nap time sleep cycle question

[charli]

My almost 4 mth old is on 3hr EASY, will have to keep her on 3 hour even at 4 months as she sleeps for 12 hours at night (no dream feed) and I don't think will get enough food in the day if I change her up to 4 hours!
Anyway she is a brilliant night time sleeper, goes to bed almost asleep (but not quite) and I hardly hear a peep out of her for 11-12 hours.  Great!! 
Nap times another story, cannot put her down awake, pu/pd just makes her madder (and I have spent at least an hour x2 doing this).  Whe she is asleep (ashamed to say usually by rocking chair) if she doesn't wake up when I put her down she usually wakes up either 20 or 45 mins after falling asleep, other times she might sleep for 2 hours (rare!).  How come sometimes she can transition through sleep cycles (obviously does at night) and other times she can't?
Any advice to put her down awake during the day.  What do you do if you have a screamer for pu/pd?
TIA
Charli

[teezee]

well aren't i jealous!! lol...my only suggestion would be that maybe b/c your lo sleeps so long at night to keep her awake times longer during the day.  my dd was rebelling against naps also but now that i let her stay up longer, she goes to sleep like a charm...amazing what a little awake time will do.  oh and make sure you do a wind down routine with naps as well.  that's all the advice i can offer - my question to you is how did u ever get ur sweet lo to give u a good night's rest??
tawnya

[charli]

Thanks for your advice.  I do try and keep her up longer, but find she's harder to put down then.  She's up about 2 hours before needing sleep.
No real help I'm afraid with the night time sleep!  I think I lucked out!  She started sleeping about 7 hours at about 7 weeks and its just improved since then.  If she does on occasion wake up earlier as long as she's not crying I leave her and she puts herself back to sleep (about 1xweek).  Thats why I don't understand my napping issues! I'm not complaining too much I'll take good night time sleep over daytime naps anyday!!
Good luck to you too.
Charli

[jenni]

Hi

I have had a similar experience until recently with my little one - she slept through no problem for ages, and I let the 45 min nap cycle go cause I figured like you say, I'd lucked out and would rather sleep in...  but she is now 4.5 months old and has suddenly started doing this 45 minute cycle during the nights too sometimes - starts sometime between 3 and 5 AM and from then on is a nightmare, waking between 20 or 45 minutes.

Have a look at some of the other 45 minute postings, they have some useful tips on extending naps - and my only advice is to try them - cause you don't want to suddenly go back to night wakings - and if like me you never had them, tehn they hit you double hard! 

As Tracey says, if they sleep well, the rest of the day is good.  I find my little one (who went on a 4 hour routine at 4 weeks by her choice) will only stay awake about 2 hours at a time - I now need to start to wind her down after 1.5 hours and allow 15 minutes with her to go off to sleep - then try the wake to sleep method mentioned in one of the other posts - you go in at about 35 minutes and help them through the next sleep cycle.  Anyway have a look and do yourself a favour - learn from my mistake!
jenni

[Matthew's Mommy]

The previous post had lots of good tips in it.. just want to add, keep an eye for that wonderful window of opportunity.. when she is ready to nap. If you push it too far, then she will have a rough time in falling asleep.

If you want, try to shorten her rocking time, and lying her down when she is in a drowsy state. When you lie her down, some infants will continue to fall asleep if they are pat-shush, or forehead rubbed,  eyes shielded from visual stim.

It's one of those things that just takes time and practice for learning how to fall asleep independently. At 4 months, I would start providing those opportunities to fall asleep independently.. remembering it's a learning process.

With pu.pd, make sure you are doing it properly. In Tracy's book, she has guidelines on how to do it for each age group (after 3 months old).  With a four month old, you are holding longer until they stop crying, and then lying back down. If you're not comfortable with pu.pd, then don't attempt it, you'll just confuse matters.  Instead, I would look at shortening your rocking time.

Hope this helps,

[AnniesMum]

Like Charli, my 4.5 month old sleeps through the night from around 7.30pm through to 6.30am and has done from around 9 weeks. And people have also said I am lucky, which I know i am. (especially when Grandma comes to babysit and finishes up doing all the ironing!)

Anyway, I fell into the trap of allowing my little girl fall asleep on my chest and sleeping myself during the day. However now she is sleeping through the night I don't need to sleep during the day as well, and am now finding it difficult to get her to sleep for much more than 30 minutes in her own bed for daytime naps.

She will go down relatively easy - I have a wind down routine, and as I do at night, lay her in her cot when she is drowsy and sit just out of her view and keep going back to reassure her if she cries but not too much to allow independant sleeping. This usually takes about 10-15 mins depending how tired she is. But she will usually wake after 30ish minutes. I have tried to wind her down back to sleep, but not very successfully. This also means by the time it comes to late afternoon nap she is cranky and overtired when Dad gets home.

Not sure what i can do??

Any suggestions would be appreciated.

[Matthew's Mommy]

What's her daily routine like?

[AnniesMum]

Pretty much try and follow a 3.5/4 hr EASY which works if she sleeps on my chest or knee but rarely when I put her down in her cot.

She is a good eater until dinnertime if she has not had enough sleep.

[Matthew's Mommy]

Well, now that you are feeling better and well rested, I suggest helping her to learn how to fall asleep in her bed.  At first, it's going to be rough, because she's associated you with sleep. And she's going to probably take short naps.. so knowing this, do some research first, so you will be prepared!  :wink:

First, I would take a look at Tracy's third book, Tracy's sleep interview (attachment is on this board, as an announcement) and look at the teaching sleep to newborn and young infant announcement.

Do Tracy's 4 S wind down routine, doing the wind down routine in her room. When she's looking drowsy, then lie her down in her bed. There are many strategies in the teaching sleep announcement-- such as patting/shushing/eye shielding/hand pressure-- to help settle to sleep. If she becomes upset and does not resettle in her crib, then use the pu.pd method (again, research first in Tracy's book, so that you are doing it right).

Be consistent and patient. Teaching sleep takes time, and is a learning process for young infants. At first, she's going to be confused, because she's used to falling asleep on you. Just be patient with her.. she'll get through it.

Hope this helps!

[AnniesMum]

Thanks v much. I have the book already on order so I'll give it a try.

Thanks again.