Cat-napping 4 Month Old

My three year old was like that and now my 5 month old is too. I am thankful for a goodnights sleep and just bide my time until the phase changes!

Hi M.. 4-5 months of age is the perfect time for trying to establish a sleeping routine. I read the book Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child by Dr. Marc Weissbluth as did several people I know. It really saved my sanity and helped my child to get the proper rest he needed. Hang in there.

My daughter used to be the same way. What I finally did was wrap her in a blanked, like a recieving blanket size but a little thicker one. I would fold it in half to form a triangle then lay her in the middle & bring in the sides & then the tial in she was in a tight little bundle (not too tight). Then I would lay her in her crib on her side, then lay a pillow next to her backside.

See if this helps!

I'm dealing with the same thigns for my 5-month-old, and it is a challenge.

I suggest trying the 10 minute rule. Let him cry for 10 minutes before you go to get him during ANY sleep. He just might put himself back to sleep for a longer nap.

Good luck!

Hi....
a little trick we learned was to wrap them tightly in a blanket, so they fill like you are still holding them.... and then lie them down..... and for mine that slept on the belly.... yes, i checked on them every 10 minutes... scary! lol..... i would lie them down and then tuck them in really tight.... and put some pillows on either side of them...... i would also turn on music really low for them.... might help.... this might also be a time when he is teething, so look out for that too.....

Some babies don't require a whole lot of sleep. Both my son and daughter were the same way. I finally learned that just putting them in a swing or carrier in the same room I could talk loud and act silly to them I could clean at the same time. It was kind of a game to them.

Don't get discouraged. Good luck!
Blessings,
G. Trevino
Cedar park

Congratulations! At least he is sleeping through the night. your son sounds like my daughter at that age. All I can say is to be thankful he sleeps through the night. Time your chores and bathroom breaks during his cat naps. Another thing you could try is a "wrap." It is like a sling that you can wear the baby in. He can nurse or sleep in it and your hands are free. I received one as a gift and I thank God I did! My daughter would nod off for about half and hour or more between feedings and then when she awoke she was in good spirits. I didn't have to do that for long before she realized that Mommy was still there. Try looking up "the Maya Wrap" on the internet and you'll probably find them.
Another thought, it might be too quiet when you lay him down. He is still accustomed to hearing your heartbeat, etc. Maybe a sound machine would help.

When my daughter was that age, I used one of those slings. It held her next to me when I HAD to do stuff and she wouldn't go down, or when I needed both hands free. We loved it. It might not be the answer for the 20 minute naps, but it will free you to do any housework you need doing. Also, check his room for extra noises and light. It may not be dark enough for his to sleep. If he is a light sleeper, put on the TV, radio to music or get one of those sound machines for background noises. It may do the trick.

How dark is the room you're laying him down in for his nap. Some people (myself included) have a hard time sleeping any length of time if there is any light in the room. You might also try one of those (if they're still around) heartbeat bears as now he is probably getting used to hearing your heartbeat when he naps well.

A Little about me: Married 23 years. Mother of 3, the youngest being 11 years.

I feel your pain. My daughter, now 10 years old, was just like that. She didn't want to sleep for more than 20 minutes at a time during the day but slept ok at night. I would suggest that you not worry too much because he will get the sleep that he needs. If he is cranky about you putting him down, let him be cranky. When I look back at those times with my daughter, I think that was just her way of communicating. She sounded whiny, but I don't think she was unhappy necessarily. Of course, you don't want his to get into a complete dither, but his crankiness could just be the way he sounds when he is "talking". I know it is hard to listen to, but maybe you could turn on the radio while you are cleaning with him in a bouncy seat or exersaucer nearby, and the noise of the radio might drown out some of the whining. I do think that he will be fine no matter what. Especially since he gets a good night sleep. By the way, my daughter wanted to give up naps altogether at 3 years old, but I was pregnant with my second and needed an afternoon nap, so I told her that she did not have to sleep but she had to have quiet time in her bed for an hour each afternoon so that I could rest. I gave her books to look at and never went over the hour time limit. I did that with her until she went to Kindergarten. I hope this helps.

I have three children. The first is five years older than the other two and the other two are just fourteen months apart. Boy do I hear you on the napping situation. What I did was play beautiful piano music, Mozart, Strauss, etc. and shut the door while I did my chores. I used the video monitor to check every now and then that he was doing okay. He fussed for the first two weeks. I would walk in there, pat his back say "I love you but it's rest time now". I would not pick the baby up. Every day I did less till finally I would just call through the door the same message.
He finally learned to enterain himself or sleep and I get a cat-nap myself which I desperately needed and some housework done. By the way, if you don't know the trick about not tiptoeing around when the baby is sleeping so he/she is used to noise while he/she is sleeping that's a good thing to know. Good luck.

someone told you about the sling idea, which is a great one... but your child id getting so much sleep, and if you are trying to get things done, maybe you can do some of it after his early morning feeding? i know this big deal is that during the day you would really like a break, of some sort, but every kid is different... when my son was up and i had to do things, i just kind of narrated what i was doing, and that kept him happy enough. i have to say i so envy that you are not sleep deprived! that is a great amount of time for your boy and for you to get a great night's sleep! that never happened with my first (now 7) and only kind of happened with my 2nd (now 3). wow, you must be doing something really really right!

I remember going through that with my little one. Their nervous systems are so immature at that age. He's waking when his body tries to drop into deeper sleep, which he can't achieve at that age. He needs to be really comfy and coerced into sleeping during the day. He'll outgrow it, it's pretty earlier to establish a good nap routine. Get a sling and go on about your day, is what I say. You've got a month or two to go!
K.

My son is exactly the same. For the first 5 months or so, I just had to have him nap in my lap in front of the TV so he would get one good nap in a day. Now, at 8 months old, I bring him into my bed and cuddle him to sleep, then sneak out to get something done, being sure to return before I know he'll wake up. If I'm "still" in bed with him when he rouses, he'll fall right back asleep and sleep at least another 1/2 hour if not an hour. The problem, though is that he's quite mobile now and I have to leave the door open so I hear him wake up (and keep checking on him every 5 minutes or so), or else he'd climb right over the pillows around him and fall off the bed (hasn't happened yet, and I don't intend to let it). That just means putting dishes away and vacuuming are out of the question (too loud with the bedroom door open). But I can go get the mail, check email, wash a few things, pick up, etc.

Works for me. Hopefully you'll find something that'll work for you, too.

My 3 month old does the same thing, have you tried using a sling or front carrier? Its still restricting to an extent but that way he'll get the closeness so he can nap and you'll have your hands free to take care of other things.

Good luck!

Try this: take a small transistor radio (no electrical cords)and place it under the pad in his bed (bassinet, playpen, etc)and tune it to a talk radio station or a soothing music station. This would also work with a small tape recorder. You could record yourself singing or talking to him.

The problem may very well be because your baby is getting plenty of sleep at night. I suggest maybe keeping him up a little later in the evening and once he wakes up in the morning keeping him awake for a few hours instead of going right back to sleep. This will allow him to have a little less night time sleep but longer naps during the day. I hope this helps.
T.

It sounds like your little boy is just like mine... It could just be that your lil one only needs 12 or 13 hours of sleep a day, and if he gets it all in one chunk at night he won't really need the sleep he is getting in his naps. My 21 month old has always been like that... (needing less sleep than he is "supposed" to have) so we had to shorten the amount of sleep he gets at night to get him to have a solid nap during the day. However, he occasionally goes through periods where he doesn't even want to nap during the day. (and he doesn't get cranky, so I don't push the issue.) But since I'm pregnant I have held him so he would nap longer so I could rest too... sometimes there is nothing else to do but roll with it! I know it's rough, so good luck!

Do you swaddle? I know my son slept awesome snuggled next to my husband or me, but when we laid him down without the same kind of snuggly-constriction, i.e. arms, blanket, whatever...he wouldn't sleep. My girlfriend uses Miracle blankets that are made to swaddle babies, but we just used whatever baby blankets we had around. The receiveing blankets work the best. The tighter swaddle, the better snuggly feeling. It might help...

My daughter was the same. During the day, she only napped in 20 minute intervals. Although I don't remember crankiness... Except mine! (Ha!) Its hard on the mother because you feel like you can't get anything done (take a shower/eat/clean-up) in 20 minute intervals... And you can't leave the house if you haven't eaten or showered! However I don't think this is something that you need to "fix"; I think its normal for a 4 month old. However... if you are nursing, he might be waking up more often due to hunger. Although there's not enough space to list all the benefits of breast milk.. yada yada yada, I think most moms would agree that formula packs a more heavy/substantial punch all at once; infants sleep longer after formula. One thing I did was mix breast milk and formula together (like 3 oz breast milk and 1 oz formula). That helped my daughter sleep a bit longer.

In infants who sleep long hours at night, a significant number only catnap (often 15 min) during the day as that is all they need to recharge. Making them sleep longer in the day often leads to nighttime waking.
As a retired pediatrician, we used to tell families that that was a normal pattern for their child and to be grateful for the long hours of nighttime sleep that would be the envy of other, not so fortunate families.
Hope this helps make situation more tolerable. Retired Ped

I have a 3 month old and he does the same thing...essentially a great night time sleeper, but his daytime sleep is erratic at best. Like you, if i held him, he would sleep for an hour
+, but as soon as i put him down, it's 30-40 min and he's awake. I have read that some young babies just can't take long naps. I have also shared my concerns with other moms and they have told me the same thing about their kids who are now well-adjusted 10 and 12 year olds. They never slept well during the day until they were a bit older...i relish the fact that mine sleeps well at night and i'll take what i can during the day. That is my current mantra---hope it helps

Both of my sons were exactly like this!! So I can feel for you. I bought an over the shoulder baby holder. I could breastfeed and mow the yard w/o anyone knowing what I was doing!! I also used it for their naps because they could snuggle next to mom and sleep so I could clean my home, shop for groceries, hold other kids hands w/mine, etc. There is a bear that sounds like a heartbeat...some of my friends tried that route and it worked for them. Could he be hungry? Try giving him some cereal with his formula and try solid foods like mashed bananas and potatoes, pureed carrots and applesauce.

P.

Try putting him on his tummy when he sleeps in the daytime. Our pediatrician said we could as long as we watched him. He is probably close to flipping by himself anyway. My daughter flipped at 2 months. The nurse told me that babies digest better when they are placed on their tummy. I am willing to bet that he will sleep better on his tummy.

my 3 yr old daughter was like that when she was born and my 1 yr old twins don't like having to stop playing to nap - they only took 30 minute naps. you can try keeping him awake a little longer (30 min - 1 hr) and then lay him down. it could be that he just isn't ready for that first nap. try putting Baby Einsteines on before he goes down for a nap so you can get 30 more minutes of work done and he will get some stimulation that will wear him out. all three of my kids still love to watch them.

Oh gosh! I so remember that with my daughter, but she also had the problem where she was up the most at night and sleep more during the day. She did this to me until she was about 4 months until I finally figure it out. Before she fell alsleep, I will feed her, bathe her, and sprinkled baby powder all over her body to give her a sense of softness and cozziness. I hope you understand what I am saying. Then while I was putting her to sleep I will turn the radio on and tune it to a soft or love music. This worked out for me, now she's two years old and sometimes has little tantrums in the car and when she does I will turn the radio on to music that was soft to listen too, she then will either calm down or go to sleep. The radio station I will put it on is 99.1 Another, the noise from a fan also worked on her. It kept her sleeping. It not only worked out for me but as well with my nieces and nephews. Good luck!!!

I have the same thing happening to me...I mean exactly. My son is 4 months and he sleeps so well at night and barely during the day. My sister had the same problem and she got black out curtains for her sons room and it seemed to help her. I haven't tried that yet, but I did purchase a baby bjorn and I just do what I can with him attached to me. I also started putting him in the high chair when I am in the kitchen and he stays for a while. My sons loves the sound of water so I put him in the bouncy chair or the bumbo chair while in the room while I take a shower and that is yet another activity I can get done with him awake. I also try to schedule a lot of activity b/c it seems like he sleeps well in his infant car seat. Some babies just don't require a lot of sleep and unfortunately I have one of them, but he is happy throughout the day even though he doesn't nap. I also started him on solids a little early and it really did seem to help.

First of all congrats on sleeping through the night! It really makes all the difference when you are well rested. My 3 1/2 month old has a very similar sleep schedule. Night-time sleep is great, but day-time naps are a different story. Currently we are swaddling her. I have mixed feelings about swaddling since I feel babies need to be allowed to move around and develope their gross motor skills. If I get a 45 minute nap, I'm lucky. We are trying to faze out day-time swaddling, but if she is having a difficult time getting to sleep or staying asleep, we swaddle. If you aren't currently swaddling, try it out and see if naps begin to organinize into the traditional 3 naps a day. I was just beginning to have success with this when I had to return to work last week. Luckily, I am able to take her with me, but with all the new noises (phones, doors, etc)her naps are all over the place again. I wish you luck with the housework. Things will work out in the end, they always do! Just think about how lucky you are with nightime sleep! Some kids don't start sleeping through night until well into toddlerhood.

Hello M.,

I'm going through the same thing with my 12 week old. He is sleeping well at night, but he only takes 30-45 minute naps during the day. What is happening is that an infant's sleep cycle is about 45 min. from start to end. I just found out as well that from 0-3 months babies are figuring out their night sleeping, and from 3-6 months they are figuring out their day sleeping. I have found help from a book, The Secrets of the Baby Whisperer, by Tracy Hogg. Their websight is very helpful, as well. When my son is waking from his nap too early, after 30 minutes, I am not going in and getting him up. I'm letting him cry a little (1-2 min), and then he puts himself back to sleep, by finding his thumb. I've just started this (today), so we'll see how it goes.