Don't know how to get him to nap...

schmoodle

He used to love napping on my and fell asleep pretty easily...otherwise he'd nap in his swing if I had to get things done while he slept or occasionally if he'd fuss on me.

Lately I cannot rock him to sleep on me (for naps - sleeping at night is great). I'll spend 30 minutes and he'll get more and more awake and fussy, pushing up off me, yelling out, banging his head against my jaw, et cetera. The second I put him in the swing he's calm, but turns and stares at me and I feel SO guilty. If I leave him in the swing he'll fall asleep after maybe 15 minutes, but usually doesn't sleep longer than a half hour (whereas when he falls asleep on me he'll sleep for over an hour, sometimes close to two). 

Any suggestions? A carrier doesn't work because (a) he rarely falls asleep in them and (b) even if he did, he'd wake if I moved him or sat down. He falls asleep in the carseat and stroller easily but I can't take him for an hour walk every naptime (I have bad back pain if I walk too long from 6 months of bedrest) and DH has the car during the day.

littlewonders

Mmh, we noticed with Amaya that at some point being held was just too much stimulation for her to go to sleep (although she used to love it). She needed to be put in her swing, and she'd stare at us or at her mobile for 15 minutes and then go to sleep. It's what she needed. So don't feel bad about using the swing. The fact that he doesn't stay asleep there, however, is a problem. Don't have any suggestions there. Are you using some sort of white noise? I'm not all about the gadgets, but with my preemies, the swing and the white noise is what helped them relax. GL!

ncbelle

If the swing works, I don't think you should feel bad about it.  I only see them as bad if baby is stuck in there for hours a day during awake time.

I know you said you haven't had luck with a carrier, but which one have you tried?  It might be a different kind would do the trick.  What still is an almost guaranteed knock out for kiddo (and was 100% when he was younger) is to wrap him on my front and bounce or rock lightly on an exercise ball.  We also use white noise (ocean sounds).  The movement of the ball is generally enough to get him to sleep but still allows me to sit and do stuff - I'm wearing him right now in fact.  Once he's good and asleep now, I can take him off and lay him down but when he was younger, I usually just left him on.

ETA: One reason wrapping works well for us is because it gives him the swaddle effect - he will not let me just hold him and rock him but the wrap calms him down very quickly.  And this is for a kid that never really cared to be regular swaddled.

schmoodle

Thanks, ladies. After I wrote this (with him in the swing) he started fussing in the swing, and as soon as I picked him up out of it he finally fell asleep on me (where he is now). For carriers, we have a Moby, Bjorn and Hotsling. The Bjorn is more for DH when we go out. I've tried the Moby and sling but the sling he sits upright (HATES cradle hold) and just doesn't fall asleep b/c there's too much to see, and in the Moby facing me (not enough head control to face out for long) I think he tends to overheat and usually cries after not too long. I'll keep trying though, thanks for the advice! I've been considering getting a Mei Tei or ring sling, maybe one of those would be better?

ncbelle

Kiddo never liked the cradle hold either.  I can understand too about the moby being hot - I never got on with the moby since I did find it warm but I love wraps.  You might try doing a front wrap cross carry (so the pocket is on the inside instead of on top) and not spreading out the crosses - that way you have less fabric.  There are links in my siggy to how to do the FWCC since I think the moby directions only explain how to do it with the pocket on the outside.  You could also try the kangaroo carry (directions also linked in my siggy) - you'd have lots of fabric left over but it would only be one layer and therefore cooler for you.  A mei tai or ring sling might be worth a shot as well - some babies prefer other kinds of carriers.

Glad he's at least sleeping now for you ;-)

E_sharp

schmoodle:

He falls asleep in the carseat and stroller easily but I can't take him for an hour walk every naptime (I have bad back pain if I walk too long from 6 months of bedrest) and DH has the car during the day.

From No Cry Nap Solution (and it TOTALLY works for me):
I bring the stroller inside and roll it over the threshold between the tile and wood flooring in our kitchen/eating area. Basically a bump. Works like a charm. Try it and let me know if it works for you.