Short naps

[maccamummy]

DS is 9 months old and naps in the cot for only 30 minutes at a time. I put him down awake and he gets himself off to sleep. Sometimes he cries before going to sleep, but for no more than 10 seconds, but mostly he doesn't. At nighttime, again I put him down awake and he pretty much sleeps from 7pm until 6am so I don't think it's a sleep cycle transition issue. He definitely needs longer naps because if we're in the car his naps are around an hour, and I've got into the very bad habit of picking him up when he wakes after half an hour and cuddling him. He'll then sleep for at least another half an hour. If he doesn't get the sleep it's grouch central!
I wouldn't mind this (actually it's rather lovely) but he's off to nursery soon and they won't do this for him.

HV suggested leaving him which I did once. He screamed and screamed and fell asleep as soon as I picked him up.

Any help please extending these naps? Thank you!

[FATEdestiny]

Have you tried cosleeping for naps, as a way to extend them (not forever).

If he resettled back to sleep being cuddled, the hope would be that when he initially wakes if he find you already there and already cuddling, that he won't 'properly' wake up. That he'll just shuffle and go back to sleep- exactly what should happen between sleep cycles.

The more he does this, the more he will get used to linking the sleep cycles, so reducing the likelihood of waking.

[maccamummy]

Good idea fate, thank you. Will give it a go. You're right though, I need to find a way of him learning not to need me to go back to sleep so that eventually he can just do it himself. You reckon I should rock him to sleep next to me and then snuggle for an hour and a bit. Sounds like heaven