Daytime napping

[Cookie1979]

I have real issues getting my LO to nap in his cot in the day, the only time he sleeps in the day is if he's in his bouncer, or in his carseat or pram. I feel like by now I should be getting him to have a good nap upstairs in the day, but he wont have any of it. He's been like it since he was tiny, every time I put him in his moses basket he would scream, but then at night I always managed to get him off to sleep, infact he self settles. It was only when I got him a bouncer that I finally got abit of peace and quiet because he loves being bounced and will drop off to sleep easily.

Any suggestions on how to get him to nap in the day? Thinking I will buy a musical mobile to go over his crib, perhaps having it there will amuse him and he wont just cry when I put him down.

I plan to start next week with the napping as we're out most days this week. Oh and thats another thing, how do you stick to a daytime napping routine if you go out a couple of times a week or more?

 

[a_c]

I have this issue to, posted on here last week & at my babies age it seems common. The book I have suggests week 15 is when you really need to introduce daytime nap structure.

 

[SRTBaby]

I had the same issue too but i started at 2 months and kept working on it, he now sleeps in in his cot. At the beginning he would not sleep for more than 20 minutes then 30 minutes now he can sleep up to 2 hours.

 

[amy1234]

We've just mastered this (sort of!) at 20 weeks - partly because she would self settle downstairs in the pram or the moses basket and partly because the odd time I tried it upstairs she would just cry so I convinced myself for weeks it wasn't possible.

Last week we decided it had to stop so we now put her upstairs for her 9am and 11am nap. The afternoon nap is normally in the pram or car seat as we go out and about. We found putting her in her sleeping bag that she goes in at night massively helped (we didn't do this in the moses basket) and also leaving one of the curtains open so it was darker but not so she'd get scared it was night-time. The first couple of days it took 45 minutes to get her to take her 30 min - 1 hour nap... then it gradually reduced and this morning took no effort from us and about 5 mins for her to self settle.

To get her to physically nap we put her in the cot and left the room and went back every 5 minutes (as she was whinging) just to pat and reassure her, then left the room and just kept repeating. I would have picked her up if the cry would have escalated but it was never more than a whine so kept her in the cot!

 

[anna matronic]

Cookie don't worry! I don't bother with getting him to nap in his cot in the day. Although he naps at approx the same time everyday (10am, middayish and 2ish) he usually falls asleep where he is swing, bouncer, in my arms then sometimes I put him on my wedge pillow on the sofa and sometimes in his crib.

Most of the time we are out though so it buggers the naps. I am not gonna bother until he is on solids and things begin to become more structured x

 

[Murphy98]

I transitioned LO from his vibrating chair to his cot by moving his chair INTO his cot for a period and by strengthening the rituals and routine around naptime into his bedroom (blinds down, fan on, soother etc etc). We also have a wind down period before naps - moving from more active activities to quiet activity (reading together, cuddling) before nap time

Personally I think starting to move toward what you WILL want done is a matter of the earlier the better.

 

[BabyJayne]

I'm another one who doesn't bother with putting LO in their cot for a nap. She would be shattered, but as soon as I lay her down in her cot she would scream. At night she was fine, as I think she associated this with her night-time sleep. I didn't want to disrupt that, so I started lying her on our bed with a little blanket in the day, and she has slept on there ever since. I can lay her down awake on there and she settles herself off to sleep in the day - and she sleeps better than she did when I could get her to sleep in her cot.
We may have to reconsider in the next few months when she starts getting much more mobile, but it has worked wonderfully for us so far x

 

[Cookie1979]

Thanks for all the replies. I think I will start trying next week, just with a nap early afternoon and see if I can get him to settle. Would prefer to start trying now and hopefully it wont take too long to get him to sleep there. Will try and make sure we are winding down, so have quiet time, then a bottle and then nap.

He's starting to sleep better at night, he slept for 7 hours and 45 mins last night, then had a bottle and another hour and a half, which is the best he has ever slept. Feeling hopeful that eventually he will sleep throught he night. I have to swaddle to get him to sleep for longer periods.

 

[beatnick]

i know your pain. i cannot get zakk to sleep alone in the day, let alone in his cot. we have tried CC and pupd and i literally was crying every day for a week. then i asked some of the girls at the weigh in and they all had the same issue.

I was so relieved as i felt like he was the only baby not napping!

now i get him to sleep by walking him then pop him on a folded up duvet on the floor next to me. when he wakes i stroke his head and he goes back to sleep. Im hoping this will develop into him becoming more confident on his own.

i wouldnt worry too much about the cot. zakk also sleeps well at night and self settles in his cot at night. Ive given up with it!

 

[Cookie1979]

Thanks.

I haven't bothered much with a daytime routine because I thought its far more important to get a nighttime routine and have him sleep well then, than it is to get him to nap in his cot in the day.

I'm going to give it a try anyway and see how I get on. Going shopping Wednesday so I will buy a mobile, he is interacting with toys now so I think he'd enjoy having a mobile over his cot.