Contact Naps

[Roat2022]

I have a 2 week old who over the past 2 days has decided he will only have contact naps🤦🏼‍♀️ we will put him down and within minutes he’s wide awake again, he sleeps alone and great during the night which is amazing but as a first time mum all I keep hearing is things like don’t hold him too much he’ll get used to it etc and I’m worried if he only contact naps he will want held 24/7 however I don’t want him getting over tired and he needs his naps, I feel stuck between a rock and a hard place, anyone any tips or advice?

This is absolutely normal, it helps regulate his temperature, gives you both good hormones, comfort, regulation etc etc.. babies don’t know they’re apart from you until they’re 6/7 months.

Society has written this script where it’s more normal to want an infant to be set down immediately rather than close to their mother which is normal for all mammals!

The question is - do you want to carry on contact napping? If it’s literally just because you don’t think you should be doing it, instead of actually just enjoying it while they’re this small then I would soak into it and carry on!

If you don’t want to do it then that’s ok too. But please don’t let it be because of pressure or ‘creating a rod for your own back’ - babies sleep isn’t linear and you’ll have up and down times with it all.

Look up ‘the fourth trimester’ and enjoy your newborn and all of the snuggles!

They're still so tiny at this point. My little one used to have 1 contact nap a day at this age. Don't know why but for his 1 nap in the afternoon it had to be a contact one else he would just lie awake 😅 honestly I'd enjoy it for now and he will end up napping on his own as he gets a bit bigger 😊

He's two weeks old. Its normal.
Don't know when it became labelled contact napping but totally normal.

Enjoy the contact naps and don’t worrying him becoming dependent on you, he still thinks he’s part of you :) I have four month old who I rarely put down but he sleeps very well in his crib and pram too so I don’t think it makes a difference!

Ignore all the stuff about making a rod for your own back… you have to do what you have to do to survive at this point!

My philosophy with baby sleep is that whatever you do before 6 months doesn’t matter in the long run because their sleep cycles change so much and also their memories are very short!

I did mostly half half when baby was little but some days were all contact if baby wanted.

He's 6 months now as independent as they come. Hates being in arms actually!

Although it may seem a bit distant for a baby to not cling to his mother, this is the best way for him to become independent in the future. slice master

https://slice-masters.io

I totally get how stressful it can feel when your little one only wants contact naps. It’s completely normal at this age, and it doesn’t mean you’re doing anything wrong. A lot of parents find that short, frequent contact naps help babies avoid getting overtired, and over time, they naturally start taking longer stretches independently. Sometimes using a calm activity like gentle rocking, a soft lullaby, or even a quiet game session for yourself can help you stay sane in between naps, like taking a few minutes to play something fun online. I recently found slice master io really relaxing for quick breaks while my baby naps, it’s simple, addictive, and a nice little mental reset.

https://onlinevgames.com/slice-master/