Author Topic: How to do shush Pat with baby with a toddler at home too  (Read 1561 times)

0 Members and 1 Guest are viewing this topic.

Offline claredm

  • New & Learning The Ropes
  • *
  • Showing Appreciation 1
  • Posts: 35
  • Location:
How to do shush Pat with baby with a toddler at home too
« on: May 11, 2017, 21:30:14 pm »
I have a 3 month old (born at 32 weeks), 1 month adjusted age. She seems to be like my son, often waking every hour at night and only 45 minute naps. I want to try using shush Pat but I have a 2 yr old at home. Can I just do it for some naps, plus bedtime? I just don't know how I can spend 20-30 minutes in the other room leaving my 2 yr old unattended, especially as breastfeeding takes 30-45 minutes as well. We sometimes have a sitter so I could try it some of the naps, and bedtime.  But if this isn't going to achieve much, then I'd rather save my sanity and do PU pd in a few months (I couldn't  ever get shush pat to work for my son despite much dedication, but  PU/PD was great later on for him). 

We are currently trying to do a 3 hr easy to get some routine (cheating with all naps in carrier - I do do shush Pat in the carrier in the hope she will learn to associate it with sleep) with 1 hr A time. 1 hr A is perfect in the mornings, but seems to sometimes cause UT. I need to do better at reading her cues.

Other info:
Exclusive BF
One month nicu stay
Only 8lbs despite 3 months old
Right now trying to address naps. Night times she does better when she gets enough day time sleep. Hence I'm concerned about shush Pat only giving 45 minute naps - first nap of day is sometimes in the crib but only lasts 45 minutes. EASAS was soul destroying with my first. Not sure I could do that again.

Offline creations

  • Feeding Solid Food & EASY
  • Forum Moderator
  • Resident BW Chatterbox!
  • *****
  • Showing Appreciation 496
  • Posts: 21993
  • Location: UK
Re: How to do shush Pat with baby with a toddler at home too
« Reply #1 on: May 13, 2017, 19:09:29 pm »
Sorry to see you didn't get any replies yet.

Can I just do it for some naps, plus bedtime?
Yes. I found that my DS learned a certain way of sleeping, a certain habit, for each nap. I have also seen it on the forums.  So pick a nap and shush/pat for that one, when you have one nap going down well you can move onto another.
FWIW I also think it's probably worth LO learning to sleep in the car or push chair as you have another young child and likely need to get out and about to toddler groups, the park etc.
It's really helpful if you can keep each day pretty much the same so for example always doing sleep training in the cot at home for nap 1 and always using push chair for nap 2 (even if it is indoors). Make sense?  So you don't randomly try one or two naps per day without making it a consistent routine. Consistency is the key when you have LO forming sleep habits whatever you want them to be.

You can also try some W2S at the 45 min mark. It is supposed to begin 10 min before the short nap wake up and continue for 20 mins beyond the transition (so this can be 30 or more min) but you likely don't have that time, I would try even 5-10 mins, in the room at 40min into the nap and try for 10.  To me it is worth a try, if LO wakes fully either spend time to resettle or get her in the sling to continue the nap.

Her adjusted age is 1 month but you seem to be getting UT naps and have mentioned UT - a 1 month old can have a guidance time of 1hr 15 min so perhaps you need to increase the A time too?
Also for LOs with adjusted again they can gradually catch up so you will need to observe her A times as the weeks and months go by and not always be stuck to her adjusted age for guidance, be open to her needing the younger or older A times - hope that makes sense.