Waking up from naps prematurely

MagickalNarwhal

My son did this and ended up being chronically sleep deprived and unhappy ALL THE TIME until he slept better at 7 mo. Hoping to avoid the same issue w my daughter if possible!!

She wakes up after one sleep cycle (~45 min) and is clearly not rested. If I give her a paci her eyes close for a minute but I am never able to get her to go back to sleep. For a while we had been able to do a rough eat-play-sleep routine because she was napping for 2 hrs but with short naps like we have been getting for the last few days that doesn't work.

It's not the end of the world and it may just be a phase but if anyone has thoughts I'd like to hear them!

MagickalNarwhal

Oh yeah and if I can't get her back to sleep and just say ok let's be awake, she's crabby, yawning, crying nonstop.

Lelo2006

I have the same problem. Now I'm just trying to let him sleep wherever he will sleep, whether it is his stroller, in my arms, in the sling. He's so cranky when he doesn't get long naps. Yesterday he was so tired buy the end of the day that he was totally wired and didn't go to bed until 11.

I really hope this doesn't last 7 months....

coco2787

Do you wear LO at all? DS takes one good nap, usually late morning/early afternoon and then will get tired and catnap, but never for long. If he's fussy and still tired I put him in the Boba and can usually get an hour nap that way.

chiboo9

I'm currently going through this with my 7 week LO. She's been a great napper (1.5-2 hrs each nap) up until last week. Now she'll wake from a nap after 20-45 mins, clearly still sleepy, but fights it. Sometimes I can put her back down for another 30 or so minutes. Sometimes I have to hold her for a longer nap. Most times she'll just cry and fuss. Although she gives us good stretches at night, it makes for an exhausting day.

MagickalNarwhal

Haha I guess that is a good way to look at it Mamasighs! I wish she wasn't waking up so crabby though. @Cfreymc I do wear her but those naps are actually always short! Maybe because it's so hot? But I can't get her to settle into another sleep cycle in the carrier no matter what. 

I sincerely hope this doesn't last as long either. Honestly with my son he still took crappy naps until he was 11 months actually, but we ended up sleep training at 7 months (and I was a STAUNCH anti-sleep-training person before that) and it helped his night sleep enough so that he was at least not SO upset during the day.

I will take a moment to express extreme gratitude that she has been an awesome sleeper for most of her 9 weeks. (And I would be extra grateful if it would continue?!)

Pink724

Mamasighs said:

@lalvillar06 after awhile I just tried to see it as a good thing. I never had to wait for him to wake up so we could go somewhere because he never napped long enough for me to think about it. He was a terribly cranky newborn but then he was the sunniest, happiest (mostly) boy even with the cat naps. So more time i got with him during the daytime hours was usually joyful and fun. He was a very, very alert baby and was responsive/sensitive to his surroundings and he still is. It was as if he just couldn't nap with all the stimulating stuff going on during the day.

This is promising, because we are the exact same way! Sometimes I wish I could put an eye mask on her... It's like she is all too interested in absolutely everything around her!

MrandMrsFireFighter

Also listening in

FancyFrenchie

Having the same problem the last few days and the only thing working for now is putting him in the stroller and going for a walk. It can be at the park, outside, the mall, the supermarket, wherever, as long as we're rolling around. He'll sleep 1-3 hours like this.

summerchild

DS doesn't nap much either during the day and refuses to be worn in the ergo
or bjorn. When he does nap, he is less fussy and goes down easier at night. During the day we try to follow a naptime routine But he fights sleep! After leaving the room he's screaming his head off.

rondosa

I find the longest naps I'm able to get from DS involve swaddling with the miracle blanket, a white noise machine and the swing. I can usually get 2hrs this way, yesterday it was 3.5hrs! I also have the most success when get him down as soon as the yawns start, even if he's still smiling and cooing.

If I'm out and he's in his car seat the only way he'll sleep past one 45min cycle is if I'm moving...in the car or stroller...plus I drape a muslin blanket over it to cut out some of the visual distractions if he does open his eyes in between cycles. He seems to be pretty stimulated visually.