DD has just woken after 30 minutes as usual.  This is after W2S 20 minutes into her nap. Help!!



Offline anna*

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Re: Help with W2S! Does it really work?
« Reply #1 on: June 29, 2015, 08:45:00 am »
It CAN work - it doesn't always - particularly if the routine is not right. I agree though that PUPD is not the best for extending naps: I would try for just maybe 10 minutes and you will know whether she's going to go back down or not. Can you post the routine you're doing , maybe a tweak would help more with nap length than W2S.





Offline DS Morris

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Re: Help with W2S! Does it really work?
« Reply #2 on: June 29, 2015, 15:11:17 pm »
Hi Anna,

Thanks for your reply.

With EWs and those dreaded CTs our routine has been all over the place, especially if I’m unable to get her back to sleep after a CT.  A typical day might look a bit like this:

Wakes – 5am - breastfed back to sleep (out of desperation)
E – 6:30 – but because she was breastfed back to sleep, she’s often not very hungry
A – 6:30-8:30
S – 8:30 – 9:00 - 30 min CT (sometimes up to 2 hrs with W2S or APOP)
E – 9:00
A – 9:30-11:00
S – 11:00-1:00 - 30 min CT (sometimes up to 1hr 30mins with W2S or APOP, depending on length of first nap)
E – 1:00
A –1:30-3:00
S – 3:00-3:30 - 30 min CT
E – 3:30
A – 4:00-6:30 – We go to pick up my DS from nursery
S – 6:30-7:00 Bedtime depending on when DH gets home from work to sort out my 2 year old’s bedtime.

I suspect that the CTs are down to her being UT after only 2 hours A time when, as I know now, 3 hours is more typical for her age (and she does always wake happy after her CT and near impossible to get back to sleep).  However, I think she’s so used to catnapping that whether she has 2 hours A time or 3, more often than not, she’s still only managing 30 mins and still waking happy.

How would you suggest I tweak the routine? TIA



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Re: Help with W2S! Does it really work?
« Reply #3 on: June 29, 2015, 15:19:35 pm »
I would def do as you are doing and BF back to sleep in the early morning if that works. Then I think you get to 3hrs A time and try it for a few days and if her naps still don't lengthen out then try 3hrs15! Are you doing 3hrs now?





Offline creations

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Re: Help with W2S! Does it really work?
« Reply #4 on: June 29, 2015, 19:47:46 pm »
DD has just woken after 30 minutes as usual.  This is after W2S 20 minutes into her nap.
There are two different versions of W2S. It sounds like you are giving her a little disturbance at 20 mins in attempt to start a new sleep cycle  but she's still waking at 30 mins. I would, instead, try the other method where you begin shush/pat just before the regular Wu time and continue into the next cycle. It takes longer than a slight disturbance, the recommended time is around 20 mins to get into deep sleep however I know from my own experience sometimes it does take that and some times it doesn't - I used it with amazing results during the 2-1 where I shush/patted (adapted, I used firm hand slight rock) through OT WUs which were happening every 20 mins. I went in at 19 mins and left the room at 21 mins, went in again at 39 mins left at 41 mins.  I am not saying it is always that easy but W2S really can be a wonder.
How do I address habitual wakings? (wake-to-sleep and other methods)
You'd need to go in earlier than this FAQ describes. I'd go in at 25 mins and stay 10 mins if you can - if your 2 yo can be distracted safely for that amount of time.


Offline DS Morris

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Re: Help with W2S! Does it really work?
« Reply #5 on: June 29, 2015, 20:49:27 pm »
I’ve only just (in the last few days) started trying to extend her A time from 2 to 3 hours based on advice I got here.  For a couple days she was managing 3 hours (with only a slight improvement in naps) but then on the 3rd day she suddenly started showing signs of being OT after less than her usual 2 hours A time.  I decided to follow her lead and she did have 2 good naps, both over 1hr 30 mins as well as a 30-min CT.
 
Yesterday, on day 4, she barely managed 2 hours A time and had 4 CTs.  Today she was having 2hrs 30mins of A time but still only CTs.  I was able to get her back to sleep after the first CT and might have done the same after the second CT had we not been interrupted by my 2 year old. 

As this point, I’m wondering whether I should just ignore her sleep cues and extend her A time to 3 hours anyway.  My thinking is that, even if she’s OT, it would be easier to get her back to sleep if she wakes after 30 mins, more so than if she was UT before the nap. 



Offline DS Morris

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Re: Help with W2S! Does it really work?
« Reply #6 on: June 29, 2015, 20:50:06 pm »
Thanks for your reply Creations,

You’re right, on that particular occasion I did only disturb her slightly but I have also tried shush/patting for 15-20mins (10 mins before WU and 5-10 mins after).  Sometimes it worked, but usually she would wake either while I was shush/patting her or not long after I stop.  That was when she was only having 2 hours A time though so maybe she was waking because she was UT to begin with.  With DS at nursery for the next 3 days, I’ll definitely take your advice and start shush/pat 25mins into the nap.  Thanks for the link as well; will have to read that in the morning.