Author Topic: Should I wake him up from naps?  (Read 1659 times)

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Offline N_Mom_S

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Should I wake him up from naps?
« on: July 17, 2016, 11:45:08 am »
Hi everyone!!

I have a very simple (and probably stupid) question  :P
Should I wake my DS from his first nap to even the amount of time he sleeps for each nap?
He's almost 8mo. So far I've been letting him sleep whatever he wanted (also in the mornings), resulting in sometimes 2 naps of 1.5h each, or one of 2.5h and one of 30min... it varies every day. Should I wake him up from his first nap, let's say, after 1h30?
Should I start to wake him up at the same time in the morning too? I'm worried about him not getting enough sleep, because the number of times he wakes up at night also varies.

I'd appreciate some input!  ;)



Offline Scottishmummy

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Re: Should I wake him up from naps?
« Reply #1 on: July 17, 2016, 18:18:44 pm »
It's up to you. 
It looks like the total amount of day sleep is the same, just different combinations.

Some people like to wake baby in the morning and at same time from naps to get a routine which is more predictable for them as parents.
Some people prefer to be more baby-led and follow LO's patterns.

As long as he's happy going to sleep for both naps & going to bed at a reasonable time for you, waking at a time you're happy with, it's up to you whether you try to shape the routine more or not.

Personally my preference has been to let baby wake when they're ready, but that's my choice and does require some flexibility & I know other people prefer a more predictable day.
"Touchy/Spirited" DS


"Textbook" DD



Offline N_Mom_S

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Re: Should I wake him up from naps?
« Reply #2 on: July 18, 2016, 10:03:46 am »
OK, thanks a lot!!  ;D

He's never happy going to sleep but we're working on IS, I guess how long he sleeps for each nap isn't related to that.



Offline Scottishmummy

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Re: Should I wake him up from naps?
« Reply #3 on: July 18, 2016, 20:01:28 pm »
Good luck with the IS- hard work but worth it  :)

If you'd like another pair of eyes on his routine, feel free to post his last 2-3 days, although the nap pattern you're getting sounds good & appropriate for his age.

There does come a point as LOs start to transition from 2-1 naps when one nap has to be capped to fit another in without day getting too long, or because LOs start refusing a second nap after a good first nap..but it doesn't sound like you're there yet?
"Touchy/Spirited" DS


"Textbook" DD



Offline N_Mom_S

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Re: Should I wake him up from naps?
« Reply #4 on: July 20, 2016, 15:28:24 pm »
I doubt he's at that point yet, but I'll definitely keep that in mind!

Thanks, another pair of eyes is always welcome!

Here are his last 3 days:

WU 8:50
E nurse 9:05, solids 10:20
A 3H35
S 12:25-1:55 (1H30)
E nurse 2:10, solids 3:30
A 3H30
E nurse 4:45
S 5:25-5:55 (30M)
E solids 7:15, nurse 8:15
A 3H35
BT 9:30

E 1:15 (1 breast), E 5:00 (both breasts)


WU 8:00
E nurse 9:00, solids 10:20
A 3H15
S 11:15-1:25 (2H10)
E  nurse1:30, solids 2:30
A 3H40
E nurse 4:25
S 5:05-6:20 (1H15)
E solids 7:20, nurse 8:10
A 3H10
BT 9:30

00:10 (just water), E 3:00 (both breasts)


WU 7:00
E nurse 8:30, solids 10:00
A 3H45
S 10:45-11:55 (1h10)
E nurse 1:25, solids 2:30
A 3H45
S 3:40-5:25 (1H45)
E nurse 5:40, solids 7:20, nurse 8:30
A 3H10
BT 9:15

E 11:30 (both breasts), E 4:30 (both)

After that he woke up at 7:30 today, these last two days he's woken up too early. I think I'll start to wake him up at 8:00 (if he goes longer than that) to see if that helps with a more consistent nap routine. Would that help to eliminate early wakings too?



Offline Scottishmummy

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Re: Should I wake him up from naps?
« Reply #5 on: July 21, 2016, 13:35:43 pm »
I always get a bit confused with routines with later WUs and BTs as my 2 have both been early to bed and early to rise!

You are getting good naps and A time looks appropriate for his age.  Do you find total nap time makes a difference to his nights. Just wondering as the first day you posted you got 2hrs total nap sleep and a 10.5 hr night.  The other 2 days he has around 3hrs nap sleep and a shorter night. Is that a typical pattern or just those days?

If he's ok on it, that might be just how he balances his sleep, but if you feel wus are getting earlier and earlier and he's getting tired on those longer days and short nights, you might want to cut the 2nd nap shorter and get an earlier BT but hopefully a longer night with it.
"Touchy/Spirited" DS


"Textbook" DD



Offline N_Mom_S

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Re: Should I wake him up from naps?
« Reply #6 on: July 21, 2016, 20:17:43 pm »
Thank you for your reply, what you said is quite interesting. That pattern applies to the last 4 days but before that it's a bit inconsistent, it doesn't really match. In general, he does OK at night after 3h nap sleep, so I'll try to be consistent with that. And I've noticed that he's got the longest nights (11h-12h) when there was a night feed after 5am, so can it be that he wakes up early due to hunger? It's confusing because for example, last night he ate only once at 4am but he emptied my breasts, which were quite full after the long stretch from BT, and then he woke up at 7:10 (although not happy as usually, I think he needed more sleep but he wasn't going back to sleep). I didn't try feeding him but he shouldn't have been hungry after only 3h10. Other days I have tried to feed him at that early waking and sometimes he goes back to sleep but he usually doesn't.
Lately, I've been trying to reduce night feeds to only one, so he wakes up at around 00:30 and I try to soothe him without feeding him (doesn't always work) and then he wakes up at around 4-4:30am and I feed him.

 ???



Offline Scottishmummy

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Re: Should I wake him up from naps?
« Reply #7 on: July 22, 2016, 12:46:28 pm »
He might be hungry, especially if he's just reduced NFs.  I'd try a feed for a few days and see if it helps resettle.

If not.. Check this link on EW and see if you think any apply : Early Waking

For my DD we've had on-off EW since 5mo, usually around times of nap transitions. For us it is usually a sign of:

Overtired pushing A time too much too soon or short nap days- but I don't think that is your cause as your LO is getting 2 good naps

Undertired- either needing more A time before first nap and/or more A time before bed (either by capping last nap or making BT later- but I wouldn't make your BT later as it's already pretty late and you need some time for you!)
« Last Edit: July 22, 2016, 12:48:05 pm by Scottishmummy »
"Touchy/Spirited" DS


"Textbook" DD



Offline N_Mom_S

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Re: Should I wake him up from naps?
« Reply #8 on: July 24, 2016, 14:59:14 pm »
Thanks for your help!!

He woke up at 8am yesterday and 7:30am today, still early but he was happy! Maybe he needs less sleep than the average, I don't know. Last night was great because he only woke up once at 3:20am to eat. This morning was visibly hungry when he woke up but he was happy. We'll see how long this lasts!! haha