6mo naps like a 4mo and now wakes at 5am

[JodiCinNC]

Hi all,

This is my first post here and I hope you all can help

My son, Matthew, is 6 months old and, according to the suggested sleep times post, he is sleeping like a 4 month old. He naps at least 3 times a day usually about an hour and half each. He goes to bed around 8-8:30 pm and until this week has been sleeping until 7-7:30 am. Now He is waking up around 4:30 - 5 am and talking a up a storm. If we don't go to him within what he thinks is a reasonable time, usually 20 minutes more or less, he will start screaming. He will eventually go back to sleep but only until around 7.

This is making us nuts. I know the teeth are beginning to make their presence known. I can feel the little bumps in his gums. So I know that is a factor. However I am wondering if all the napping is a factor too. My concern is that he gets so tired and cranky during the day if he doesn't nap. How do we get him out of napping this much?

Any suggestions?

Jodi

[Jaime]

hi there,

the only nap i would question the length on is the last one.  i'm thinking he probably doesn't need more than an hour at that 3rd nap... but i would ask you to post your schedule so we can check for sure.

in addition to the teeth, there is a lot of developmental stuff going on at 6 months, and they just want to practice all the time!  that 4am wake up is pretty normal  :roll: and as long as you keep treating it as a night waking by only going in & soothing when he cries (and hopefully avoid introducing props), he will eventually start sleeping through again.

HTH

[JodiCinNC]

we are pretty flexible on his schedule but I managed to work out the general times. I'm thinking he is sleeping way too much now that I look at it on paper. We went shopping this afternoon so he missed most of his last nap and we will see if that makes a difference tonight. He definitely has those first two teeth coming in..I can feel the little bumps in his gums.

Ok here is the schedule (or what we have had until the last week or so):

7 - 8am wake up and breakfast
8 - 9am back to sleep for usually about 1.5 hours
somewhere between 9:30 and 11 wake up for playtime
Noon lunch
12:30 - 1pm back to sleep for 1.5 hours
2 - 2:30 wake for playtime
4pm bottle/snack
around 5pm back to sleep for 1.5 hours
6:30 - 7pm Supper and playtime/bath
8pm last bottle
8:30pm bedtime

we don't always stick to that schedule except for mealtimes. The napping happens when he starts acting tired. He is so happy when he isn't tired that I thought it was better to have him sleep. But if it is messing with him sleeping at night I am thinking he needs to start getting used to less daytime sleep.

You are right about the developmental stuff. He is sitting up really well. He is scooching around and we can see that he really wants to be crawling but hasn't figured out how to do it yet. He does sooth himself well for the most part. He has his moments when he just totally loses it and melts down completely but that's part of being a baby. Being little is just so hard.

I hope adding the schedule can help y'all have a better idea of what we need to be doing. Thanks for the advice. 

Jodi

[Paulsmama]

Hi, I am new here but am watching this thread with interest. 

My son is 6 months old and seems to sleep about the same amount, which I also think is a lot.  He seems to do best during the day with about 4-4.5 hrs of naps.  I am wondering when he will want to drop his late afternoon nap -- we have some trouble with that one.  He missed it once last week when my mother was visiting, but it didn't go well -- he became really touchy and barely made it to his dinner bottle.  At night he was sleeping 8-8 with a dreamfeed (waking him at but for the past couple of weeks has been waking between 7-7:30, which is still fine by me.  He does have some disturbed sleep at night (gas and getting stuck in the corner of the crib) though if we get there early enough we can rescue without him fully waking up.

Here's a rough idea of a typical day:

7:30 wake up
8 bottle
9:30-11 nap
12 bottle
1-3/3:30 nap
3:30 bottle
5:30-6:15 nap
7 bottle
8 bedtime
11 bottle

Jodi, I am originally from NC too.

[Jaime]

Jodi - i think i would try and cut that 3rd nap back a bit - it's the first one that is going to go anyhow.  I would try and lessen it slowly so that it eventually is no more than an hour.  to compensate, i would move bedtime a little earlier too.  i think a decent goal is to try and get bedtime to 8pm.  the other naptimes sound great!     once he gets through those teeth & gets more used to his new skills you should see more settled sleeping at night.

Cynthia - your schedule sounds great too!

[JodiCinNC]

Hi Cynthia and everybody else lurking 

We had a good night for a change. He did wake up around 5am and made a few 'Hello? Anybody there?' noises but immediately went back to sleep. Then he woke up again closer to 7. I ended up getting up with him at 7:15 when it was obvious that he was really awake. So I think not having so much sleep yesterday was a good thing. We will try to only have two big naps today and see how that works. <fingers crossed> He is still awake at the moment but things are going downhill so I think it won't be long before he is back in the bed.

Cynthia, I'm really a SC girl relocated to NC by ways of GA, FL and the UK (long story). Since you are from here you know that you may live anywhere in teh world but you are really *from* where ever you grew up   :wink: We're up in the mountains are I love it for the most part until February comes and there is a foot of snow on the ground, its below freezing and we can't get down the driveway. Oh well, everywhere has its drawbacks.

I'll keep checking back to see if there is any more advice and I'll let you know if last night was a one off or we have cracked the code.

Jodi

[Paulsmama]

That's great news Jodi!

We actually have had a couple of good nights the past two nights too -- some gas at the start of the night but only one rescue effort at 6 am when he got stuck in the corner.  Maybe he has decided that he'll be a big boy now that he is reaching 6 months. . .  We're going on solids next week, though, and that will probably throw the whole routine.

One of my best friends lives in Asheville.  It is so beautiful in the mountains!

[Tannis]

Hey girls, I'm with you on the 6 month old sleeping more like a 4 month old. Sounds like we're on about the same schedules with the early morning waking. Honestly, I'm ok in the middle of the night, but I'm so not a morning person that when he wakes up at 5, I could almost cry. And sometimes I'm sooo tired that I do the very worst thing and just bring him in to bed with me. I feel like I just can't get up with him that early. It's horrible. I am formula feeding only now and starting solids and he's cutting his first tooth, so this is a crazy time for him now too.

[JodiCinNC]

Sorry for letting this thread lapse but you all know what it is like with a baby around!

We have been doing the short naps in the late afternoon and boy, does he get bent out of shape about it. He is staying up longer between naps as well. Usually 2 -2.5 hours instead of 1.5 but that last half hour isn't much fun for anybody. He had one night where he woke up around 5 am  and talked for an hour before finally going back to sleep. Ugh.

The big news is one of his teeth (the bottom left front) has broken though! The right one is not far behind. Poor thing..he is obviously uncomfortable but at least we know that is the culprit.

The smaller nap in the afternoon does seem to have made a difference though.

Hope all you LOs are doing well and y'all aren't pulling your hair out too much :wink:

Jodi

[Tannis]

Hi Jodi, my son cut his bottom left tooth as well and there is a bump now on the right. I also wonder how much this has influenced the sleep issues. He's so all over the board right now and seems so uncomfortable and gassy. How is it going for you? Do you use infant tylenol or orajel? I feel so bad for the little guy, but I can't wait for him to start sleeping. And we're starting solids too. Have you been working on that yet? I wonder also if that plays into it. So many what ifs.
Any advice out there?
Tannis

[cliffrose]

jodi:

are you in fayetteville, by any chance? so am i....

elizabeth

[JodiCinNC]

Hi Tannis,

Sounds like our LOs are at teh same stage with the teething thing. I've been trying to get him to gum on ice (I found this mesh bag thing with a handle so they can chew on solid stuff without the fear of choking) but he isn't too into it. We tried the oragel but it didn't seem to make much difference. I have been giving him Tyelenol or Motrin when it is obvious he is uncomfortable but I don't like giving it too often. So if I give it then he will get a dose at night before bed. So far he seems to be coping with it fairly well. He certainly is making funny faces while getting used to the new things in his mouth.

We have been giving solids for about six weeks now and he is doing really well. He has reflux and the cereal has helped with that. Now that he is sitting up most of the time we are trying to get him off the medication he has been on for it. So far so good. He is eating a variety of stuff, hates rice, tolerates oatmeal, loves pears, applesauce and peaches. Bananas are on the not so enthusiastic list. Likes peas, green beans, squash and sweet potatoes. I have been wondering when we can go to the stage two foods that have more than one ingredient like Gerber apple and cherry. We have the six month check up in a week so I'll be asking then.

Last night he woke up at 4 am and when I went in to check on him found him with a sopping wet diaper and chilled legs and arms despite him being in long sleeved/ footed jammies. So I put him in one of the heavier jammies I got for him to wear when it is really cold and he went back to sleep and slept until 8. My husband was thrilled since he is the one who gets up with LO.   

Hi Elizabeth,

We are up in ski country around Boone. The leaves are beginning to turn so summer is almost over. Winter (and Christmas!) will be here before we know it.

Hope all is well with y'all...Jodi

[Tannis]

Hi Jodi,
Caden doesn't like the cold teething ring, but likes to chew on his blanket or even better, my face!    I also give tylenol before bed on his bad days, but sometimes worry about how often he should be getting it. My Dr. said not to worry too much with tylenol, be a little more vigilant with Advil.
Cade like his rice cereal with pears best, he also has had sweet pots and apples. I'm going to try peaches and carrots soon. I also want to get him on the wheat cereal, but am nervous as my neice got upset tummies when she tried it first and with him already not sleeping well, I'm not looking forward to adding to his distress. And who knows, he might be fine. Let me know, please what your Dr. says. We go on Monday for our 6 month check up and I'll be bringing a list of questions too!'
Tannis

[GG]

Starting solids does affect the little ones as their digestive system needs some time to get used to it.  I gave my lo some carrots last week and it really affected him!!  I'm still ebf so I figured I will take it slow.  We have a big trip coming up so I thought I'd try again when we return.  No need to totally mess with the kid now (especially since I am on the receiving end of that!).  ;-)

Regarding the wheat cereal, I think you should avoid giving him that and stick to the veggies and fruits right now.  My ds's pediatrician said to avoid grains until about 9 months old.  Anyway, they have more than enough choices in veggies and fruits and there's no need to overwhelm their little bodies.

[Little Bear's Mum]

GG, your comment about starting solids effecting their digestive system and there overall 'being' would this include sleep and wakefullness? We started on pumpkin yesterday and today my ds slept only 40mins at a time and was tired/grumpy whenever he was awake. Yawning constantly. Normally he sleeps 40 mins -1h first nap, 1 1/2 second nap 30 mins 3rd nap. But today he was totally out of sorts. Could this be the pumkin? how long is normal until it settles versus the pumpkin causing problems and I should change to something else?

Sorry to jump on this post with an unrelated question, hope you don't mind? :wink:

[GG]

Sorry to jump on this post with an unrelated question, hope you don't mind? :wink:

Mind starting a new post under Feeding Solid Food and Weaning?  I don't mind answering this but (1) I won't pretend to be an expert and I only have limited personal experience and (2) the answer to your question may help out another mom who wouldn't know to look for this question under this thread. 

But from what limited experience I have, it can make the lo crankier when they are awake.  I was certain my ds's tooth must be coming in with all the commotion he made (it wasn't)!  I don't think you necessarily need to change to something else (I'm assuming this isn't the first vegetable you've introduced) but, if you're preparing it yourself, make sure everything you're using to prepare it in is clean.  That's my 2 cents. :-)

[Paulsmama]

Hi folks,
I'm glad your los are doing better, and congratulations on the teeth!  DS has bumps only. 
Our finally better sleep has gone totally awry and the past two nights he has been up at all hours (or more precisely, every hour).  He is rolling and creeping in the crib and constantly getting stuck, even with the bumpers, and he is gassy from his solids.  I am so proud of him but I would like to get some sleep since I haven't in 2 days.  Going to try to steal a few minutes now and put him on the floor every waking minute!

[Tannis]

Hi Cynthia, my DS was born in March as well. He just cut his first tooth about a week ago and has a bump next to it for another and he was REALLY (is) really restless with all that going on. Maybe your tooth will come soon! It's a trying time, isn't it??