Crap naps - how/when did it get better for you?

[Loops81]

My LO is 13 weeks and since about 6 weeks, she has only ever napped for 30 minutes max (aside from the occasional longer sleep in the sling). We've tried everything - in Sleepyhead, with dummy, no dummy, pram moving, pram still, before feed, after feed - and come to the conclusion that, for now, this is just what she does (although it's exhausting - sometimes she need 5 naps in a day!). She falls asleep relatively easily, it's just that her eyes spring open half an hour later and nothing we do will get her back to sleep. And she sleeps pretty well at night. People keep saying it will get better as she grows older - will it?!! Is there anything you did to guide your LO into longer naps or did it just happen naturally in time?

My boy is 5 month and is still only napping for 30mins. 30-45 min is the length of a sleep cycle so sounds as though she isn't able to go from one cycle to another. Some people say to soothe back to sleep as soon as baby's eyes open.

How long does she sleep for at night? My 14 week baby naps very well during the day (2hr nap at lunchtime and 60 mins am and pm) but only does 9 hours over night with several wake ups . I read they need 12-14 hours a day so if they're getting it overnight maybe they don't need it during the day? Just a thought. Also my baby only naps on me or in the pram. If I put her down she wakes up after 5 mins.

My DD was the same, she napped for 30 minutes every 1.5 hours until she was around 5 months old. Everyone went on and on about how we needed to cut her naps down, and how we needed to lengthen them. No one could really tell us how that was done (and DD would not fall for 'pat and shush' or being tricked into falling back asleep once she'd woken-up).

I didn't 'do' anything, I just rolled with it, and worked a routine around it. Luckily she would nap in her bouncy chair, cot or pushchair.

At 5 months, she cut down to three naps a day, 30 mins morning, an hour at lunch and 30 mins afternoon.

At 11 months (from memory), she cut down to two (1 hour morning, 1 hour after lunch).

And now at 14 months she has 1.5 to 2 hours after lunch (though she still occasionally reverts to a quick morning nap, if she's under the weather, or has slept badly).

Sorry it never got better for me and dd dropped naps at 17/18 months.

GlennRheeismyfavourite there could be something in that - she sleeps for about 12 hours at night, with a couple of very short wakes for feeds. She is generally a pretty happy baby so as long as I work hard to make sure she has these little naps throughout the day she's fine. It's just getting exhausting, specially when I have my older daughter around!

When my wee girl stopped lying down for a nap at around 4 months she had all her naps in the sling, and still does, now 7months. i have managed to get her down once or twice after a feed but she will only sleep for 30min on her own. in the sling however she will sleep for 1- 11/2hrs for one nap then about 3-4hours for her second.

At 10 months we still have catnaps

I did "wake to sleep" when DD was around 11-12 weeks (she went through the 4 month sleep regression around that time and her naps shortened):

www.mybabysleepguide.com/2009/02/wake-to-sleep.html

I focused on the lunch time nap since other naps were usually in the pram. For the lunch time nap, I made sure DD napped in the cot in the dark room. It took about a week to get the nap extended to 2-2.5 hours. She didn't sleep that long every day (there were ups and downs) but she was doing it about 5 days a week.

wintertravel1980 That sounds good but I don't understand what it describes on that link - you go in after 30 minutes and pat their back until they relax? Surely if they're asleep they are already relaxed?

My DD always liked firm patting on the back. I used to go in after 40 minutes (DD sleep cycle was 45 minutes) and pat her on the back trying to slightly stir her but not to wake her up completely. I didn't really try to relax her - the idea was to send her a signal that she should continue sleeping. I also used shushing/patting during the night (a lot!) so DD probably recognised patting in her sleep and it encouraged her to connect sleep cycles instead of waking up.

To be honest, sometimes DD just woke up when I patted her but in other cases she would move into the next sleep cycle. It got easier and easier with time.

This is my DS all over and I found it really tough in the early days, you have no time in the day to get anything done or just to have a little breather. We’re at 7 months now and he’s getting the hang of settling himself for naps, this has helped as he does occasionally sleep up to an hour, but I just think this is just normal for him. He sleeps through from 7-7.30 with one dream feed at 10.30, so I can’t complain though.

I'm doing what wintertravel describes as I type this. I'm in there at 30 minutes and pat for about 20 , during which he stirs into a lighter sleep but no longer wakes. He used to do 4 x 30 min naps and now we have 2 or 3 naps a day and lunchtime is about 90 minutes. He is nearly 6 months and this has worked for about the past month I'm hoping he will stop needing me in here soon so I can reap the benefit of the long nap....

I didn’t even try for a routine until four months. DS was a rubbish napper until about 7 months - I tried to train him (I’d take him upstairs, lie down with him and feed him to sleep after he’d been awake for 2-3hours) and he would usually manage about 45mins.

At about 7/8 months something clicked and he now does an hour in the morning, 90mins after lunch and 30-45mins at around 16:30, then goes to bed at 19:30. It all goes to pieces if he’s ill or if we go somewhere new (visiting my Mum this week and he hasn’t slept AT ALL). And he only naps on our bed, not in his cot, so I can’t leave him (he sleeps perfectly well in his cot at night).

6-7 months. Two catnapping babies who gradually got the hang of it by about 7 months. Though even after that one only ever slept for an hour at a time and the other would have 2hr naps. They just needed differing amounts of sleep.

My DS is 15 months old and has always been a shit napper: always. He sleeps 12 hours at night but getting him to nap during the day is a bloody pain in the backside!! He snoozes in the car fine, he’ll sleep on a walk in the buggy but sometimes neither are possible. Put him in his cot and he either goes straight to sleep or will just cry and cry and cry about it. Sometimes he’ll be laid face down, eyes shut but still making a noise. He refused to have one this morning and is currently walking round with pink eyes but will he bollocks have another go!!

He’s always been the same. Amazing at night but bloody awful in the day. I can’t wait till the day they’re done and dusted quite frankly. It’s more trouble than it’s worth!!

@fruityb totally agree...the day naps are no longer needed will be the best day of my life. I ahve to work for every single one, often driving well over an hour a day as DD wakes up the second the engine stops and cannot be transferred into the house.
She is 10 months and will occasionally do 1hr20 max, but most of the time it's 30-45 mins. Quite honestly it has nearly driven me insane a few times.
Sorry op, some of s unfortunately get a crap napper...I feel for you.

Having written this he has conked out at the moment! It’s just so frustrating as he knows he needs it, he’s horrible when he doesn’t yet I have to battle every day! He could scream the noise down at three months old before giving in. On a good day he’ll have an hour in the morning and one in the afternoon. On a bad day he won’t have one at all!

I think Ds will drop them early to be fair. He’s never been consistent about where he’d do it. He was great in the cot then not, then the pushchair then not, then the car then not! It’s another thing that puts me off having another on all honesty.

Up until 4/5 months, my DS took all naps on me and they were long. He gradually got better at being transfer onto bed after being fed to sleep. Now at 7 months, I can put him down for his 3 naps (as long as I get the timing right) and he puts himself to sleep and has long naps.

I stressed in the beginning about being fed to sleep etc. But everything has worked out at 7 months. So my advice would be to just relax, it’s does get better as they get older.