advice on getting my almost 6 month old to take naps

L

lulu68

Cathlete
Ok, so I'm wondering if any of you mommies have any recomendations or tricks on how to get my little girl to nap longer that 20 minutes. I spend hours and hours trying to get her to nap for longer than 20 minutes. I'm totally exhausted by the end of the day!!! She will fall sleep in my arms, once I set her down she will imidiately wake up, happy and ready to go!! Please, please, any suggestions...I need just a little bit of rest!! :) Thank you!!!
 
Well, you probably don't want advice from me since Akadia is like the worst sleeper ever! When she does nap though, she takes good ones. I have a box fan in her room that I have pointed at a wall and turn it on for white noise. That really helps her to stay asleep. When I do lay her down, those little eyes do pop open too. I've learned NOT to make eye contact with her (that stimulates them and wakes them up even more). I'll lay my hand on her chest and put her paci in her mouth if it isn't in there already. Something about that gentle pressure on her chest makes her fall back to sleep. Wish I had some better tips than that for you!
 
I don't really have any good advice either. Morgan is inconsistent with her naps. She naps best when she's tired after being awake all morning. She wakes up around 7, and then is ready for a nap by 1. I nurse, so she usually falls asleep nursing (I know it's a bad habit, but it's how we're surviving for now!). Her eyes often pop open when I lay her down, but I've also learned not to make eye contact and to leave my hand on her chest a few moments. She also falls asleep in the car seat while we're driving, but if you're driving a car, you're not getting any rest! Maybe some other moms have better advice.....

Good Luck! Carrie
 
As hard as it may be you have to let them cry. Put them in there bed and walk away. If you feel like you need to calm him/ her down just talk to them don't pick them up. Eventually they will get it. They will find comfort and and fall asleep but if they know that if they cry mom is going to cone pick me up than they are going to do that. It will get easier after a while. At first it will be hard. Babies won't get hurt from crying and if they wake up after 20 mins let them fuss before u pick them up for at least a half hour to see if they fall back asleep. Just make sure baby is fed, and clean. Goodluck!
 
Oh my

Samantha does the same thing! She takes little cats naps during the day. Usually 3 to 4 20-40 minutes naps a day. But last night she finally slept all night. She fell asleep around 830 and when I left to work this morning at 515 she was still asleep. Its been a while since she slept through the night.

But when I put her down she also wakes up I leave her in there and she will also fuss and complain but will eventually stop and fall asleep but I think she takes a little longer than usual because she doesnt like the binky so her self soothing is moving her head back and forth (like shaking her head no) and moving her arms like is she is swimming. It almost looks like she is dancing.
It is so true when they say no 2 siblings are alike. She is such a different baby :) I wonder what it would be like to have a third????? Hahaha

Anyway Im rambling now I think eventually babies will learn to nap longer as they get older.
Hang in there
 
I have to agree with Sissy. You have to let them cry, at least some.

We use full-blown CIO, and for us it's worked wonders. It's not for everyone. But my 5mo old was a MESS up until about 3 weeks ago. Up 3-4x/night, terrible napping (because she's not sleeping well at night). I gave up and did CIO.
Took 2 nights. Now she sleeps all the way through the night, and take 2-3 1-2hr naps/day. And wouldn't you know it, developmentally she took off once she started getting the sleep she needed for her little brain to catch up!

You have to do what works for you, but most people do some kind of sleep training around 4-6mos, and typically, some level of fussing or crying is necessary to "teach" them how to self soothe.
 
Melissa - How long did yours cry when you did the CIO? I did this with Akadia on Friday after nothing else would work and I was falling asleep rocking her. She cried for HOURS. I fell asleep, woke up later and she was still crying. She had herself so worked up that she had pushed herself all the way into the corner of her crib. When I went in to get her the next morning, she was smooshed up against the bars and looked like she had been bar hopping all night. I was traumatized, she was traumatized. All in all, it was an awful night for both of us. I kept having nightmares that I was going to find her dead in the morning. Anyways, haven't done it again since. I've just been sleeping with her which DH doesn't really appreciate. I know I'm going to have to do something though if she doesn't start getting better. I have her down to getting up twice a night now. She wants to eat a lot now and I think she may just be going through a growth spurt along with getting new teeth.
 
my daughter did the same exact thing when she was 6-9 months old. It was difficult, as soon as I put her down, it felt like she was waking up. and she always cried to wake herself up! however, she was sleeping well through the night, so I couldn't complain too much. she did outgrow this stage, and has been napping about 2 hours in the afternoon daily since then, she's 2 now.
good luck!
 
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