10 week old naps

Cabeatty · March 2013

I just posted this in the 0-3 board, but I like you guys better and have a feeling I'll get more input here

Hi mamas!

My LO is 10 weeks.. right now he has no consistent nap schedule. Right now he only naps well if I am holding him. If he falls asleep and I lay him down he will sleep for short periods of time, and this happens all day. Usually on his own he will nap maybe 5-25 minutes if I lay him down.

I know he will nap for longer periods if I swaddle him (he is actually doing this right now for the first time). I thought perhaps I would swaddle him 3 times a day for naps? 10,1, and 4? Is this ok? That way he is getting better naps, and perhaps have more awake/play/alert time during the nonsleeping hours? I feel a little guilty because I feel like I am motivated to do this for my own reasons, to get housework done etc... but at this point I feel like his awake time is not very fun because he gets tired after 10 minutes and just wants me to hold him.

If you think it is OK to swaddle for long naps, how long should 10 week olds nap at this point? Should I wake him up after a certain amount of time? Or let him nap for hours?

Thanks in advance!

Carolyn

PS sorry for not posting much! Hopefully if the nap thing gets worked out I will have luxury time to post and not just lurk on my phone one-handed while I'm nursing hehe. I really want to be an active member of this board

mhkd042206 · March 2013

I am a huge fan of the swaddle! I don't think my boys would have napped had it not been for the swaddle. We had the boys on a fairly consistent 3 hour schedule when they were that age. But really it was out of necessity because there were two babies to tend to. We would always follow the eat, play, sleep theory and it seemed to work for us. But I know every baby is different. I would not hesitate to swaddle him during nap time. But that's just my opinion. We did always make the boys nap downstairs in the beginning to prevent any marathon napping sessions. So they got use to napping through a lot of noise. We always kept the television on for background noise. I know a lot of people would disagree with that theory but it worked for us. We only went upstairs at bedtime. Good Luck. It gets better.

trisholio · March 2013

I don't have children of my own yet, but I am a nanny. I highly recommend swaddling!! Some babies don't take to it well. But if it works then use it.

Manada · March 2013

We don't have a baby of our own yet, but my siblings are significantly younger than me so I remember having them small.... I also worked in a midwifery clinic for awhile doing admin so I know lots about little babies.

In our culture Native Canadian we swaddle our babies as long as they'll stand it, or until they won't fit anymore. There's no harm in swaddling the babies at all, and in fact if it helps them feel more secure it stands to reason they will be quieter and sleep better.

I can't speak to your napping question except that what I have always heard is that if your baby eats well and is gaining weight then they can sleep as long as they will..

Trust your intuition though... you're the expert in your baby.

Cabeatty · March 2013

Thanks all. I'm regretting the late swaddle yesterday. when he was tired in the evening yest i swaddled him at 5.He slept til after 7 so i woke him up. He was so cranky. So i fed him and soothed him and got him wound down and swaddled him back up at 10 for the night. I usually swaddle him around 10 or 11, and he usually sleeps til 3 or 4 and after nursing again til 8. But last night he woke at 2 and then for good at 6. Now i am so tired lol. I don't want to mess up hishis night sleep but i so desperately want him to sleep when he's tired during the day and me not have to hold him the whole time he sleeps.

LolaBelle515 · March 2013

I think swaddling is totally fine for naps. For what it's worth, don't feel bad or stressed or alone that your kid isn't napping regularly yet. We were big into schedules for LO, but even with that he didn't start napping outside of our arms (or occasionally the Rock N Play) until he was 3 months old. When he did, it took a few weeks, but he became a good napper and is a rock star at it now:) They're still learning how to be out of the womb right now...baby will get there and it gets easier, I promise!

Good luck!

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