Baby Won't Nap! - Langhorne,PA

Updated on August 05, 2011
T.S. asks from Langhorne, PA
5 answers

For the second day in a row, my 7 month old daughter won't take a nap. I don't know if it's teething or a growth spurt and I am getting frustrated. She wakes up around 6am and I go in and nurse her, we cuddle and play (and i'll get myself cleaned up and dressed) until my 3 y.o. son wakes up around 8 or later. Usually around 9 we are downstairs and I give my son breakfast while I clean up (I have cats so I like to get the fur cleaned off the floor before he plays) and the baby will take a 10-15 minute nap in her chair and nurse again (or vice varda, whichever comes first) and I've started to give her a little bit of fruit to ease her into having a 3 meal regimen, then I let her play and around 11:30 she is ready for cereal. She usually goes up for a nap around 12:30-1. The length she normally naps varies. It can be an hour to 3 hours. She is a super light sleeper. I nurse her for her nap to help her relax and will nurse again around 4:30 or 5 then it's dinner for her at 5:30 and I take her up for bedtime around 7:30 (if she had a good nap, lil earlier if she didn't). BTW, she sleeps through the night. So the past 2 days ( as in right now), the routine (everything) has been the same but when I get her to sleep, she pops awake (something she does alot) but won't go back to sleep. She rolls all around her crib and I'll let her go and cry until her cries are ones where I know she needs me, I go up and she's smiling and laughing and kicking and we do the whole routine again... sit and nurse and rock, but then one of the cats will come in and she hears kitty meow and has to turn to look for the cat (she loves the kitties), and then my son will come up the stairs calling for me and talking then she wants to see what he's doing and then she wants nothing to do with a nap because now she's yapping and laughing and kicking and bouncing and she recently started making baby talk like 'yayayayaya, dyadyadya'. Yesterday. Spent 3 1/2 hours trying to get her to sleep, going back and forth with nursing and holding and she was wide awake. Around 5 she dozed off for about 10 minutes while I gave it a last ditch effort and nursed. Today when it was time for a nap I sited until she totally dropped off the boob until I laid her down in her crib and I thought that was it and she would sleep for a long time.... Nd wouldn't you know that little stinker was up in 5 minutes and I tried doing the whole sleep routine again but it didn't work and at 5pm, she is still up. I have her sitting in her baby chair ( which she likes to sit in) and as long as I'm within eyesight, she is fine and happy. I walk away and she gets mad. I don't know if this is a teething thing (she only has 2 on bottom and I don't see any more poking through) or a growth thing since she is learning so much now. I'm hoping it's a phase. I thought about taking the kids out for a walk (maybe she would fall asleep with a walk) but I just can't deal with the heat and walking (feels like an excuse but I really don't like the heat especially when it's so humid). Anyone have any insight or have you been there? At least she is in a really good mood.

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D.W.

answers from Gainesville on

Sounds like she really needs 2 naps per day not just the one she is getting. If she is getting up at 6 then she should be going back down for a nap around 9 (which is when you say she is falling asleep in her chair). Take her upstairs and get her down for a nap. She will probably sleep 1-2 hours and then will nap again in the afternoon. Babies need at least 2 naps at that age.

But you are right that sleep is interrupted by all kinds of things and most of them we can't readily see.

1 mom found this helpful

B.G.

answers from Los Angeles on

My baby did this for a while. The naps and sleeping pattern sometimes shifted while he was going through growth spurts or extreme teething days. I wouldn't worry too much about it... If she is tired, she will nap. If she isn't, she won't =)

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S.H.

answers from Honolulu on

It is a phase.
She is 7 months.
Their cognition and motor skills also change. 6 months was a milestone period and growth-spurt period too.
Teething can also happen at this age.
They are just changing so much.

It will pass.

She is a light sleeper as you said, and every little noise, is now getting her attention and preventing her from lulling to sleep.

Try getting a white noise machine for her room when she naps.

She is on solids now.
Are you still nursing her, on-demand??? Even if on solids, a baby still needs to be nursed on-demand. Solids does not replace, nursings.

Then at 9:00am, you said she 'naps' for like 10-15 minutes.
WELL, that is just ONLY a CAT NAP, not a nap nap. That is not a nap. But then it is just enough, to then prevent her regular nap and interfere with it.
And then it is then, making her not tired, for her usual nap time... which you said is at 12:30-1:00.

A baby, should be napping 2-3 hours after waking. So if she wakes at 6:00am, her MORNING nap should be at 9:00am.
This is usual.

Her awareness of everything is changing too. She is reacting to everything she hears. And she is already a light sleeper. As you said.

My daughter as a baby, was very noise sensitive. Even a toilet flushing down the hall, would wake her. I HAD to make the house very quiet when she napped, turning off the phone too etc.
ALSO, my daughter, would NOT nap well, anywhere except in her crib. She also was not a portable napper.... not on the road or in a stroller or car. ONLY in her crib, she would nap. Same for my son.

Also, teach your son, to "whisper" and tip-toe... when it is baby's nap time.
My daughter was 3 when I had my 2nd child... and even at that age, she completely UNDERSTOOD, that her baby brother's nap time, meant QUIET.
Teach your son not to call you when you are putting baby to nap... but instead, to TIP-TOE, and come to you whispering.
My daughter would do that, and she was 3 at the time.

My son was still napping 3 times a day, at that age. For 2 hours each.

Your daughter is 'cat napping' because her naps are being interrupted, by noise. And the activities in the home and the cats.

And, she gets mad when you walk away... because this is the age when 'separation anxiety' is developing. My son and daughter, had that at 6 months old. It was also per our Pediatrician.

So, now that she is a different age juncture, you have to, tweak your nap routines for her. Her cognizance and awareness of things in the house, is more heightened now.

Over-tired babies, actually fall asleep worse, or cannot fall asleep or they wake more.
Your baby is only getting 1 nap a day????

A.C.

answers from York on

She don't seem to be a day napper. It's wonderful she is sleeping through the night! I wouldn't fight it anymore. Go on with your day and except the fact she is up all day. Guess what will happen if she gets to tired? lol She will pass out! Sometimes as a mom you just have to except what is happening in the moment. Don't beat yourself up over the fact your 7month old naps or not. You are lucky she sleeps all night! Which is an important fact to consider why she isn't a mid-day napper. Remember they grow fast and things change faster then you can wink ;)

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H.1.

answers from Des Moines on

My opinion is the older she gets the more she will not want to nap, so you will have to work on the napping thing. She really needs 2 good naps a day - not just the one good one she is getting. She should have a nap around 9 am as well. If your putting her down when she's already sleeping (ie you rocked or nursed her to sleep) she's not going to have as good quality sleep and will wake up when she realizes your not there. You need to work on getting her to fall asleep on her own so that she can nap better!

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