Help with wind down routine please!

[travis's mum]

Hi ladies,
I could really do with some help with a wind down routine that works for my LO. I've tried so many things but nothing seems to work. In this department I find he has spirited tendancies as he refuses to close his eyes and relax. as soon as they start to close you can see him forcing them back open  :?  until he can't fight no more and they finally close.  Sometimes I find if he is loosing the battle of trying to keep them open he  will burry his head shout/scream :x  That wakes him up and we're back to square one.Other times he thinks the hole routine is a joke and starts smiling and co-oing at me :roll:

I've tried getting him down earlier at the 1st yawn this 'sometimes ' workbut usually we always have a bit of drama. When he was younger only 3 weeks ago he used to go down like an angel. Is this an age thing? Whats going on I don't like nap times like this as it seems like a battle sometimes and this is not how I want our days or relationship to be :cry:

Am I asking to much at the moment is it to be expected?
Please ladies can you post me examples of your wind down routines so I can maybe get it right!

[Emmy's Mum]

Hi - I had that same problem with my LO when she was younger. She grew out of it when she learnt how to settle herself. Now all I do is give her a quiet cuddle for a couple of minutes (sometimes shorter depending on how tired she is - I put her straight down if she is cranky) then I place her into her cot and I pat her for a couple of seconds - this usually calms her right down if she is grisley and it seems to send her the message that it's ok to fall asleep. That's generally about all she needs. She used to mantra cry to sleep but I've found that even that is decreasing. Hopefully your LO will grow out of it as well! 

[travis's mum]

Is it still a matra cry when he burries his head and shouts like he's frustrated? Should I leave him to it or come to his rescue?Sometimes I feel I'm dragging out the whole process but I don't want him to feel I'm not there for him. Or worse still I'm scared if I leave him to it he might really begin to resent nap times!! Should I let him work out his frustrations on his own. I Honestly don't know what is best sometimes I feel I could be making the situation worse, I find it so upseting to hear him making so much noise.

Is it just a phase will he grow out of it and should I leave him to it? :cry:

[Aarismom]

If he's shouting I think it's ok to leave him be. My lo use to do that, and eventually she got the hang of that going to sleep thing. We just left her do it. We only really interfeared if it turned into a wailing "I need you" type of cry, which is pretty distinct. She rarely makes that cry anymore now.

Routine wise, I do a little floor play with her for like 5 mins, then hold/rock/cuddle until she's ready to go to sleep (she'll stick her thumb in her mouth and rest her head against my chest...very cute!). There's usually still a little fuss when I put her in the crib, then it's right off to sleepyland.

*HUGS*
Sonya =P

[Matthew's Mommy]

Hi there,

Since he is still young, under 4 months old, I would keep a close eye on his awake time, and definately acting on the first sleepy cue.  For spirited babies, the sooner the better.  Keep everything consistent.. lights out (if he has difficulty closing his eyes, then a very dark room is important) white noise (ie. fan) gives him something to focus on. Swaddling is important.

My little spirited fella had a  very tough time settling to sleep when he was a newborn, so I know what you mean about the crying. I needed to keep myself as calm and relaxed as possible. The more tense I felt, the more upset he became. 

If he was completely upset and frantic and beyond the point of no return, then I would use the soother. Because he couldn't self soothe (not until close to 4 months), I would offer the soother as a means for calming.

Also, keep his awake time as low stim. as possible.

Hang in there,