Help ! Nap struggles, 8.5 month old

[Ameli86]

Desperately seeking nap help! Baby girl has gone from napping really well to now really bad. I’m worried I’m doing something wrong and it’s driving me crazy. Gone from napping 1.5 to 2 hours to now only 30 mins max. Have transition from 3 to 2 naps in the hope of consolidation but no luck. Constantly watching wake windows to the point I’m staying in every day to support the best environment. Current routine, wake 6am, first nap 9am then depending on length (sometimes 1 hour 20 mins max) then second nap 2pm bedtime 6.30pm. This routine was based on a very expensive chat with a sleep consultant. I was advised to cap the first nap if it’s any longer then 30 mins in the hope the second nap will be longer - have tried hasn’t worked. Baby girl really distraught after waking from second nap and will often protest. I’m at my wits end and need some help working this one out. It’s been happening for 3 weeks now. Any tips or advise? Worried she’s not napping enough in the day. Sleep at night is ok with a few wake ups. Should I just got with the flow and stop pressuring the situation or try and continue working it out. It seems really sudden as she was napping so well before. Can’t for the life of me extend that second nap which apparently is needed for development. Argh ! Is this 8 month regression ? Sleep anxiety? Teething ? Everything all at once? Anyone going through this that can give me reassurance ? Thank you so much

30mins on a morning isn’t a lot for me, you don’t want her overtired which can screw naps up on it’s own!
How long does she have on an afternoon?
Do you use a white noise machine?
Can she nap in buggy if out? I used to go out for a walk on morning nap as it saved the fight and he would drift off happily!

Take the pressure off you both and go with the flow, follow her cues for nap time.
It’s hard enough as it is and the added pressure of trying to figure out sleeps can do your head in!

Thanks so much for reply ! Have been going crazy because it feels like a sudden change. So thought this was due to her needing to drop to 2 naps all the signs there. She has had for the last three days 1.20 mins on a morning. I’m just being really hard on myself because I’ve heard and read that you ideally want the second nap to be the longest. Have been bringing bed time forward to compensate and I know she can connect sleep cycles.

Ideally but not always the case, if she has her big sleep on a morning that would be fine.
I know families who LO has her one nap a day on a morning, some just need the morning to catch up on sleep and recharge.
Maybe do a buggy nap on a afternoon if you feel she isn’t having enough.
It’s really hard and maybe regression, is she trying to crawl?
Don’t put pressure on yourself honestly she’ll fall back into it.

Ah ok. Thanks so much for the reassurance. It makes me feel better she’s getting a decent morning nap. She’s already crawling, standing, cruising. I’ve been waiting for the naps to consolidate since the 3rd nap drop. Wondering if that could be part of the transition and new routine.

Mine had just started walking at that age (so about 48 hours ahead of where you are, get your stair gate ready), and it genuinely knackers them. He was napping solid two hour blocks morning and afternoon (up at 7, 10-12 & 2-4, bed at 8) and only just keeping on top of it. Second nap usually needed a walk in the buggy but it always happened.

The actual energiser bunny the rest of the time, mind you.

That second nap would be too late for me - we did 2,3,4 awake windows with my eldest and he responded well to it. Have you tried putting her down earlier for that second one? Sleep is such a minefield.

I’ve tried all sorts with wake windows! If I put her down any earlier and she has only a 30 min nap it means the window before bed is far too long and we’ve now capped the third nap due to early wakes and protests. She wakes at 6am if it before so having to stretch out the day due to this. She copes really well with a 4 hour window before bed time and usually this is 6.30pm. If any earlier she’s just not ready. It’s just that second nap that’s just too dam short. Would love to have a 2,3,4 schedule. The both naps would consolidate after the 2 nap transition. She’s really advanced for her age almost walking thinking it could be that