11 month old sleep routine

[Harvey19]

Hi,

I am after some advice. I have an 11.5 month old boy. He has never been a great night time sleep me but has recently improved. More often than not he is sleeping through from about 7pm til 4am then after settling him he goes til 5. I’m just struggling with the 5am wake up especially as I struggle to get back to sleep at 4 if he wakes.
He self settles for naps and bed time. Has two naps a day usually try to push him out til at least 8.30 for his first one but he’s so tired and moody by 7 it’s hard! He has another nap about 1ish both 1.5 hours long.
Any advice on getting them to sleep in longer in the morning, even just til 6 would be great! I’ve just found out I’m expecting again and starting to feel very tired.
Thanks

My DD is the same with the early mornings - I've started having her in my bed for a bit (side lying breastfeeding) which more often than not will put her back to sleep for a bit, till 6.30 or so. Having said that I've only been doing that for a week or so, so we'll see! Are you breastfeeding? May be worth a go if so.
She doesn't nap easily at all though and will have two 30 min naps if I'm lucky - how did you get yours self settling and having long naps?!

Can you keep him up until 8pm, which might push him to sleep later ?
Mine never went to bed before 8pm.

My 11 month has been like this for just over a week- well with additional wakings in the night for hours and getting up at 5am!

But finally he has started to nap better in the day the last 2 days and this morning slept till 6.20! (He woke at 10 for an hour tho and 3.30 for 15mins)

I'm hoping it's a phase? He's never slept great waking 2/3 times for a feed but was starting to settle in 15mins and that changed to hours!

2 x 90 min naps sounds a touch long, at that age we did 30 mins in the morning and 90mins-2hours early afternoon. The short morning nap should keep him going and hopefully he’d be more tired overall at night. Then if he did start sleeping better at night I’d be looking to drop that morning nap at about 15 months.

Congratulations on the pregnancy, hope you’re able to get lots of rest!

I don’t breastfeed anymore but I imagine that could have helped comfort him back to sleep rather than waiting for a bottle. I started encouraging him to self settle when he was quite a bit younger, probably about 7 months. I would let him cry a little but not for long as just couldn’t do it. I would go in reassure him and then leave the room again and he seemed to take to it pretty well. I think it helped a lot when I moved him into his own room. Didn’t really help the night wakings though as he has a dummy so I was forever going in to put that back in during the night!

@FippertyGibbett

I have kept him up slightly later before but never as late as 8. I am thinking of giving this a go. What time would you suggest last nap ending for an 8pm bed time?

@crazycatlady7

I feel like we have been through many different phases with his sleep just as it seemed to be getting better it changes again. I get very jealous of those with babies who have slept well pretty much from the beginning. Makes me think what am I doing wrong but I guess every baby is just different. My boy started waking again more at night a little while ago but luckily was a phase and I’m hoping that we are over that now! Good luck

@SettingFloundaries
I have tried cutting the morning nap down before but he is a nightmare to wake up from it! I think he is so tired from his early wake up he is trying to make up for the lost sleep so it’s just a vicious circle. I think I will give it another go. If he is currently waking at 5 what time would you say he goes down for his first nap? Thanks

@Harvey19 totally agree I hear babies sleeping through from 2/3 months and mines done it twice in nearly a year 🤷‍♀️

We aren't doing anything wrong it's who they are.... even if we are so tired and forget to turn the oven on to cook dinner (oops)

My friends 3 year old is just about sleeping through and still wakes at 5.... our babies will get there in their own time. I tend to go to bed an hour after baby now to get extra sleep and DH gets up if it's a bad night to play in the middle of the night.

[quote Harvey19]@FippertyGibbett

I have kept him up slightly later before but never as late as 8. I am thinking of giving this a go. What time would you suggest last nap ending for an 8pm bed time?[/quote]
Not sure but I’d be wanting him up by around 3pm . Try pushing that afternoon nap back a bit. It’s trial and error I’m afraid.
Do you have blackout blinds ?
Is there anything that could be waking him at 5am such as the milkman, neighbour going to work, central heating clicking on ?
Just remember that everything is a phase, and you’ll be struggling to get them out of bed in 16 years !

Maybe try reducing gradually? I’d be getting him down about 3 hours after waking both times and gradually trying to move towards the ideal (6.30 wake up, 9.30-10 nap, 1-3 nap, 7 bedtime). I know it’s way easier said than done, whatever you decide to do I hope it works out for you soon!