9 week old's naps are TERRIBLE!

[rollerskaterdata]

My DD is 9 weeks old. Since about 4/5 weeks old her naps have steadily gotten worse. We've gone from 2 1/2 hour naps to only one 2 1/2 hour nap a day with a couple of 45 minute naps sprinkled in, to just 45 minute naps throughout the day. Exhausting for us and her as she only goes through one sleep cycle before waking up. She also takes over an hour of settling to get off to sleep.

I've tried everything it seems. I've read sleep training books and tried to get her down before her max wake time length (about an hour now up from 45 minutes), feeding to sleep (which I don't like doing as I don't want to create an association plus it doesn't work anyway as she wakes up when you put her down), watching her sleepy cues, putting her down drowsy but awake, letting her fuss for about 5 minutes, white noise, etc. I follow a naptime routine, I don't let her get overstimulated during her wake time, you name it!!

I know every baby is different but my DS was never this bad. It's soul destroying fighting to get a baby to sleep multiple times a day every day ☹️ nighttime is ok, she wakes once, sometimes twice, for a feed and usually goes straight back to sleep so she obviously knows how to transition from one sleep cycle to the next. Help!!

Sounds like you're doing amazing if she's sleeping well overnight with one or two wake ups!

From my own experience...if they sleep well at night...they don't take many naps in the day. My DD took two naps at that age ...but each wasn't more than 30 mins!

@mummyintheunknown thank you for responding. My DS was the dream baby when it came to sleep, perfect sleep day and night. Clearly DD didn't get the memo 🙄😂

Newborn melatonin wears off at 8 weeks so that’s when catnapping starts.
I would go with 2 x 45 min naps a day and one long one.
For the long one (decide when this will be, usually around 11am or 12), you will have to work really hard on resettling.
Is the baby in a pitch dark room with white noise?

I'd stop timing everything, it just makes you stressed.

Let her sleep when she's tired. Get on with things when she wakes.

DS is ten weeks and he just sleeps on and off when he needs it, I've got no idea how long naps are but they're often cut short when my toddler is around - we just get on with it. He naps in the sling mostly.

I know different babies etc but I think apps that time babies' habits are stress making, they need different things at different times. Watch the baby not the clock.