Lengthening 30 minute naps

[johnandmere]

My 6 month old son consistently sleeps for only 30 minutes during the day.  He will go to bed at 6:00pm, have one dream feed around 9:00pm, then sleep until 6:00am.  Great nighttime sleep!

During the day, he will only sleep for 30 minutes at a time.  Usually he will take 4 30 minute naps, however he has started to eliminate the 4th evening nap.  In the mornings, the 30 minutes seems to refresh him, but as the day goes on, he gets crankier and crankier, as if the naps are not refreshing him.  I would love to lengthen his naps.

For the past 4 days, I've tried a combo of Pick up/Put down and Shush/Pat after he wakes.  I've done it to make him "complete" a 1 hour and 15 minute nap.  He hasn't gone back to sleep for any of these efforts.  In the mornings, he just rolls around and talks to himself for the rest of the nap.  In the afternoons, he cries the whole time.

Any recommendations?  Do I keep trying to fight him back to sleep???

Thanks for reading and for any help.

Mere

[johnandmere]

I am reading through other people's posts about 30 minute naps.  I am wondering about the A time, or whatever it's called.  Right now, he is only awake for around 2 hours.  I have not been consistent in his awake times.  I usually just put him to sleep whenever he starts fussing.  Maybe this is where I need to start?  Having a consistent A time?  And longer than 2 hours?

Looking forward to help,
Mere

[weaver]

Hey there Mere, welcome to the boards!

The thing is, you should only use PU/PD once you've tried to fix routine, so you do need to start thinking about A (= activity times). A times run from eyes open to eyes shut.  At 6 mos, you should be aiming for two (1.5hr approx) naps. Average A times for 6 mos (see link) are about 2 hr 30. So, yes, you need to aim for a consistent A: it's not about following a "rule" but more about aiming for when he's likely to be ready for a nap but no so tired that that he'll wake up early from it, and experience shows that at this age it'll be around that time.   Fussing (whatever shape that takes) can mean 'I'd like to do something else now please'.  Start by gently extending his A time by 5 or 10 mins a day, whatever you think he can handle.  If you think he needs you to, you can make the last part of his A a quiet time.


Here are a few links for you:
What are A times and how do they fit into the EASY plan?
Starting EASY - all you need to know and more!
Sample EASY Routines from 0 - 13mths+
Average A times- BOOKMARK ME!

[johnandmere]

Oh thank you for listening.

The link you sent "What are A times and how do they fit into the EASY plan?" makes it sound like if he's sleeping 30 minutes, his A time is too long.  So now I'm confused.

[weaver]

Yes, 30 mins are usually overtired naps.  That's a rule of thumb, it's not true of every child as it depends on their sleep cycle.  Is he sleeping 30 mins on the button? I would still extend that first A if he only ever gives you a 30 min nap.  Also, perhaps you could post what your usual day looks like (wake up, naptime, etc) and whether he has any props for sleeping - is he held to sleep, rocked to sleep, fed to sleep? Does he have a soother/paci? Any and all details will help people to comment more usefully

[johnandmere]

Yes, it is 30 minutes on the dot.

6:00 am wake up, nurse and rice cereal
8:00ish-8:30ish am Nap
9:00 am nurse
11:00ish-11:30ish am Nap
12:00 pm nurse and veggies
1:30ish-2:00ish pm Nap
3:00pm nurse
Sometimes another nap around 4, but has been cutting this one out.
5:30pm nurse and veggies
6:00pm Bed
9:00pm Dream Feed

No more pacifier.  Rock/pat/shush til eyes close, then lay in crib.  He usually jostles a little when I lay him down, but finds his thumb and goes right to sleep.  I don't really find that I have much trouble laying him down.  Sometimes he does fuss, but it never takes more than 10 minutes to put him to sleep. 

[johnandmere]

Today I tried 2 things:  I nursed him when he woke up at 6:00, and then waited to feed him breakfast until about an hour after nursing.  I saw on some sample schedules that Moms were not doing solids immediately after nursing as I was doing.

Also, I kept him up 2 hours and 50 minutes.  He's cues that I thought were "tired cues" came and went easily.  I was shocked.  I usually put him down right when he started yawning and fussing, but we just switched activities and he stayed awake much longer than I thought.  And he was pretty happy too!

So, now he's been asleep for 55 minutes :-)  Any thoughts on the rest of my day?  Is it common for his A times to be the same length throughout the day?  For example, should I try 2 hours and 50 minutes again before his next nap?

Again, thanks for all the support and advice!

Mere

[weaver]

now he's been asleep for 55 minutes

Clever you! Well done!

I hope the rest of the day went well too.  I would be cautious about 2hr 50 as the A time all day.  It might turn out that that's what he needs, but it seems a bit long for a baby his age to do all day.  Some babys do prefer a long first A, so perhaps that's what happened there.  There is a bit of trial and error in this, there will be A times that are too long, some days you'll get it to short, but at least now you'll have an idea of what's happening and why and clearly you're good at watching and interpreting what's going on with him, which is what BW is all about.   

I nursed him when he woke up at 6:00, and then waited to feed him breakfast until about an hour after nursing. 

Really good idea, give him time to get interested in breakfast!

So now is the hard part, don't be surprised if everything seems to go haywire around day 3/4, that's perfectly normal. Just stick with what you've learned about him and help him through. This is a BIG change in his little life, so don't fret if it goes a bit screwy in the first week or so.

[johnandmere]

I was pleasantly surprised with the results today.  Is it too good to be true?

He woke at 6:00am.  A time for 2 hours 50 minutes followed by 1 hour and 20 minutes nap.

I gave him another A time of 2 hours and 50 minutes.  This one was harder for him at the end, but again he gave me a 1 hour and 20 minutes nap.

Then I found that he would be awake for 4 hours if we aimed for our regular bedtime, so I tried to give him a catnap after another 2 hour A time.  He was pretty fussy before and after the nap.  But we gave him supper and are putting him to bed now, 6:30pm.  This is his usual bedtime.

So, if today was so successful, should I aim to repeat everything again tomorrow?  Try to keep everything about the same?

Thank you so much for the input!!!

Mere

[johnandmere]

Tried the same A time of 2 hours and 50 minutes again today.  I got another 1 hour and 15 minute nap this morning.  However, this afternoon it was 30 minutes again. 

Suggestions?

[weaver]

I do think that 2hr 50 might be too long for him, so I'd trim it back to 2 hr 30 and see how you go.  2hr 50 for every A time would be long for his age, something around 2 hr 40-50 could be good for his first A time - I think I mentioned that some babies like a long first A - but a shade shorter for later on could be good.  And don't forget that 10-15 mins might not seem like much but can make a difference at this age.

I think that might actually have been an OT 30 min nap

[johnandmere]

Ok.  A little discouraged, but still motivated to try anything.  I appreciate your help so much!!

[weaver]

Don't be discouraged! You've done really really well, but this is a complex little person you're dealing with. Unless you have a magic wand, don't expect to fix things overnight.  It'll take about 2 weeks to settle into a good new pattern. But think how well you already did yesterday, that's amazing progress!

[johnandmere]

Two weeks is good to know and keep in mind.  Thanks for mentioning that!!

[johnandmere]

Another great nap this morning after 2 hours and 50 minutes A time!  I tried 2 hours and 30 minutes next, and he only slept for 35 minutes.  He was really fussy the last 10 minutes of his A time.

Should I try the 2 hours and 30 minutes again tomorrow before his second nap?  Or adjust to a different A time again?