how do you break the 30 min wake after sleep cycle?

[juliewoolie]

My Lo is fab at going to bed at night but daytime naps are a nightmare.

He is 16 weeks old and from day one has refused to sleep longer than 30 - 45 mins during the day. I know that this is a babies sleep cycle moving between light and deeper sleep. He is distraught and so obviously still tired when waking.

I have a routine to put him dowm to that I follow at each nap hes is fine with this and goes to sleep with min fuss an occasional bellow for 5 - 10 mins but no hysterics. He just wakes up after 30 - 40 mins have gone into his room and shushed patted or stoked etc and occasionally he will go back to sleep for another 30 mins.

What can I do to help him stay asleep for his daytime naps so that his sleep is refreshing for him what should I do when he does wake and is screaming hysterically?

TIA

[MegBusset]

Wait... about two months. Time was the only thing that sorted this for my DS, now age 7 months he takes naps between 45-90 minutes. Was a hardened 30-min napper up til about 5 months.

You can try resettling just as he's waking, as you are doing, but really I think it's something that they just have to grow into!

[YummyMam]

I'm having the exact same problem with my 13 week old DD. Just started using the Baby whisperer technique of pick up/put down when she wakes and is still clearly tired. Two days on and it seems to be having an effect. Yesterday, it took twenty minutes to settle her again and she only slept for a little while longer. Today, it took about 5 minutes in her morning nap, and this afternoon, I didn't have to pick her up at all - just bent over her and talked to her and she has slept for a further 45 minutes (in fact, it's looking like I'll have to wake her soon!). It's hard work, as you have to put baby down AS SOON as s/he stops crying, even if it means you're picking them up again immediately. The idea is that eventually, baby will learn to settle herself when she wakes mid nap. Here's hoping...

[juliewoolie]

i have the most stubborn child in the world have triedbaby whisperer to no avail. I am now using a method which I am hoping will work called crying down it is NOT cc. I worked as a nanny for years and have tried all my usual tricks but still wakes after max 45 min.

[pulapula]

Do they take a dummy? My LO will often go back to sleep if we get his dummy in just as he starts to come out of his deep sleep at 45mins.

With my DD, we did shush patting, where you basically put them on their side, shush in their ear, and pat them on the back. Would have to do it for about 20 mins from when she started to wake up, but eventually she got the message and stayed asleep through this stage. At 16 weeks, shush patting might work better than pupd.

[trixymalixy]

Agree with Megbusset.

My Lo would only ever sleep for half an hour, but now he's sitting up and using more energy he tends to sleep for a bit longer. Although he only did half hours today.......

[gingerninja]

Julie, I haven't read all the threads because I wholeheartedly agree with Meg. My DD was a hardened 30min napper, you could set your watch by her. At about 7 / 8 months that started to change and now she has much longer day time naps. We tried everthing in the early days to try and extend them and it became a real obsession. She did it all on her own just before I'd lost the will to live. try and grin and bare it for a bit longer

[StrawberryMartini]

I found a miracle answer for ds which may work for you - he would have 30 min naps and wake up crying, then someone suggested putting him on his front to sleep - he slept for an hour and a half and since then has always slept on his front including at night. At this age it's perfectly safe. I didn't believe it would work before I tried it!