16 wk old, stopped sleeping through, not napping - help

[MeelooMouloo]

My 16 wk old ds has previously slept from 7.30pm to 6.30am with just one waking around 2.00am for a 20min feed. He has never really settled for naps during the day unless we are out & about in the car or pushchair. Have tried putting him to nap in both pushchair & cot at home when he is looking sleepy but he will nap for 45mins at most poss. twice/3 times a day but its a battle.

He has now started waking 2-3 times a night for anything up to an hour, not always feeding when he does. His napping shows no sign of improving & I go back to work at the end of May so could do with getting some kind of stability in place before then. (Really am trying to get routine sorted but BF on demand so not easy).

Anyone got any advice/ideas????????

What do you do when he wakes up?
Like you I was feeling smug cause DS went though the night early, and serves me right he started waking up up again once or twice a night round about the same age as yours. Mine was never a good napper either (this has not improved yet, sorry!).
Maybe if he's not feeding, you can put him back in his cot and put on the mobile or something of the sort?

Look up '4 month sleep regression' and '4 month growth spurt' in the threads. It's a phase that will hopefully pass within a few weeks, although it could take some effort to get your LO back on track again. The 45 minute napping thing is an issue quite a few MNers have trouble with, it's because that's a baby's natural sleep cycle and they come into lighter sleep and can wake up and find it difficult to re-settle. At 4 months their sleep patterns begin to change to that of an adult's but they're also reaching important developmental milestones which means they would rather be practicing their newly acquired skills than sleeping so they find it difficult to switch off. Probably a bad time for a routine. Try waiting a couple of weeks and if it doesn't improve try helping things along a bit? For the time being, because he's likely to be going through a growth spurt too, it's best to feed him when he wants it.

My DS responds to shhhing on the baby monitor when he begins stirring from naps after 45 minutes and i can now get him to nap for longer that way. Have you tried this or shush/ pat?

Have tried the patting/shushing thing & it's been hit & miss.
Think he is having a growth spurt, not gaining significant weight but defo getting bigger & stronger. Wants to be standing on his feet all the time & screams in temper when I make him sit down cos my arms are aching. He's not quite ready for door bouncer or anything similar but static; neck muscles still firming up.
Have 2yr old DD so not able to rest too much during the day either. As for the housework.......