5 month old not napping

ncmc

Hi all, I have an almost 5 month old and he is very bad at taking naps. At night time he does ok, I put him up at about 7:30, give him a dream feed at 11ish and he'll usually wake at 4-5 for a feed and wakes for the morning at 7-7:30. It's just during the day that he's a disaster. Today for example he slept for 40 mins in the morning in his cot and 40 mins in the afternoon in his pram. He awakes roaring and there's no settling him. It's like he can't get into a deep sleep after the initial sleep cycle. I try to follow the advice of first nap 1-1.5 hours after waking, but that's not really feasible during the week as I have to drop his sister to playschool. He just seems cranky and tired all the time, I wish I knew how to help him nap

shesty

Yeah both mine were like that.There was never any getting them back to sleep either.Give him two hours between naps and see how that goes, that was how I had to operate.But no.2 only slept 40 mins in the morning at 9, then nothing til 12 where she did another 40 mins, and if I was lucky and caught her on time, I could stretch her to 80 mins.However both those naps were religiously at the same time.Whereas no.1 did 40 mins every two hours.She suddenly stretched at 6 months, but no.2 was 9 mths before she stretched- I dropped her evening nap then (round 4pm) and she stretched to 1 to 1.5 hours twice a day then.The problem is (as you're seeing) they get way overtired by early afternoon and it's three times as hard to get them to sleep then, and they defo wont sleep longer than 40 mins then.

Our second definitely has different sleeping habits so you kind of just have to adjust to that.But I really feel your pain, the 40 min naps are torture.I used to just keep telling myself they would not last forever.(over and over and over again!!!)Solids and more movement with crawling etc definitely help.

ncmc

Thanks Shesty, my first was a dream sleeper, always did 2+ hour naps and slept through the night from about 10 weeks. This little guy is a whole different ball game! He'll hopefully be starting solids in a few weeks so that might help. It's tough getting them into bed when they're tired but not over tired. Too early or too late and I'm goosed with him.

scarepanda

My girl cat napped every day till she was 8/9 months old. 20/30 minutes here and there. I tried getting her into a bit of a schedule by trying to put her down at the same time every day, but tbh both of us were worse for wear and I stopped (she'd fight me till she was worn out and wake up in awful form). I just started to follow her lead, she slept when she slept and I'd put her up to her cot when I could. When she was 8/9 months old she started sleeping longer but usually only once a day about 2/3 hours after getting up, with a cat nap in the afternoon some days, but most of the time she'd be on the go from after lunch till bed time at 9. The main thing that eased the worry was that she was getting a full night's sleep from 7 weeks, so in total she got the same amount of sleep she should for her age, just most of it in one block at night. Now at 15 months, she's in bed around 9, sleeps till 8/9am, nap anywhere between 10.30/11.30 for about 1.5 hrs and on the go for the rest of the day.

shesty

This is it, my second dropped her morning nap at 14 months (I was horrified!), and now at 19 mths sleeps roughly 1.5 hours at about 11am and that's her don efor the entire day then, til 7.

Contrast that with my first who kept two naps til 18 months and then used to do 2.5-3 hours around 12/12:30pm, and was still ready for bed at 7...but was up at 5am every morning.

I'd stick with his morning nap (find a time that suits, 1.5/2 hours after wake up), and I'd go again about 2 hours after he wakes, preferably in his bed for that one.Then if you can get him to sleep in a sling or something round 4/5pm even for 20 mins, that's the best you can do.(I hated that nap, it was a hard fought battle for very little).You do work with them as best you can but I found if you put a bit of structure on it ,like the same nap at home every day or roughly the same times every say, it makes it easier on them and on you.You might get lucky at the 6 month mark, otherwise it will probably go on til roughly 8 months and hopefully he will then stretch a bit longer for them.

Neyite

I had one of those too. Never napped more than 40 mins usually. If I was lucky the 9.30 nap sometimes stretched to an hour, the odd rare occasion to 90 mins even, but any other nap of the day didn't exceed 40 mins.

All normal, if a tad frustrating for mammy!

appledrop

That was my little boy never slept much even as a newborn. Ideas so hard trying to get ready to go out anywhere when he was small! I did find the odd time could stretch it to hour if say out for walk in his buggy. You just have to go with it.

He is 18mth now and usually only naps for 1.5 hours once a day + that's it. Thankfully the night one sleep has improved hugely + he usually gets 12 hours.

pwurple

Sounds 100% normal!

Both mine did that, two 40 minute naps during the day, and a full nights sleep.