Is this normal?

[hillaryq]

I just started my 6 month old on a 4 hour EASY schedule yesterday and we saw a HUGE improvement the first night.  She slept 7 hours in a row without waking (she has never done that before!) for a total of 11.5 hours of sleep at night.

However, she is MUCH crankier in the day even though she is getting plenty of sleep at nap times!  Today she had a 1 hour nap in the morning (couldnt get her to go back to sleep) and a 1.5 hour nap in the afternoon with another nap from 4:30-6:00 in the evening.  She got 4 hours of naps in and plenty of food but she was a grump all day and is usually extremely happy.

Is this just her adjusting?  is there anything else i can do to make her happier in the day? 

By the way..... before we were on this routine, she used to wake up from her naps cooing and babbling but now she wakes up fussing and wont go back to sleep even though she sleeps for about the same amount of time.

(She also used to sleep with a pacifier until yesterday also but we got rid of it cold turkey) 

please tell me that within a few days i will have my chipper little bunny back!!!!

thanks

[LŠuren]

Is there a huge difference from your previous routine to your new EASY routine?? if so, what are they??

[hillaryq]

THe biggest difference is that I used to just feed her when she was hungry (usually about every 3 hours or so) and I'd put her down for a nap whenever she looked tired even if it had only been a little over an hour since she woke up last.


I am having trouble figuring out whether i am supposed to force her to stay awake or wait for a bottle to conform to the 4 hour routine even if i know she is hungry or tired before she is supposed to according to the schedule.  I know that you are supposed to follw her cues but i also read i am supposed to be tough in the very beginning while i am still trying to train her to go with the new schedule.

what should i be doing?

thanks!

[LŠuren]

hilary

what you did before sounds like you were sort of following EASY anyway. Please remember EASY is NOT a schedule, but a way of following your babies cues and sticking to the E A S order so you don't feed to sleep.

If 3 or 3.5 hours between feeds is all your LO can handle, please don't continue the 4hr if it is not in rhythm with her cues.

Don't force your LO to stay up anything over an additional 10-15mins on top of her usual awake time.  If your LO can only stay up an hour (inc E time) then gradually extend by 10 -15mins.