Baby won't nap unless held!

GIJoLana

My son will be 5 months old soon and STILL needs to be held to nap. We had the same issue with sleeping at night but overcame that by 1 month old. My son seems to be a sensitive needy baby. He's usually super happy and only upset when gassy or over tired. We play the same music at bedtime and naptime, temperature is the same, we even bought darkening shades. I've tried putting him down groggy, but we are both far too sensitive for the cry it out method. He's not a whimperer, he'll cry until he's coughing and hard to calm back down. When I nurse him to sleep I try putting him down but he'll be crying in 5 to 15 minutes. Honestly I don't mind holding him because I know it's such a short span of his life that he needs the help, but my 74yr old mil watches him one day a week and she gets tired holding him for 1 to 2 hour naps. I think he's not getting long enough naps because of this. She lacks a bit on the common sense side and doesn't think about propping pillows under her arm for support, even though I told her. :P I just really appreciate and NEED her help and want to make it easier on her so she doesn't tell me she can't watch him anymore. He's just really cuddly and loving and I don't want to hurt him emotionally if he's not developmentally ready, but then WHY does he sleep great in his crib at night for 7 to 8 hours straight? Any suggestions?

beachbum482

Kinda dealing with a similar issue of baby sleeping great at night but on his own he only will sleep 30-45 minutes for naps. I have found that I can get a lot done if he naps while in the baby carrier (I have a Beco) and he will usually sleep at least an

IUIBaby

Ditto the baby carrier idea. We don't do it much because usually only one of us is home with the kids and tandem carrying is a hassle. If I had a singleton I'd baby carry all the time!

LexiSophie55

My son is the exact same way.  For him - it's motion.  If he's in the car, swing, on someone, or being carried - he will sleep 1+ hours.  Otherwise - we are lucky with a half hour.

We are just hoping he out grows it - and settling

GIJoLana

Thanks for the suggestion. He's not very fond of his carrier, but it's worth a try. : He sleeps in it in the car when it's moving but often cries when still for too long.

milwaukeej

Our LO didn't fall asleep without being held for several weeks after she came home. Eventually she would fall asleep in her Boppy (while supervised, of course) - we'd let her nap there while we watched her or if it was bedtime, we could then transfer h

GIJoLana

I'm sorry, I thought you meant infant carseat carrier. Lol But, I don't think my MIL could use the carrier you're talking about. I don't mean to sound rude, but I wouldn't trust her to wear it properly, she is a bit clueless. She didn't even think she sh