books about napping?
we are having the worst time with warner's napping...honestly, it's making me a little insane. his night time sleep is fine (at least 12 uninterrupted hrs every night) and he usually goes down with very little, if any problems. but getting him to take a nap has been an all out battle lately.
I was thinking of reading the Ferber book, do you guys think that would work for just naps? I've tried doing what I know of it without reading the book and I think that's a mistake. We've never really had to let Warner CIO before because he's always been a good sleeper and he used to nap beautifully. And (as I'm sure so many of you know) it's miserable to hear him sound so pitiful, I always end up caving. I can totally handle him fussing, but when he's wailing like someone is hurting him, I just can't take it. But I don't know what to do because he's clearly tired (rubbing his eyes, yawning) but he just fights naps like crazy. And if he doesn't nap he's so cranky and miserable.
So I'll gladly take any suggestions for books or techniques to try (other than putting him in the car and going for a drive, we know that one too well!!)
Re: books about napping?
If you're thinking of trying something Ferber-like, I think it's worth reading the Ferber book and Sleeping Through the Night by Jodi Mindell, which describes a similar technique in a slightly different way. Both of those books have chapters on naps, but generally, they both recommend using a graduated extinction technique (letting the baby cry but checking periodically) vs. extinction (just let the baby cry). Both also include suggestions other than just graduated extinction. Healthy Sleep Habits, Healthy Child also has good info. on naps, but Weissbluth favors extinction over graduated extinction. Even if you don't want to let Warner cry, I think all three of those books have info. that will help you.
You're welcome to borrow my copies of the books if you want to swing by Pentagon City sometime.
DD was a terrible napper from 4 months - 12 months. I read every sleep book I could find, and it wasn't until I read Ferber that I realized that she was a terrible napper b/c she was such an awesome nighttime sleeper (12-13 hours each night). She just wasn't tired enough during the day to take 2 good naps, so both of them were miserable (took forever to get her to go down, and then she would only sleep for 20-40 min). This seems like such a simple concept, but it wasn't one I had thought of.
It wasn't until she dropped her 2nd nap (btwn 11 and 12 months) that she finally starting becoming a good napper (and we didn't have to sacrifice her nighttime sleep). You could try shortening his nighttime sleep to get him to sleep longer during the day, but for us, that wasn't something I was willing to mess with. Ferber was a great book for us b/c it teaches you about sleep cycles...it's not just about CIO. There are also the obvious tips in most books...get blackout shades for his room, make sure you wind down and have a good nap routine, maybe use a noise machine, etc. GL!
I also have had two bad nappers. Maggie was the worst and she went down to one nap a day right before her first birthday and I think we are heading that way for Molly. What I have found to work a little better for Molly is to limit her morning nap to 30-40 minutes tops. For me this is mainly an attempt to get both kids napping in the afternoon at the same time. If I don't limit her morning nap then she only sleeps 45 minutes in the afternoon and she is so cranky in the afternoon.
Does he put himself to sleep at night? If he can do it then, then it isn't a stretch to expect him to be able to do it for naps. Is it that he wakes up during the nap and cries or is it that he won;t be soothed to sleep before the nap that you are thinking of CIO?
I have all the sleep books. None worked.
Going to daycare helped for sleeping at night. A miracle! What worked best for naps - daycare (for routine) and the pamper sack (at home). Sometimes (new) for weekend naps DD sleeps 3 hours, but other times she still fights - if she hasn't slept by an hour I give it up.
yes, that's what drives me nuts, he does put himself to sleep at night. our night time routine is bottle, book, song, then into the crib. then we turn on the white noise machine and leave and he's totally fine--9 times out of 10 or more he goes to sleep pretty quickly. His bedtime is usually around 6:30-7pm.
during the day we do a very similar routine for naps--all calm activities around the time he usually needs to go down. then we watch closely for his sleepy cues and take him for his nap the second we see him yawn or rub his eyes (and he's pretty predictable...in the morning it's usually around 8:15). then we change his diaper, put his sleep sack on him, read him a couple books and put him down for his nap. but instead of going to sleep like he does at night, he just screams.
What time does he get up in the morning?
Is he in daycare for some of the time or am I thinking of someone else? What time does he nap at daycare and for how long? Does he go down easily there?
try Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Baby but honestly, nothing much worked my baby, she was a 30-min napper. Now she almost never takes a 2nd nap and I don't push it. I used to make sure she would take her morning nap 2 hrs after waking up, but now at almost 15mo old, it's 3hrs after wake up. She has NEVER in her life slept 12hrs at night. At this age, babies need a total of about 12-12.5hrs in a 24-hr period, so sounds like Warner is getting his total sleep needs met. But I'm not sure if you should cut his night sleep, I am a believer in "never wake a sleeping baby"
good luck!