Nap issues with 8 month old, need advice ,Update #5

[alexmommy]

We started "Ferberizing" Saturday night. DS is now STTN!:yay::yay: He ranges from 10-11 hrs straight. :) I thought it would never happen.

However, we are trying the same thing for naps, and they are less successful. Before naps were usually good--I'd nurse him lying down on our bed, and he'd eat, then sleep on our bed for 1-2 hours morning and afternoon.

Today DS cried all the way through his morning nap time, then attempted to sleep in the car during errands in between naps (he fell asleep for 6 min, even with loud radio, me singing, rattling a loud toy), and is screaming like a banshee now (afternoon nap time).

I'm tempted to go back to the nap-nurse thing. Maybe I need encouragement that Ferber works for naps too. I've been watching carefully for signs--eye-rubbing, yawns, etc and not putting him down until I knew he was tired.

The best days so far he's cried for 30-40 min, then slept for 20-30 min. I miss the long naps! Any advice?

[arivecchi]

I think consistency is key. Keep putting him down when he is showing signs that he is drowsy and let him cry a bit. Maybe he is going through a transition period because he is sleeping more at night and does not need to nap as much? My 11 month old sleeps from 7:30-6:30 and naps from 9-10:30 and from 2:00-4:00.

[slworld]

I think consistency is key. Keep putting him down when he is showing signs that he is drowsy and let him cry a bit.

:yeahthat:

But I also think these methods work better for night time just because it is a longer sleep than a nap. I mean if he cried for 30-40mins during night & sleeps the rest of the night thats still a good sleep but at naps there is not much time left. Think the suggestion is 30mins for nap and just end it there. I also think it is ok to have different schedules for naps vs nighttime just because the durations are so different. So you could go back to your nurse/nap routine for naps if that had good results for you.

[okinawama]

I also had my LO CIO at night, but it never worked for naps. I guess I too would be tempted to going back to nursing/nap. If it isn't broke don't fix it :)

[alexmommy]

I may go back the the nap/nursing thing. Will wait until next week.

DS slept from 8:30-7:00 this morning. So today I watched very carefully, put him down at 10:45 when I saw him rubbing his eyes. No yawning. Protested off & on until 11:05, slept until 11:30.

No sleep signs this afternoon. Got ready to head to the store, but just now (at 2:30) he wanted to nurse, so we did, moved to nursing in the rocker, he got very relaxed/asleep, I put him in his crib, no crying. Not exactly Ferber-approved, but he is sleeping in his crib, and no crying. We'll see how long this nap lasts.

It seems that since we haven't been nap-nursing (and since he sleeps less during the day) my formerly happy smiley baby is now grumpy and sober. I miss my happy baby! I know he "should" learn to nap on his own, but can I keep the smiles? If I nap-nurse, will this mess up our now sleep-filled nights?

Acc. to my mom I did not nap well (gave up all naps at 18 mo) I wonder if he needs less than the books say. But if he is grumpy & sober, then he must not be getting enough sleep. Or maybe he only needs one nap, but isn't 8 months a little young for just one nap? Right now I'd be happy for any amount of naps of any decent length.

[arivecchi]

If the nurse/nap thing is what works for you and you don't mind it, then keep doing that. I think most babies nap about two hours after they wake up, so I think by 10:45 he may be overtired. I'm sure not every baby is the same, but can you try putting him down at 9:30 and see if that works out better? I think most babies then nap from 1-3 or 2-4 in the afternoon. That gives them enough time to be tired by bedtime. IMO, he is still too young for one nap. HTH.

[alexmommy]

He just woke up (30min nap) so I moved him from his crib and nap/nursed him back to sleep.:innocent: He's sleeping again--one way or another his naps have got to improve. I think I'll stick with the daytime nap/nurse if his nights stay good. I have noticed that he wants to suckle two hours after waking, and that's when we used to do our 1st nap/nurse of the day. Ditto the afternoon.

Ariveraz, how did you get your 10.5 mo old to nap? I envy your nap schedule.

[arivecchi]

I am actually not responsible for that awesome nap schedule. :bag Our nanny is. She started out when he was 3 months old. She places him in the crib at the same time every day and he started napping at those times within a week or so. That is why I think consistency is key.