sleep help

princess_mer

LO is a horrible napper.  I try and put him down before he gets tired and am usually verry unsuccessful.  His longest naps are usually on me.  He then gets overtired and fussy.  Any tips for getting him to nap? 

At night I am battling to get him to sleep somewhere other than his swing.  He is getting big and I want him comfortable sleeping somewhere else.  We started with the swing because of reflux problems, but the Zantac seems to help most days.  I'm not ready for him to be in his own room just yet.  Any tips on making the transition from the swing to the pnp a little easier?

 I feel like I spend more than half of the day trying to get a fussy LO to sleep.  Any tips or tricks to a less tired baby would be awesome!

rakle99

If he has reflux he is probably more comfortable in the swing rather than PNP because it is elevated. There are wedges you can buy to help elevate them while sleeping. The only other advice I have is to get him into a nap routine like a bedtime routine. When you notice he is getting fussy, do something relaxing like massage, music, rocking, swaddling, etc, so that he associates these things with naptime.

Is it possible he is being overstimulated during the day? Paul has alert time first thing in the morning and late in the afternoon when DH comes home, so those are the only times I interact with him. I use those times to talk to him, read to him, tummy time, and play with his toys. The rest of the day I have him in the swing or vibrating chair with some music going, or he's sleeping, or I cuddle with him but don't interact with him much. That way he isn't overstimulated and he sleeps much better and is on a pretty good routine.  

rakle99

PS I've read that some babies take longer to get used to the outside world and that babies' sleep is much more restful on mom or dad. If he is less than three months, you just may need to let him nap on you in order for him to get the rest he needs. I've heard three months is around the time they start soothing themselves and are able to entertain themselves without getting upset that you aren't there.

blackcat3163

ugh you are not alone - i spend many days trying to get him to nap longer.  i think there are a few sh!tty nappers on this board.

Starry Again

I just got the Ferber book and I am already learning a lot from it... depending on your LO's age he might not be a huge napper and that's ok if he sleeps well at night. 

DD loves rocking motions and being fed (boob or bottle, either works). Basically the 5 S's from Happiest Baby on the Block. She still mainly naps in the swing but I figure daycare can deal with that in 2 weeks - I am paying them enough! 

Clbehenna

Ugh. I just posted about my LOs horrible sleep habits yesterday. He took one two hour nap today, but would only stay asleep if I was holding and bouncing him. The rest of the day he took a few 15 minute naps, and was so overtired that it just took me almost two hours of bouncing/rocking to get him to stop crying and fall asleep...on my chest. I'm sorry I'm no help just wanted to let you know you're definitely not alone! Hope it gets better for all of us SOON.