63 responses so far ↓

• 1 Jennifer // Jul 29, 2008 at 8:46 pm

  My name is Jennifer and my son Jackson will be two years old in two weeks. He usually goes to bed between 8:30pm and 9pm. He still wakes up in the middle of the night and he won’t go to sleep unless he has a sippy cup that has milk in it and I’m afraid that it will eventually start to rot his teeth. Can you give me any suggestions?

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• 2 Diana Steffel // Jul 29, 2008 at 9:05 pm

  Hi,

  I`m a mother of a 1,5 year old toddler.My son was the perfect sleeper.Sleept thru the night since he was 4 month.We have a bedtime routine Bath, bottel and he goes to sleep by himself now he only falls asleep when I stay with him in the room.What went wrong.
  Thanks

  Diana

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• 3 amanda jones // Jul 29, 2008 at 9:28 pm

  If you havent changed the babies nap schedule but his naps have got shorter, would do you suggest try.?

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• 4 georgegina tierney // Jul 29, 2008 at 10:00 pm

  hi i’m righting about my six month doughter isabella. She don’t sleep at night without wake 3 or 4 times to feed an snuggle on the breast. will not sleeo in her bed nether as soon as she feeds i put her to bed an she awakes an wants moor breast. I can’t let her cry at night because we live with other people an they don’t like it. please how can i make this work an keeps everyone happy.

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• 5 brooke // Jul 29, 2008 at 10:12 pm

  Am I putting Benjamin to bed too early? He is typically asleep by 6:15 p.m. He then wakes around 5:00 a.m., nurses and usually goes back to sleep until 6:30 or 7:00. He is definitely tired at 6:00 p.m. as his afternoon nap rarely lasts past 2:00 or 2:30. Am I stuck with the early morning feed?

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• 6 Fiona // Jul 30, 2008 at 1:59 am

  You speak of babies that don’t go into the bed awake or who don’t get themselves off ot sleep that wake after 40 minutes, Ella goes to sleep in her cot unaided with the exception of wrapping (she has no dummy, no rocking etc…) she is just over 3 months old and has never really napped longer than 40 minutes during the day, she sleeps from approx 7.30pm - 4.30am where I feed her a bottle and she goes back down until about 6.30am.

  How can I get her to sleep for longer through the day and for at for 12 hours at night.

  Regards,
  Fiona

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• 7 Nely // Jul 30, 2008 at 1:13 pm

  My baby, Alena, is 8 months old, and still wakes up in the middle of the night because she is not sleeping with me. I put her in my bed, and she falls back to sleep. How can I change this? She also has trouble taking naps during the day. THanks for your response

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• 8 Alycia // Jul 30, 2008 at 2:35 pm

  My son Wesley is almost 1. I put him to bed around 7 or 8pm and he still gets up to nurse in the middle of the night around 2am. I always get him out of the crib at that time cause i dont want to wake up the rest of the house cause he will cry for a good hour if i let him. I am living back home for the time being cause my husban is over sea’s and i feel bad keeping everyone a wake in the night so i just feed him and let him fall back to sleep with me to keep the pease with every one. What should i do?

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• 9 Kristin // Jul 30, 2008 at 4:03 pm

  My son, Dawson is 13 months old and he is still waking at least once during the night. My husband and I have tried everything in order for him to asleep throughout the entire night. He will only fall asleep with a bottle of milk. His normal bedtime is 9:30 PM to 9:00 AM, but like I said he still wakes up at least once to three times a night. What should my husband and I do? Any suggestions, please?

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• 10 Anne marie // Jul 30, 2008 at 4:08 pm

  Hello
  Ryan is 2 months now. Ive started the routine for sleep and it is working till now. He just wake up twice at night for feeding. But the problem is that he tends to sleep on the breasts everytime i feed him. I try, with all the tips you gave, to keep him awake but very difficult.
  What can I try else, please
  Thank you

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• 11 KARENE // Jul 30, 2008 at 4:20 pm

  My baby is now 5 months old and she only takes short naps in the day not longer than than 30-40 minutes the most. What can i do to change this?

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• 12 Candace // Jul 30, 2008 at 4:36 pm

  Hi, Dana. One thing that I find so frustrating about a lot of these “sleep techniques books” is that they give great emphasis on your baby learning to put themselves to sleep, but how do they learn that without letting them cry it out? How would my five week old son learn to put himself to sleep. It honestly doesn’t seem possible since he was not one of those babies, who from the womb, was able to do that. Is this something he will learn on his own, or do I need to be helping him?

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• 13 patricia curwen // Jul 30, 2008 at 5:33 pm

  My baby is 6 months and I have to rock him to put him sleep.How should I change it and make him to fall asleep by himself?

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• 14 meycett barrera // Jul 30, 2008 at 5:58 pm

  my daughter is 13 months, she still wakes up in the middle of the night. she will cry 4 to 6 times a night. and every time is to get a drink of milk or water. how do i get her to sleep through the night.

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• 15 christa // Jul 30, 2008 at 7:01 pm

  my baby is 3mths old. he goes to bed around 8:00pm or so. sometimes earlier. he seems to always wake up around 3:30pm goes back to sleep til 5:00 and wakes sometimes or i will leave him to see if he will go back to sleep. sometimes he will til 7:00pm. when he wakes he seems like he is still exhausted. Sometimes between 5-7 he is grunting and groaning. Lately to get him to go down for naps i have been rocking him to sleep. this is the only way to get him to nap sometimes. How can I get him to put himself to sleep? At bedtime I could put him down drowsy and eventually he would go to sleep sometimes.

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• 16 Holly // Jul 30, 2008 at 7:41 pm

  My son has NEVER been a good sleeper and when he would wake up in the night I would swadle him to make him fall asleep. When he turned 1 yr I let him cry in his crib for about 1 hr, then i heard it would go down from there. He still crys when i put him in his bed and he is 14 mos. Then when we go somewhere like camping or to a hotel it is like starting over. He doesnt sleep good anywhere. Are there any techniques I can do so I am not putting him to sleep when we are not at home, and then when we get home he starts crying again for hrs. What are my options?

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• 17 Susie // Jul 30, 2008 at 9:38 pm

  My 21 month old daughter used to be a good sleeper. Now, all of a sudden, she is having a lot of trouble. One night last week (after she had a sleep over at her Grandmother’s) she was awake from 9:30pm until 6am the next morning! Could it be the upset in routine, is she testing us? Now she cries when we put her down and gets up for a few hours in the middle of the night. Any words of wisdom as to why she might all of a sudden doing this and what I can do to help her?

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• 18 Jackie // Jul 30, 2008 at 9:59 pm

  my daughter Ava is almost 2 years old will not sleep thru the night or her own bed she wake up and want to sleep with mommy by her side what can i do?

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• 19 Celia // Jul 30, 2008 at 10:02 pm

  How can I get my 13 months twins to sleep through the night. I still get up between 2 - 4 time a night. Both babies a usually down for the night by 8:30 but then they are up again by 12:30 and again by 4:30. Normally the only thing that will get them to go back to sleep is a bottle. Please help. This can not continue.

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• 20 Misty // Jul 31, 2008 at 1:58 am

  My son is 10 months old and has no trouble sleeping through the night; however, naptime is a serious issue. I try to put him to bed while he’s awake and let him cry it out but he’s extremely stubborn and he will cry the entire time he’s in his bed. One time he screamed and cried for an entire hour. I’ve also tried to stay in the room and soothe him while he’s in his crib and that doesn’t work either. Lately, I’ve been letting him stay up for 5-6 hours until he practically passes out from exhaustion. Only then will he sleep for 1 - 1 1/2 hours in a row before waking up. I’ve been trying various naptime methods for 2 months now. What else can I do?

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• 21 Mirelle // Jul 31, 2008 at 4:50 am

  Hi Dana, HOW DO YOU MAKE A 3-MONTH -OLD FALL ASLEEP ON HER OWN?

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• 22 Paula Gouveia // Jul 31, 2008 at 10:32 am

  I was just wondering my son is 2 and he wakes up 2-3 times a nioght screaming and crying for mommy. I am not sure if it is night terrors because they say only older kids have night terrors. i also cant find anything on how to cure the night terrors if it is what is wrong with him. can you help???

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• 23 Hailey Herron // Jul 31, 2008 at 11:52 am

  Hailey has had horrible digestive issues since she was born and unfortunately has affected her sleep. She went through cycles of constipation, then somewhat normal than diarrhea. I found out finally, that the doctor believes the diarrhea is caused by the constipation. He called this diarrhea a name however I forget what he called it. We are keeping her on a high fiber diet and avoiding a lot of dairy. She was prescribed something for the constipation also when it gets bad. When you have medical issues like this it is very difficult to keep her sleeping normal. She does great when she’s doing good digestively, however lately she only naps 2-2.5 hours instead of her 3-4. any suggestions. Should I maybe go back to two naps instead of one?

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• 24 Alisa // Jul 31, 2008 at 1:53 pm

  I am almost through your book and can;t wait to put the “sleep” balls in motion. I am a single mom…and the non sleep through the night for the past 6 months is really really exhausting…I have read several books and watched several DVDs….none seem to answer my question (I am not finished with your ook so maybe you will address it). I put Jayden to sleep around 7:30 with no problems…but she starts crying 3 times during the night…she isn;t awake…her eyes always are shut…i still put the bottle in her mouth..she immediatley stops crying until she falls back “asleep” while she is eating. Most of the books that I have read tells me to talk to the baby and comfort her and then leave to let her cry. But the videos that I have watch show a baby who is crying and AWAKE with eyes open…will my baby not actually being totally awake not allow your teachings take effect? I should I still go along with the “rules” that are outlined while Jayden is crying but eyes closed?

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• 25 laura // Jul 31, 2008 at 2:01 pm

  my son is 8 month old now and has never slept thru the night. i have been leting him sleep in our bed as he sleeps better with us but now i am feeling so tired as he wont settle without me and wakens about 3am and 4am for feeds!!what should i do

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• 26 K Stone // Jul 31, 2008 at 4:43 pm

  i have a 10.5 month old that, until recently, was able to self-soothe and go to sleep on his own each night. We would place him in his crib after bath and a little rocking and he would eventually fall asleep without fussing. In the last few weeks, he will not go to his crib unless he is rocked asleep. He still sleeps through the night but how can we get him to learn how to self-soothe again? Is it a case of separation anxiety that will eventually take care of itself?

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• 27 Karen // Jul 31, 2008 at 4:47 pm

  Noorallah is 15 months and will go to sleep easily at nap time and bedtime. However, when he wakes he will cry until I go in and cuddle him before returning quickly to sleep. How do I get him to manage this time himself?

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• 28 cynthia // Jul 31, 2008 at 5:19 pm

  My daughter is almost 11 months an still not sleeping thru the night. When she was 4 months she started to get several ear infections. By the time she was 6 months she had her 4th ear infection and got tubes put in her ears. She used to get up anywhere from 8-15 times a night. Now it is better it is anywhere from 2-4. What can i do? I have a 4 yr old who sleeps fine thru it all. thank God for that. But after getting up so much at night i have no energy the next day. Should i let her just cry it out when she wakes up? Or should i continue to get up each time she wakes up? please help i am about to lose my mind.

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• 29 Keisha // Jul 31, 2008 at 9:05 pm

  Reading the other blogger’s comment left me two understandings 1) 95% of the families will probably be told to simply buy your book/program. 2) My grandmother told me how she remembered a time when “all infants did was eat & sleep”. Something is certainly contributing to the energy levels of this “new” generation of infants that keeps them from enjoying a peaceful sleep. I respectfully submit this thought; are the parents feeling more like they can not complete any task (read, relax, clean, etc.) unless their young children are asleep?

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• 30 Vicky // Jul 31, 2008 at 10:32 pm

  My daughter just turned “1″ last week and she has had problems sleeping through the night and taking naps since she was about 3 weeks old. Her father is a construction worker, and will have to work out of town frequently all week and be home only on weekends. He lets her sleep in bed with him when he’s home (I take the couch, since I don’t approve) then I have a hard time getting her to sleep in her crib when he’s gone. She will go down to sleep in her crib at 9:30, but she will wake up 4-5 times through the night and be up for good at 5:30. She only gets about 6 hours of actual sleep at night, then refuses to nap during the day. If she is lucky she will take a 10 minute nap during the day. Unless we go somewhere in the car, then she will sleep most of the way back from wherever we go. Her lack of sleeping and napping is exhausting me!!!! Since I am home alone with her all week it makes it hard to get anything done, much less sleep. Please help!!!!!

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• 31 Tiffany // Aug 1, 2008 at 12:50 am

  My son Trayton is 9 months old. He always slept with me until recently, I just had a hard time during the day with no sleep. We have been putting him in his own bed and he cries for a good 1hr to 1hr1/2 before finally falling alsleep. Then he will sleep for 30-40min before starting the routine all over again. He’s going to bed about 7:30PM. I usually feed him around 11 or 12 and then again around 5AM. I don’t know how to get him to stay alseep all night without crying every 45min for an 1hr. I have read several books and they all say he needs to soothe himself back to sleep but it doesn’t seem to be working. Any advice you might have would be wonderful. Thank You.

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• 32 Stephanie // Aug 1, 2008 at 8:25 am

  I really like your approach to helping babies learn to sleep. I’m trying your suggestion to let my 11 month old ‘practice’ falling asleep on her own, in her own crib while I stay in the room and encourage her. So far she needs me to get her to lie down by laying my hand against her face. Without that, she will stand in crib for 1-2 hours ! I know this is an external cue that I don’t want her to rely on. How can I get my baby to lie down?

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• 33 sam // Aug 1, 2008 at 2:57 pm

  hi dana, i have a 7 month old son, and was just wondering how much sleep should he be having during the day at this age.

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• 34 Emma // Aug 1, 2008 at 3:08 pm

  My daughter Rhianna is 18 months she has never slept through from the age of 5 months.
  There is no problem with her going for a nap she has 1 & 1/2hrs Bed time is great 7.20. the problem is she still wakes up 2-3 times in the night. I go into her & put my hand on her shoulder & she gooes straight off.
  Please help im so exhausted.

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• 35 Veronica // Aug 1, 2008 at 5:03 pm

  My son will be 2 next month. He has NEVER slept all night. We tried letting him cry but that didn’t work. He will cry for hours. We bought him a toddler bed and put it next to ours but he still refuses to sleep in it. At daycare, after napping, he wakes calling for me. Should I try to force him into his own bed and let him cry himself back to sleep at night or should I give him more time?

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• 36 Lisa // Aug 1, 2008 at 7:09 pm

  My daughter Adria just turned three months old. We are struggling with achieving longer nap times, but working on it. Once I see a couple of yawns/her rubbing her eyes we go to her room and start the sleepy time routine. She seems so tired at the beginning, but I find an hour later I’m still trying to get her to sleep sometimes and she’s cooing. What am I doing wrong?

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• 37 rebecca // Aug 1, 2008 at 7:15 pm

  I have a 5 month old that i adore. He doesn’t take long naps but maybe once a meek he will sleep any where from 1 1/2 to 2 hours other then that he takes 20-30 min naps about every 2 1/2 hrs. The nappong isn’t my problem. I have a small dog with aloud bark and if my baby is asleep and some one knocks at the door my dog barks and wakes my baby and i can’t get him back to sleep. What can i do to get my baby to sleep through my dogs barks

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• 38 georgina clarke // Aug 1, 2008 at 9:15 pm

  Hi dana Finlay wakes in the night crying but his eyes are closed but can get distressed what is the best thing to do

  Thanks
  Georgina

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• 39 Hiba Graham // Aug 2, 2008 at 11:43 pm

  My almost 10 month old boy only takes 1 nap a day. He naps between 2-3 hours from 10AM-12PM or 1PM. He used to take 2 shorter naps but suddenly his first nap got later and later and now it’s turned into only 1 nap a day. At night he sleeps from 7:30 until 6 to 7AM and rarely wakes up. Is this ok or should I be working on 2 shorter naps?? Thanks.

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• 40 Allison // Aug 3, 2008 at 10:32 am

  We have been using this program for about a month now. It has really made a difference in how my daughter, Carly, sleeps! For the past few days and nights though, she has not been napping like she should and she is waking up 3 or 4 times a night! Before she would take 2 hour naps during the day and sleep all night long (with maybe 1 bottle at about 2 am) We have not changed anything! Still the same routine at the same time. Naps during the day after an hour of wake time. I am just not sure what is going on. Can you help?

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• 41 Wendy // Aug 3, 2008 at 1:43 pm

  My daughter Emma is 3.5 almost 4. Ever since we brought her baby sister home last September (10+ months ago) she wakes every night, several times crying, usually about 3 hours after she falls asleep. It starts off as a whimper and usually ends in her sitting up crying, waking the whole house. Not only is this effecting everyone’s sleep, it is effecting our relationships and my husbands health as he suffers from systematic lupus. We have tried several different approaches and have seen little success. When we go in her room we try to keep it positive and brief eg. mommy loves you etc. We have made it a rule that she falls asleep on her own and she has done that well as of late but we are still seeing the nightly waking even though we have also tried to make sleeping through the night without waking mommy and daddy a rule. She is in good health, happy, kind, social and bright and seems to get along with her baby sister very well. She does not appear scared but often we hear her say she wants daddy to stay with her. We show her lots of love and affection and spend special one on one time with her and she appears to be perfectly content and settled. How can we get her to sleep through the night without crying? Thank you in advance!

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• 42 Fira // Aug 3, 2008 at 10:56 pm

  HI Dana Obleman,

  My baby is 11 months now and he still sleeps with me on my bed while I breastfeed him.

  I would like him to sleep by his own soon as I am starting work and I need him to gain a security that he can sleep without me. I want to know if the style of your programme lets the babies to cry for some time as i would like my baby to sleep without crying. I think to let the baby cry is a wrong idea.

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• 43 Rabeeya // Aug 4, 2008 at 10:42 am

  hi. my baby is 1year old, im still breastfeeing him because he does not like bottle feeds. and he only sleeps while breastfeeding. i tried the method of leaving him in his cot to go to sleep by himself, but didnt work coz he cries alot when i leave him in cot. plz plz plz help me i want him to sleep by himself. and also i want to stop breastfeeding aswell. coz i m tierd of it now… plz help…..

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• 44 Georgina // Aug 4, 2008 at 4:29 pm

  My son is 2 months old and since day 0 he’s had trouble sleeping. He sleeps well at night usually just waking once at 4am but the day times are pretty hard. He seems to hate nap times and struggles to fall asleep. When he starts showing sleepy signs we swaddle him and try to help him sleep by rocking him, aiming to put him down sleepy but awake. I then pat his back till he falls asleep, sometimes just before, and let him do the rest himself. The problem with all this is that he gets SO wound up he cries, no, screams so much it’s so upsetting. He screams solid for 20-30 mins EVERY nap time sometimes longer. I hold him while he cries and eventually he gives in. He is so tired but seems to find it so hard to fall asleep. He will then only nap for 30 -45 mins and I can’t get him back to sleep without another 30 mins of screaming. Some days he’s only had 2 hrs sleep in the whole day. I think he’s so tired which makes him pretty grumpy. Is this normal?? what can I do to make nap times less stressful and help him learn to fall asleep without all the screaming?? I’m beginning to dread naptime and struggle so much whenever we go out. Help!

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• 45 Megan // Aug 4, 2008 at 8:52 pm

  My daughter is 11 weeks and I have been trying to really instill a nighttime routine the last week or so. It includes, reading, massage, and singing in her room. The problem is gauging her wakefullness. I begin the routine when I think she seems drowsy, but hasn’t begun to melt down. SOmewhere during the reading or massage she usually gets cranky and the routine is put on hold or ended until I can calm her down. Before I can get her down it’s time to feed her again and she practically passes out while feeding.

  I’d like to start sleep training in a few weeks, but am wondering how established the bedtime routine should be before doing so?

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• 46 ashley // Aug 6, 2008 at 8:39 am

  my son is almost4 months old he is great at night now he only gets up one time at night but he wants someone to hold him and set him up all the time hates to be put in the bouncer or lay on the floor exspects to be held all the time HOW DO I GET HIM OUT OF THIS HELP

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• 47 Kim // Aug 6, 2008 at 9:36 pm

  I started the sleep sense program with my son about 3 months ago (he is almost 11 months old now) and he now sleeps consistently through the night but he wakes up very early! (goes to bed at 7, wakes at 5:30ish a.m.). I have tried to “reset” his internal alarm clock but he will not go back to sleep once I gently rouse him…any suggestions? I have also tried putting him to bed a little later, but he still wakes up early, and then of course does not get as much nighttime sleep.
  Also, even though he will eventually put himself to sleep at night/naps, he consistently cries for longer than 10 minutes every time he is put down in his crib. He also tends to nap for only short periods of time - a long nap for him is an hour! He has 2 a day, about 3 - 3.5 hours apart.
  Again, any suggestions would be much appreciated!!!

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• 48 Ashley // Aug 11, 2008 at 11:51 pm

  how do i get my 1 year old to go to sleep on her own and not sleep with her bottle? She wakes up several times a night mostly cause she wants her bottle. I need HELP! Thanks

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• 49 Rosie // Aug 13, 2008 at 6:53 am

  My 6 month old son, Dane was 6 weeks premature and so he was regularly awake every 3 hours and had loads of cuddles to get him to a healthy 7.5 kilo boy that he is now. On the down side he does not sleep through ( he has only done this twice) he can awaken as often as 5 times a night or only twice and I need to give him the dummy to settle. My touch stimulates him and he gets very distressed as he is not picked up. Now and then I resort to feeding just so I can get to sleep. His Dr described him as very ‘busy’ as he is on the go constantly and this is what wakes him and prevents him from self settling…his arms and legs flailing wildly…he will almost get back to sleep and be soo tired yet his limbs do not let up. How do I settle him…touching him makes him worse and I have used the shooshing to death….help please. ( He also only has 3 short naps through the day although he stays a good temperament)

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• 50 Julie // Aug 15, 2008 at 4:03 pm

  My son is 4 months old and is a horrible sleeper! He fights sleep during the day for as long as possible. He works himself up screaming and I’ve tried everything to get him to fall asleep but nothing works! Once he’s finally fallen asleep he only sleeps for 10 - 20 minutes! And then he’s tired again in a half an hour and is screaming again because he’s so exhausted. I usually start my bedtime routine at 7pm and he’s usually asleep by 7:30-8. He does good to go to bed at night, but my only problem is once i take him out of the bath to put his jammies on, he’s screaming! and the only thing that calms him down is to eat. Then he usually wakes up at 12am, 3am, and 5am to eat and then will usually sleep to 8am. Is there anyway to get him to go down easier for naps and to get him to sleep longer during the night?! I’m just as exhausted as he is!! Please help!!

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• 51 Claudia // Aug 19, 2008 at 4:37 pm

  I learned so much about putting my baby to sleep by watching your videos. Thanks
  I have a question, my baby is able to go to sleep on his own after our night time routine, he takes a bottle, then he wakes up twice an expect another feeding, sometimes he cries should I let him cry? what should I do.

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• 52 Amanda Meier // Aug 20, 2008 at 2:13 pm

  My son is almost 10 months. He does not sleep more than 1.5 hrs in his crib. He has slept in his car seat for a long time. I am sure it is comfy and cozy for him and this is why he snuggles in and will go to sleep. We tried to let him cry it out and get him used to the crib, and learn to self soothe…but he vomits. He cries so much and hard he vomits! Then he may be so exhausted and spent - after we get him up and change everything - that he sleeps for a few more hours.

  Any advice?

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• 53 Tricia Reinking // Aug 27, 2008 at 8:02 am

  My daughter is 3 1/2 months old and we still swaddle her. We would like to begin implementing your program but are unsure if we will be successfull while she is still being swaddled. Should we start to “wean” her of the swaddle first, or try a combined approach. Note: she sleeps horrribley if unswaddled.

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• 54 Jen Foreman // Aug 28, 2008 at 6:51 am

  My son is 5 months old and only sleeps 45 mins at a time. I have tried your suggested method for the last two weeks, but he wakes fully and happy. I also try leaving him in the cot, he talks happily and rolls around for the next half hour and then I get him up. He also has silent reflux. How can get him to take longer naps throughout the day? He is on medication morning and night.

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• 55 Rebecca // Aug 30, 2008 at 10:00 am

  Hi

  Chris is 9 months and sleeps after nursing. He will normally wake up 4 times a night or more. He is a high need baby with a persistent personality and will cry throughout when i put him in his cot and sit beside him. His crying is so hysterical and I find it too upsetting to ignore him, so I give in and pick him up.

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• 56 Lorri Randle // Aug 30, 2008 at 3:53 pm

  I am completely stuck and haven’t found anyone who has been able to help.
  My 4 month old son sleeps through the night. We put him down at 7pm. He lies in bed for no more than 5 mins and then drifts off to sleep. We don’t hear from him until 7 or 7:30am that next morning.
  Naps are a nightmare though. He can only stay up for an hour-no more. (i’ve been keeping a log for a month now and 5 mins more than an hour and he cries going down for a nap.)

  If I put him down at an hour he drifts off to sleep by himself for his nap. BUT he wakes 40-45mins into his nap like clockwork. Sometimes he wakes up crying. Sometimes he plays in bed for 15 mins and then cries.

  I have tried feeding him-and he isn’t interested in eating.
  I have tried to pat his head and help him before he wakes up at 40mins and it doesn’t work, he is a very social baby and even seeing me makes him want to get out of bed and he cries if I don’t pick him up.
  Like I said before I have tried putting him down later and that makes him over tired.
  If I put him down sooner-he plays in bed for a while.

  I know he can self soothe because he does it initially when i put him down for his nap and then must do it in order to sleep through the night.

  Is it just that he is too young and hasn’t developed a longer nap. If he only sleeps 40-45min naps AND can only stay up 1 hour then our 3 hour routine is turning into:
  eat, play for 1 hour, sleep 40mins, play for an hour and then back to sleep for another 20mins. NOT healthy at all

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• 57 Angela Turner // Sep 7, 2008 at 2:07 am

  Dear Dana,
  Can you help us recover our son’s nap. He’s just turned three but still needs a daytime sleep in additional to his 11h at night. As a baby he was an appalling sleeper (up more than 5 times in a night to about a year) but then we taught him to fall asleep on his own. That was so worthwhile! Since then he’s slept better than all his friends, including a 1-2h nap most days. Sometimes he would even sing and tell himself stories in his bed for an hour or more if he wasn’t very tired before taking himself off to sleep. Then, about a month ago, we changed some of the furniture in his room, exchanging his old cot for some toy storage. Although he can’t actually see the toys when he is asleep, we seem to have made the bedroom a place to play not to sleep. Thankfully, he still sleeps at night, but he is consistently not napping and is quite uncontrollable by late afternoon. (He’s been pretty well behaved before and I have always said it was because he was getting the naps he needed where his friends weren’t). Please help us get our little boy back. Thanks.

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• 58 Brooke // Sep 9, 2008 at 9:27 pm

  My 10 week old seems to wake up almost exactly 45-1hr into every nap. Once in a while he will go back to sleep on his own, but more often than not, if i let him cry, while checking on him every 10-15 min, he will not go back to sleep, even if I shush/pay him….after weeks of this, i tried a pacifier, which will work. I suspect he has a horrible time passing thru his sleep cycles and putting himself back to sleep. He doesn’t need the paci to fall asleep initially, only if he wakes up. Is this a bad habit to start? If its all that works, isn’t getting a longer nap better than only getting 45-1 hour? I’m also worried he will wake my other child, which he has.

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• 59 Marie // Oct 21, 2008 at 2:54 pm

  My 19 month old has never been a good day time napper,some how we’ve never been to be able to master this one. Fairly consistantly now he will skip daytime naps cpmpletely but thankfully (apart from the odd night when he’s not well or something’s bothering him)he sleeps 12-14 hours at night.
  My question is two-fold:
  I’ve tried (I think) every strategy under the sun to put him down for a nap when he’s still awake and encourage him to send himself off to sleep but he usually just cries and gets himself into a right state (this has been pretty much from the day he was born). Is there anything you can suggest that would best suit this age group to encourage naps? or is it acceptable at his age to skip naps completely as long as he’s getting a good night’s sleep?
  I’d be grateful for your comments. Many thanks

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• 60 Jennifer W // Nov 8, 2008 at 1:59 pm

  Hi Dana,
  We just started to sleep train our daughter, she is 6 months old. Like many others, she is having a difficult time putting herself to sleep during nap time. She cries for an hour and still has a problem self soothing. It is going really well at night and she can put herself to sleep easily. Can you shed some light as to what to do about nap time?
  Thanks

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• 61 kylie // Jun 21, 2009 at 3:00 am

  i have to rock my 6 month old baby to sleep other wise she wont go to sleep and she also wont go to sleep with out being wrapped up, also when she wakes in the night for a feed she takes along time to go back to sleep and soon as i put her in her cot she wakes up again and she wont sleep unless she is in bed with me

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• 62 jenny Wiberley // Jul 9, 2009 at 10:21 pm

  honestly I hope all young mothers will enjoy this stage of being there during the night for the babies , as it will not last long.

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• 63 Michelle van Zoggels // Sep 7, 2009 at 4:56 am

  Hi,

  I have read your solution to short cat naps - and have been trying without success to get my daughter to extend her daytime naps beyond 30 minutes. I have sat and waited for her to stir and bottom patted gently each time she starts to stir but I can do this for 30-40 minutes and the moment I stop she will usually waken. She can sleep longer if she is in her pushchair and rocked or walked when she begins to stir….She can settle herself to sleep ok normally so that’s not a problem. Can you offer me any more advice? I am getting desperate as now at 5 1/2 months she is really struggling on 30 min sleeps!

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