Nap Training

So we did CIO for nighttime and it went really well. Both babies are sleeping about 11 hours straight at night.

But we are still having trouble with naps. Right now they are doing three 45 minute naps. Usually they wake up smiling and happy, so I'm not sure if they are just short nappers. But sometimes one baby will sleep longer. When that happens I am able to rock the other baby back to sleep. Also, the past couple of days they have been falling asleep in the stroller on walks, so that's making me think they need a longer nap.

Would you do nap training, or just accept that they are 45 minute nappers? And any suggestions on how to do nap training would be appreciated.

Thanks!

 

I would absolutely do nap training. Shoot for two sleep cycles, so 90 min. At 7 mos we had two 90ish min naps and a 30 min catnap about 5 pm.

 

My girls' naps are driving me crazy too. They are like 30 minutes long and that's about it. Barely enough for me to feed myself. This morning/late morning I kept them up longer than usual thinking I would get a longer nap out of them. It was about 30 min again. Yesterday afternoon they slept for 2.5 hours...it was dark and rainy though. That has never happened. I don't know if this is a sign that I should make them nap in their cribs. They always nap in swings...it used to make them sleep a little longer.

 

I think I would do nap training. Maybe as soon as you notice them starting to fall asleep in the stroller head back to your house and try to put them down and see how long they go?

 

Thanks! Can anyone suggest a method for nap training. Part of our problem is they wake up happy. It's only 20 minutes or so later that they get a little fussy.

 

I'm having the same problem with my boys!!! It is INSANE! I try to put them down in their cribs for naps. We have one of those sound machines and I've even gotten desperate and put tinfoil on the window! lol (That will at least prompt hubby to buy blackout curtains!) They sleep for 30 minutes and then they're up. I think we have spoiled them by holding them all the time, but we're just in survival mode right now. They're 3 months old.

I need supernanny!! And xanax!! lol

 

We followed HSHHC for naps. If they slept less than one hour I left them in their cribs. Some times I would bring them out and put them in their swings and let them finish a nap in there.

 

45 minutes is a normal sleep cycle, so if mine wake up from their nap at 45 minutes, I give them 5 minutes or so to fuss and they usually go back to sleep.

 

Same here! It seems to work well.

 

Mine often wake up after 45 min. to an hour. I have tried letting them fuss, but it turns into loud crying. They will cry for up to 20 min. and still aren't close to falling back asleep, so I go get them. I don't know what else to do. Mine take 3 short naps a day. I'd really like 2 longer ones.

 

We are on the same boat. If they nap in the crib, they always always wake at either 30 or 45 minutes. (they occasionally take v long naps in swing, carseat, etc.) they seem wide awake when they wake up. So letting them cry just seems to wake them further (but maybe I haven't tried hard enough?). Since the naps are so short. They take 3 and often 4 naps a day. They are a little over 5 months (or a litlle over 4 months adjusted). I would appreciate any advice.

 

I would nap train also, our naps improved once we were sttn but we dd naps and bedtime training at the same time. At the time we would have them down within 1.5 to 2hrs from waking. I would do the same routine at each nap time, wind down from play, lullabye, sleepsack, rock for a few mins, give lovey and leave for at least 1.5hrs. My girls were serial 45minute nappers but they now take 2 2hr naps at 9 and 1 give or take half hour. Treat it like you would CIO for the nighttime, set your rules and stay consistent. Lots of luck naps caused me immense stress!!

 

Thanks everyone! I have been putting my LO's down about 2 hours after they wake up and leaving them for 1.5 hours in their cribs. Yesterday they woke up from their first nap after 45 min. I left them for 30 minutes and they both fell back to sleep (yaaa!) The second nap they woke after 45 minutes and then played and talked in their cribs for another 45 minutes, so I got them up after that. The third nap was 45 minutes, and they were miserable in the evening but that's ok- Rome wasn't built in a day

 

Good job!

I've basically been doing the same thing, except I will go in and replace paci's and turn lullabies back on if it's been less than an hour. Their morning nap is about 45 min to 1 hr, and the afternoon my dd usually wakes after 1 hr, sometimes she'll go back to sleep, sometimes she won't. Liam usually sleeps 1.5-2 hrs. And they both take a 30-40 min catnap around 7:30, they just can't quite make it all the way to bedtime at 10pm without it.

 

WTG :clapping: They sound like they are getting there :ibiggrin: