Baby can't stay asleep after first sleep cycle?

[MoonUnitAlpha]

I'm guessing this is what's happening anyway!

My DS is 3.5 months old and generally not a bad sleeper. However he always wakes up exactly 45 minutes after he falls asleep, be it naptime or bedtime, in the pram or the car. Has anyone else experienced this/have any tips for helping him stay asleep?

Up til now I was feeding him (breastfeeding) to sleep, but stopped a week or so ago. Now I give him a dummy and rock him til sleepy, put him down and then pat/shush/stroke him til he drops off. Should I be doing less to help him fall asleep so he can settle himself?

With his morning and late afternoon naps I just get him up after the first 45 minutes, but with his lunchtime nap I go in to him after 40 minutes, wait for him to start waking, then shush/pat/rock him back to sleep. This can take anything from 10 to 30 minutes but he does then usually sleep for another hour or two so I think he definitely needs the longer nap. At bedtime he goes to sleep at 7pm, wakes at 7.45, but it's just a case of giving him back his dummy and he sleeps until the early hours of the morning.

This sounds like DS, I sit with him during his day time naps and try to ease him back to sleep after 45 minutes. Normally works for the first naps of the day but not for the second.

As for night times, he seems to know when it's bedtime, we've been doing the same routine since we got him home from hospital, so after that it's like he switches off for the night until 4am.

We still have to put DS down with white noise, otherwise he lays in his cot starring at things until he gets upset.

What kind of routine have you got? I found doing a shorten version of the night time routine heps settle him for naps and then putting a hand on his chest when he starts stirring after 45mins.

We have a bedtime routine of bath, nappy free time, massage, last feed, white noise - don't have a naptime routine as such but when he's getting tired I take him into the bedroom, close the curtains, give him his dummy and rock him. The problem is even if I catch him as he's stirring I can't stop him waking fully and then have to go through the whole dummy, rocking him and trying to put him down again - sometimes several times before he goes back to sleep. He seems to wake up quite upset and is distressed that can't get back to sleep easily.

Have u tried 'wake to sleep'?

Maybe try going in about 30-40 mins after he started napping and then gently stroke his cheek to get him to stir. The theory is that it rouses them partly but not fully, so they then settle back into the next sleep cycle without coming to full conciousness.

I've only done it once and it seemed to work, but DS settle now with just a little white noise and a hand on his chest when he stirs.

No, hadn't thought of trying that - I'll give it a go tomorrow, thanks!

How did it go?

No luck with the wake to sleep yet unfortunately, have just had to feed him back to sleep instead.

IME what you're doing sounds about right.

At first DS could NEVER resettled himself after 45 mins, so I would resettle him(pretty much like you are), and eventually he stopped waking up after 45 mins.

Sometimes there isn't a magic answer and it just takes time

Feeding him to back to sleep didn't work either! He's now awake and looking tired and grumpy.

Don't worry. Roll with it and try again for his next nap.

IME most lo's don't really start to get into sleep routines until about 12 weeks.

Keep the faith, you'll both get there

Well I asked the HV today and her advice was he might need weaning early - wtf??

Thanks ILikeToMoveIt, I'll try again tomorrow.

ha ha ha, what shockingly shit advice. It's such terrible advice that I shouldn't really laugh.

Tomorrow is another day

Think I may have got to the root of the problem

I have been putting ds back to bed about 2 hours after he wakes up. This morning I ended up not putting him down for a nap til 3 hours after he woke up and he has now been asleep for over an hour!

I guess maybe he's just getting older and is able to stay awake longer, so I need to adjust the routine a bit.

Yes I've found the same thing with my 8mo DS. He used to only sleep during the day for 38mins EXACTLY then wake, even though he was definitely still tired.

He now sleeps for longer (one morning nap of about 1hr 15mins and same in the afternoon)and I think it was just an age thing, I didn't do anything different.

I also think weaning has helped but I'm not advising early weaning. I waited til 6mo with DS. But I do think having a big lunch before his afternoon nap has helped him to sleep for longer.

I never thought he would sleep for longer but, today for example, I heard him stir after the first 40mins of his nap but he settled himself back off again. He would NEVER have done that a few months ago.