Is It Too Early to Try to Get My 8 Week Old to Take a Nap?

If she'll sleep in her swing or stroller then start having her nap there. Once you get a regular time for sleep then try moving her to her crib for naps. I do have to say, my daughter seldom naps in her crib. I just keep her around where I'm at -- in her swing, her carseat, on the couch right next to me, etc. This makes her much easier to take with me when we need to run errands all day. She is more used to a nap "time" and not a nap "place."
Good luck to you.

Hi L.-
Congrats on the lil gal! I think 8 weeks definitely is too young for naps just yet. They'll determine their schedule somewhere around the 3-4 month span. HOPEFULLY!! Good luck, and just enjoy that snuggling and skin on skin time with her because it goes so dang fast! Best wishes:)

Ditch the sleep books, follow your gut, let her be an 8 week old.

wow your baby should be sleeping more than she is awake. including nights. my baby is 13 months and she sleeps 12 hours at night and gets 2-3 hours worth of naps in the day. i don't really have her on a sleep schedule, she just lets me know by how she is acting, cranky, moody, i just know she needs a nap.
there isn't a switch you turn on that makes your baby sleep, they have to do it on their own. read her ques and if she is acting cranky, crying a lot, try to put her in her crib. she will let you know.

mine won't stay asleep in the bedroom during the day either. but she sleeps fine in the bouncer in the other rooms with everyone around making noise. so that's what i let her do.

Hi L.,
It seems like you had the same problem that we did, only our daughter didn't seem through the night until she was a year old! Anyway, since she always fell asleep when we put her in her fuzzy bear snow-suit and took her for a walk. One day when nothing else worked to get her down for her nap, I snuggled her up in her snow-suit and strapped her in the stroller, and then I had to run upstairs to get my shoes on. By the time I came back, she was sound asleep in the stroller! From that day on, for the next several months, she took all her naps in her bear-suit strapped in her stroller! Without a walk!

Maybe this will work for your daughter, too. Good luck!
-M.

Follow your gut! Even my pediatrician has said to not discount mother's intuition. Get in the habit of listening to your instinct. Especially in those times that it will let you know if something with your baby isn't right.

As far as the napping, babies often take small catnaps. Its better for her to feel comfortable and secure that you are there - there's plenty of times for her to learn to nap.

She may not like the crib. Both my babies did not like the crib or bassinet until they were around 6 or 7 months. Our oldest loved her car seat and we'd bundle her with a quilt so she couldn't move and she loved it. We'd recline it a little so she was laying more than sitting, but that's where she slept for about 5 months. Our second really like our bouncy chair with the vibration. She liked to be rocked and I could do that with my foot while I caught up on reading or something. She liked being swaddled, just like her sister. I'd let her take naps in the swing, too, since I was always in the same room. She slept in the bouncy chair until she learned how to roll over in it and I was finding her in an uncomfortable V shape on her tummy! At that point she'd learned how to roll over and we'd put her in the crib and she'd immediately roll to her side or tummy. I don't remember a schedule really for naps, but I would keep them up from 6-10pm every night from the day I brought them home from the hospital. By 6 weeks they were both sleeping all the way through the night, unless they had a growth spurt and needed more food! Good luck!

It sounds to me like your baby IS napping, she is just taking mini naps in her swing and car seat etc. That is totally fine, let her sleep when seh is tired, you are so lucky that she already sleeps well at night! I say just be happy with what you've got. There is no rule that naps must take place in the crib either, my babies loved to nap while I had them in a sling, I miss their warm little bodies cuddled up againt my chest as I went about my day! I was really sad when they gave up thoes naps. I guess my point is just relax and enjoy your baby!

You know I started a schedule with both of mine by month two. Just with feeding and laying them down at specific times. They just followed suit. Some will tell you that until they are older it doesn't work, but it did for mine.
You cannot force her to sleep but at the same times every day you can lay her back down. If she isn't crying or fussing then just lay her in her crib.

At that age, my kids would get up say 6am or so, eat, get changed and go back to sleep.
Then they would get up a few hours later eat again and play for a bit, be alert for a bit, then another nap.
I would say both of mine at 8 weeks were sleeping three or four naps during the day then for four hour or five hour stretches.
Granted they both got up more then once a night but infants really need to sleep during the day and get rest in my opinion.

At 8 wks you're only going to get long night sleep or long day sleep. We did Babywise and got 3 excellent sleepers, but even still at 4 months, our littlest one still is on the eat, wake, sleep schedule and we're lucky if we get more than an hour most days. That's pretty much what I remember from the older ones until they start food. Then naps get a bit longer since they're going longer between feedings. GL!

I had a very similar situation with my son- and I had sooooo many people tell me that that babies should not be awake for 6-8 hours straight that it really scared me, so I read quite a few books too, but I got to a point were I was just too tired to try to get him to do what the books said he should- I really only found a couple of the things from the books that I still use.
1- do what works for baby and 2- the two hour window of wakefulness i.e. try not to let them be awake for more than 2 hours and 3-watching for sleepy signs.

I am lucky enough to live near a really beautiful and large park, and I discovered that he fell asleep easily when he was in his storller and so for the first few months of his life we went to the park almost every day, when he fell asleep I would find a place to sit and read or write until he woke up, at which point we would walk a little farther until he fell asleep and repeat the process until he had had a good enough nap.It worked for him- and so we did it.
Between 2 and 3 months he started being a little more regular and it was easier to read his sleepy signs, and it was at this point that I was actually able to put him in his crib and have him go to sleep on his own. At the begining I really had to keep my eye on the clock but sure enough after 1.5 hours of being awake in the morning and 2 hours in the afternoon, he would get really quite and not move around as much, I don't know if I was just missing those signs before if they just started appearing when he was 3 months old.

He still doesn't obey the rules of the sleep book, but he is an amazingly happy baby (sign of enough sleep) and he sleeps great at night. Because he takes short naps (30-45 minutes) I do check with his pediatrician at his normal checkups to see if he is getting the approriate amount of sleep and he always is. And after 7 months I am almost getting enough sleep too.

How many hours is she sleeping at night? Babies this age need around 15 hours of sleep a night/day. This is however an average and your baby may sleep more or less depending on her needs. My girls always needed more than average amounts of sleep. For example, my 16 month old SHOULD need 11 hours of sleep at night and only one 2 1/2 hour nap. Well she sleeps 12 hours a night and takes two 2 hour plus naps a day. I guess what I am saying is each baby is different. If she is sleeping 8-12 hours a night and getting a lot of mini naps I wouldn't worry. As far as where she sleeps, I wouldn't worry about that either as long as she IS napping at all during the day. Read what is out there and follow your instincts. If your baby is alert, eating well, and growing well (growth hormones are produced at their highest concentrations during sleep), then I would rest easy.

My girls didn't even see the inside of a crib until were 3-5 months old, I co-sleep. The took naps where ever they were at the time. I kept my youngest (now 16 months) in her carrier until she out grew it so I could carry her around the house with me. This was to protect her from her older sister LOL, they are only 18 months apart. That is where she napped most of the time, that or the chair and a 1/2 when her sister was asleep.

With this being your first little one, there is no real reason to worry about where she sleeps. There were times when my oldest would just fall asleep on her blanket in the middle of the floor, I would just leave her there and go do something quite. This was of course after she was older and mobile :o).

As far as sleep scheduling goes, I let my kids set there own. Once they have them set, usually at the age of 9 months to a year, I try to loosely adhere to it, watching for their sleepy signals. They are usually dead on with 30 mins to an hour. Before 9 months or so I don't "Really" control their schedule at all. Hope this helps.

-M.

L.,

At 8 weeks, you are wasting your energy trying to implement any kind of schedule. It sounds like she IS napping - you said she sleeps in the stroller, in her carseat, and I would venture to guess that she sleeps plenty in your arms.

Around 12 weeks I started seeing my kids developing a routine. This was more an order of events, rather than a true schedule. At that point, I was able to start adapting our family routine to fit their schedules. There is no point trying to teach a baby sleeping habits until they are at least 4 months old. Even at that point, you need to meet their needs and be gentle with them. Don't leave them to cry alone. It might get you what you want - a baby that sleeps more easily - but it teaches your baby that no one will come when she calls.

Go with your gut. It sounds like you have the right idea. Let her be a newborn and meet her needs now. You can't spoil her, and she is not capable of delaying what she needs for now.

Best of luck,
S.

My eight-week-old son does the same. I'm glad you asked this, it's answering my question as well!

You could ask your pediatrician for some advice.

However, with my son when he was that young, we just let him sleep whenever he did. A lot of the time, it was in his swing, or in his carseat after we went for a car ride, or one of us would rock and hold him until we knew he wouldn't wake up. We also tried to get him to sleep in his bassinet and/or Pak'n'Play first. Swaddling helped as well. Or you could simulate the evening hours before lying her down for a nap, especially if you've gotten a nighttime routine down - just mimic and/sor shorten it a little.

I hope some of this helps, or you find a solution that works for you and your daughter.

Hello L.,

It is never too early to start a routine for your baby girl. The best thing for her is to start getting used to laying in her crib at the same time every day. What you want to do is get her comfortable in her room in her crib with her surroundings, even if it is only a 20 to 30 minutes and even if it is to have a little alone and down time. But what you are doing is creating structure and you are getting her used to the idea of a nap. I used the Routine Baby (www.routinebaby.com) schedule with both of my girls and had huge success with creating a healthy environment for both their sleeping routines...When I say it is never too early, I had both my girls sleeping through the night by 5 weeks old and taking at least 4 hour naps during the day. And trust me I LOVE NAP TIME, it is my mommy time!!!!

If it is the swing she likes to sleep in leave her there, I have had some that were amazing sleepers (I have 7) and then I have had some that just were afraid they would miss something if they dared to close there eyes, between 4-6 months is the best time to set a really good sleep schedule, but remember you aren't going to change your baby, but help her to learn with in what her body is capable of doing. Follow your insticts right know, they are the best indicator of what your baby needs.

If she is sleeping all night, she might not need a nap. I figure any kid that sleeps more than six or so hours at a time night or day is doing good.

I would agree with you. I never put any energy into creating a sleep schedule; my baby (who is 10 months old now) just settled into a routine: a 10 am, 3 pm and evening nap about 30-60 min long. If your baby girl is happy enough during the day and does not seem sleepy, let her stay awake.

I know this isn't advice, but I want you you to know you're not alone. My baby girl is 9 months and has taken only a handful of "long" naps since she was born. My first child (a boy) was a great sleeper and even now at almost 3 he takes 3-4 hour naps everyday and sleeps 10-12 hours at night. It was so hard for me to accept she just wasn't going to be a big napper. I also know my niece and a couple of my friends had girls who were non-nappers too. I hope it goes better for you, but don't forget to enjoy this special bonding age because it goes so fast. Also if you are tired too it's okay to shut your eyes for a few while she just lies beside you. Take advantage before she gets mobile. Good luck!

Hi L.,

I followed the "Becoming Baby Wise" technique with my now 5 month old. He too, slept beautifully at night...6-9 hours by 8 weeks but WOULD NOT nap except an inconsistent 1/2 hour once in a while during the day!! I always felt guilty for complaining about the no nap thing being as I would listen to my mom friends complain about their 6,8,15 month olds not sleeping thru the night. But eventually he now naps an hour in the morning and a 45 minute nap in the late afternoon consistently, I think it just took time and (it started around 3.5 to 4 months old,) as he got more active and interactive he started napping. Most moms wouldn't be happy with that little amount of napping but it is what he'll do. I bet your baby will too given a few more weeks, hang in there!!

My first would not sleep either. If he did go to sleep it was like the slightest bump or sound would wake him and once awake he thought it was time to be up no matter when it was. At least your nights are good. Every baby is different and just because she does not sleep doesn't mean thats not right for her. She just may be more alert. Also the more relaxed you are the more relaxed she is. Don't make a big deal out of it and she may sleep. My daughters baby would only sleep in front of the TV in her carseat so she couldn't move. She is very busy and easily distracted so that she can't sleep. Kinda ADD But that worked for her to be held still. But she outgrew naps real early.