Tips for lengthening naps?

[Parky17]

I'm having what seems to be a common problem - my 6m old baby can't nap for longer than one sleep cycle (45mins). I'd be fine with that if she was happy, but unfortunately she's unbearably tired all the time. She wakes up from her naps hysterical and is then constantly rubbing her eyes, yawning and letting out maniacal screams. I've tried waiting a bit to see if she resettles and I've also attempted to resettle her by stroking, patting, shushing etc, but nothing helps!

I'm following all the advice about letting her fall asleep on her own in her cot and having appropriate "nap gaps" (2-2.5 hours).

She's absolutely fine at night.

I'm just wondering if anyone has been in the same boat and managed to resolve the issue? Do I need to just ride it out or is there some magic way of helping her to nap longer?!?

Thanks - from an exhausted mum and baby!

My second baby was exactly the same. Great at night, happy to self-settle in her cot for naps, but wide awake after 30mins (in our case) and impossible to get back to sleep. We tried every trick in the book but eventually accepted it, just made sure she went down at predictable times each day. Eventually - around 7-8 months, when we dropped from three to two naps - she started having 1-2 hours, which made a massive difference to her general temperament! Since about 14 months (she’s 20 months now) she has had a decent 2 hours sleep after lunch every day, but the slightest noise will wake her (NOONE is allowed upstairs while she's sleeping) and I still live in fear of her returning to the 30 minute nap! I think all you can do is try to rest yourself while she is down and wait for it to improve. Hang in there, it won't last forever.

I've just managed to crack the catnapping at 7 months - but it's taken a month to get here.

Do you put her down completely awake? Or are you putting her down drowsy?

What's the environment like? Is the room dark, do you have white noise? Is it too hot/cold?

When you're allowing her to resettle, how long are you leaving her? The guide I follow (little ones) suggests waiting up to half an hour. The first couple of times DS had a long nap, I needed to leave him at least 10 minutes to resettle (but he didn't wake up hysterical). It suggests that at 6 months, a baby is aware enough to be confused by you attempting to resettle them so they're best being left alone.

If it helps, it's worth keeping trying. He's so much happier for having long cot naps. I do find the little ones program good, they have a great app where moderators will give you support and advice.

Thank you both for your replies! Hopefully we'll get there one day soon. I've got a white noise machine and just installed a blackout blind.

If she woke up calm she might be able to resettle but unfortunately she is full on crying / screaming so I can't really leave her for long. She suffers from trapped wind which doesn't help matters!

Fingers crossed she sorts herself out - she used to be quite a cheerful baby before sleep regression hit 😭

I've never tried this, but read about some people having success with wake to sleep. Basically you rouse them a bit before they are due to wake and they settle into a new sleep cycle. Might be worth looking in to if you are brave enough to try! I sometimes had success by lying next to DD as she was stirring.

Just thought I'd provide an update, as I often read similar threads and wonder when/how the issue was resolved!

All of a sudden my little one (now 7 months) is napping longer than 45 mins - but only for her first nap of the day. I didn't do anything - I think her body just needed to learn the skill on its own!

It's not consistent yet as my routine is a bit haywire with school drop offs etc, however she's managed to nap for over an hour in her cot, buggy and the car - so happy days! Hopefully it continues and we can shift to two long naps soon!!