im getting very confused

[tammy29]

Hi ladies.

Ive been having issues with my 7 month old dd for a few weeks now.Just when i seem to get her routine sorted,another problem arises.

I've been trying to extend her A time lately to 3hrs and today her morning nap went pretty well.Instead of her normal 30mins,she slept for 1hr 10mins.So this afternoon i was planning on the same amount of A time but after only 2hrs she was really tired.I put her down and she fell asleep quite quickly.Im not sure what to do for the rest of the day now(with naps).She has been having trouble with a cold lately which isn't helping.She is also waking at 5:30am.

Her routine so far today has been like this

5:30 wake/bottle
8:30 nap 1hr 10 mins
10:00 solids/bottle
12pm nap

I suppose the rest of her day depends on how much sleep she has now but i was hoping someone might have some theories on this as im at my wits end now.She was always a fantastic sleeper till she was 6 months old.

[tammy29]

Hya.Well i can update my post already.She slept for 30mins.What do i do now.She is awake and chatting so i know she wont go back to sleep.Should i offer her another catnap in 2-2.5hrs time?

[KathrynK]

hi Tammy
I have some questions for you before we can help get you back on track!
Firstly I need to ask why you are trying to extend her A times to 3 hrs? It is because she has dropped the catnap so is awake too long in the afternoon perhaps?
What A times does she normally do? What's her usual daily routine?
How have you extended her so far?- some do 5-10 minutes every few days really gradually, but some lo's cope with a big leap of 20-30 minutes in one go. It's importnat to judge this right to avoid overtiredness as that'll cause you all sorts of problems.
How long has she been waking at 5.30am? What do you do when she wakes at this time?

As for today, I would definitely offer another nap. If she doesn't take it go for an early night.
When my dd has a cold she always wakes earlier in the morning, I think because she has trouble breathing through her nose so coughs and when she comes into a light sleep around 5-5.30ish it wakes her. Once the cold has gone she gets back on track pretty quickly all by herself.

[tammy29]

Hya.Been trying to extend A time cause she wakes up chatting after 30mins if she goes down after 2.5.She will only nap over an hour if her A time is nearer the 3 hr mark.She was also refusing the catnap.

She is still waking at 5:30am.Doesn't usually wake at all during the night but is wide awake at 5:30.I leave her until she starts shouting for me.She still has a blocked nose too.