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Post by sarahbee on Jul 17, 2017 19:52:42 GMT
My girl is 15 weeks old today. She sleeps well at night (usually from 7:30-8ish until 7 or so in the morning, with one or no feeding). But daytime naps are a completely different beast. She just will NOT nap unless I am holding her or wearing her. I have tried everything I can think of, and I do what all the sleep books say and follow an abbreviated version of our nighttime routine, but after 5-10 minutes in her bassinet, she is awake and screaming.
I realize how lucky I am to be getting some sleep at night, and I guess I'll take nights over naps if it's an either/or choice, but she just gets SO crabby during the day that I know she needs to sleep. I feel like I spend half the day just struggling to get her to nap, and the other half dealing with her crankiness from being so tired. Sometimes I just give up and put her in the carrier, but it is really starting to hurt my back. I find myself most days just wishing the hours away until bedtime, which I know is not the way to spend time with your baby.
My mom just says "babies don't come with a handbook!" (no kidding that's why I keep asking you for advice), and my MIL says to put her to sleep on her tummy which is a big fat no no.
Is this just typical for her age? Can I expect it to improve? Any and all advice is so appreciated. Thanks for listening.
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Deleted
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Aug 18, 2025 21:02:30 GMT
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Post by Deleted on Jul 17, 2017 20:01:07 GMT
Try something that creates a "white noise" like a large fan. Sounds like she goes to sleep ok but something is waking her. Daytime noise levels are different from night time noises. A fan noise tends to cancel out some of the sudden noises that wake babies.
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RosieKat
Drama Llama
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Post by RosieKat on Jul 17, 2017 20:01:21 GMT
My daughter loved the side-to-side swing for naps, and my son loved to jump himself to sleep in a Jumperoo (which may not be legal now?). My son also always wanted to be held, and he's still very physical. I wonder if it would help if you woke her a bit earlier - if she might just be getting most of the sleep she needs already? It's a hard time, I get it!
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Post by coaliesquirrel on Jul 17, 2017 20:02:14 GMT
All I can think of: car rides, stroller rides, swinging. For what it's worth, we used to trick DD by putting a heating pad in her crib, getting her to sleep, then putting her in the warmed bed (removing the heating pad first of course). I'm sorry - DD's 9.5 now, and honestly I don't remember whether that's a typical pattern for 15 weeks or not. I can tell you that DD's headed straight to "teenager" I think, because any time she's sitting for more than about 5 minutes, she naps, and my 5:30am girl suddenly sleeps until 8:30am! Good luck!
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Post by flanz on Jul 17, 2017 20:41:55 GMT
My girl is 15 weeks old today. She sleeps well at night (usually from 7:30-8ish until 7 or so in the morning, with one or no feeding). But daytime naps are a completely different beast. She just will NOT nap unless I am holding her or wearing her. I have tried everything I can think of, and I do what all the sleep books say and follow an abbreviated version of our nighttime routine, but after 5-10 minutes in her bassinet, she is awake and screaming. I realize how lucky I am to be getting some sleep at night, and I guess I'll take nights over naps if it's an either/or choice, but she just gets SO crabby during the day that I know she needs to sleep. I feel like I spend half the day just struggling to get her to nap, and the other half dealing with her crankiness from being so tired. Sometimes I just give up and put her in the carrier, but it is really starting to hurt my back. I find myself most days just wishing the hours away until bedtime, which I know is not the way to spend time with your baby. My mom just says "babies don't come with a handbook!" (no kidding that's why I keep asking you for advice), and my MIL says to put her to sleep on her tummy which is a big fat no no. Is this just typical for her age? Can I expect it to improve? Any and all advice is so appreciated. Thanks for listening. Our kids are in their late twenties so my memory is not fresh, by any means. I'm guessing there are some youngish moms here who can give you wiser counsel. I think you've gotten some good advice so far, with white noise and some kind of motion activity that might ease her into a naptime sleep. Our son was very colicky and didn't sleep through the night until he was over a year old... so at least you've got that going for you. Hang in there. They def. don't come with manuals and each child is different. And it stinks when it seems like every other newish mom has things all figured out, but we get what we get... Overall parenting was the best journey I ever took! <3 |
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Post by myshelly on Jul 17, 2017 20:45:07 GMT
I wore mine and held mine to nap.
If she's hurting your back you need a better carrier.
I wore my kids until they were 3 or older, so I can't imagine a 15 week old being uncomfortable.
I'm a firm attachment patenter. So getting a baby to sleep without holding him was never something I considered a goal.
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Post by sarahbee on Jul 17, 2017 20:52:32 GMT
Try something that creates a "white noise" like a large fan. Sounds like she goes to sleep ok but something is waking her. Daytime noise levels are different from night time noises. A fan noise tends to cancel out some of the sudden noises that wake babies. I use a box fan for nights and naps and it works fabulously at night! She slept through our neighbors' obnoxiously loud fireworks a few weeks ago.  Our kids are in their late twenties so my memory is not fresh, by any means. I'm guessing there are some youngish moms here who can give you wiser counsel. I think you've gotten some good advice so far, with white noise and some kind of motion activity that might ease her into a naptime sleep. Our son was very colicky and didn't sleep through the night until he was over a year old... so at least you've got that going for you. Hang in there. They def. don't come with manuals and each child is different. And it stinks when it seems like every other newish mom has things all figured out, but we get what we get... Overall parenting was the best journey I ever took! <3 Yes, I am definitely thankful for the nighttime sleep! That's what's keeping me (kinda) sane, lol! I'm always so glad when I hear people say that parenting is worth it. Not that I don't love my daughter, because I absolutely do, but some days it is just SO. HARD. I wore mine and held mine to nap. If she's hurting your back you need a better carrier. I wore my kids until they were 3 or older, so I can't imagine a 15 week old being uncomfortable. I'm a firm attachment patenter. So getting a baby to sleep without holding him was never something I considered a goal. I definitely do need a better carrier. I tried a Lillebaby but it was overwhelmingly huge, so I sent it back. Right now I use a cheapo Infantino convertible carrier. Gets the job done but it's definitely no-frills. Were you able to still get things done (housework etc.) while babywearing? That's where I struggle a bit at the moment. My house looks like a bomb went off. Lol. |
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Post by myshelly on Jul 17, 2017 20:55:25 GMT
Try something that creates a "white noise" like a large fan. Sounds like she goes to sleep ok but something is waking her. Daytime noise levels are different from night time noises. A fan noise tends to cancel out some of the sudden noises that wake babies. I use a box fan for nights and naps and it works fabulously at night! She slept through our neighbors' obnoxiously loud fireworks a few weeks ago. Our kids are in their late twenties so my memory is not fresh, by any means. I'm guessing there are some youngish moms here who can give you wiser counsel. I think you've gotten some good advice so far, with white noise and some kind of motion activity that might ease her into a naptime sleep. Our son was very colicky and didn't sleep through the night until he was over a year old... so at least you've got that going for you. Hang in there. They def. don't come with manuals and each child is different. And it stinks when it seems like every other newish mom has things all figured out, but we get what we get... Overall parenting was the best journey I ever took! <3 Yes, I am definitely thankful for the nighttime sleep! That's what's keeping me (kinda) sane, lol! I'm always so glad when I hear people say that parenting is worth it. Not that I don't love my daughter, because I absolutely do, but some days it is just SO. HARD. I wore mine and held mine to nap. If she's hurting your back you need a better carrier. I wore my kids until they were 3 or older, so I can't imagine a 15 week old being uncomfortable. I'm a firm attachment patenter. So getting a baby to sleep without holding him was never something I considered a goal. I definitely do need a better carrier. I tried a Lillebaby but it was overwhelmingly huge, so I sent it back. Right now I use a cheapo Infantino convertible carrier. Gets the job done but it's definitely no-frills. Were you able to still get things done (housework etc.) while babywearing? That's where I struggle a bit at the moment. My house looks like a bomb went off. Lol. Yep. I did everything while baby wearing - grocery shopping, vacuuming, dishes, dusting, mopping. |
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Post by gar on Jul 17, 2017 20:58:44 GMT
but after 5-10 minutes in her bassinet, she is awake and screaming. My grandson is a bit older but is similar in his sleep habits - 12 unbroken hours at night but naps for only 20 mins at a time during the day. What we (DD and I) are trying with some success currently is to be right there when his automatic wake up happens to quickly lull him back to sleep. It's as though that 20 min barrier needs to be broken and when we can do that he will then go back to sleep for another hour or so very often. So as soon as he stirs we rock him (whether he's in our arms or in the pram or whatever) or maybe put a dummy in - anything to stop him fully waking. It's a bit of a project and takes a bit of effort initially but it seems to be working. We feel that once this 20 min habit is broken he will sleep longer by himself. My other advice is not to try and recreate bed time for nap time. Imo, babies need to be able to differentiate between the 2 so that they can read the signals (bath, story, bottle, bed for example) for their long (night time) sleep as opposed to the daytime naps. Don't make the room dark for example - babies will happily sleep without the room being dark. It's another signal for them to learn when it's night time. Good luck  |
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Post by pondrunner on Jul 17, 2017 21:01:06 GMT
I found I didn't like babywearing during naps. I needed that time to refresh because I breastfed extensively and wanted there to be times in my day when I wasn't being touched, some days there was too much touch in my life.
At that age if baby woke up crying after 10-30 mins or so that usually meant the nap was insufficient. My babies were usually on 3 90 minute naps at that age and eventually went to 2, but if they woke early and unhappy I would soothe them back to sleep the same way I soothed them to sleep in the first place and then put baby back down in the crib or bassinet. It didn't take long before those naps were longer and more consistent.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Jul 17, 2017 21:10:14 GMT
The side to side swing is the only way Matthew would nap in the beginning.
But it paid off. He took daily naps til he was 5 and a half
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Jul 17, 2017 21:16:42 GMT
I wore my son too. My goal was to get him away from me! He was over 7 months before his bottom actually touch a solid surface. ( really I swear he was more like 10 y/o).
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Post by scrapsuzy on Jul 17, 2017 22:18:09 GMT
The only way my Mark would sleep, until he was 4 months old, was if I held him (babywearing wasn't a big thing 28 years ago.) The only reason I stopped is because older women around me told me I was "spoiling" him. He never napped again, unless I "gave in" and held him... And you know what? My house wasn't anywhere close to perfect. I tried to keep surfaces clean, but clutter was awful. My dh did what he could, but was working 2 jobs so I could stay home.
He's 28, married, with 2 sons of his own. Much more into the AP thing than I even knew how to be. They've found people around them that support them. And no, their house isn't perfect either (i've recently come to the realization that most people who have kids don't have perfect houses.)
So hold the baby. It doesn't last long. Would you rather spend so much of your time struggling to get her to sleep, or just lay on the sofa and let her sleep on you? Either way, you're not getting much housework down. But the housework will be there tomorrow, I promise. The babies grow up and move away.
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suzastampin
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Post by suzastampin on Jul 17, 2017 22:23:42 GMT
I was told many years ago that a baby only has one stretch of 6-8 hour sleep in them, so if she's doing it at night (yea!), you will get shorter naps. My kids loved the swing and the bassinet kind of swing. They were both great sleepers (unlike my grandson LOL) but if they weren't setting down for naps, they were in the swing. Better to have them sleep there than none at all.
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Post by sarahbee on Jul 17, 2017 22:29:19 GMT
I had a big response typed up and then got a server error message when I went to post it...I lost everything. 😠 But I have read all of these thoughtful responses and am loving all the advice. I am planning to respond in more detail when I get a spare moment!
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Post by crazy4scraps on Jul 17, 2017 22:38:01 GMT
My kid would NOT sleep during the day. She slept through the night at about ten weeks but getting her to nap during the day was awful. At first we resisted getting a swing because of the amount of space it would take up in our way too small house at the time, but we caved and got one when she was about 3 months old. BEST.MONEY.SPENT.EVER!!! She would nap so much better in that thing, it was amazing. I initially thought I would use a sling and wear her when she was little but in reality my kid hated being so confined. I ended up selling the sling having never used it for more than five minutes. She napped all the way until the summer before she went to pre-K.
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peabay
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Post by peabay on Jul 17, 2017 22:41:00 GMT
Read "Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child" by Marc Weissbluth. He talks about how and when babies need naps and how to read their "sleepy signals" It was our bible when our girls were babies.
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Post by scrapsuzy on Jul 17, 2017 22:42:30 GMT
...but if they weren't setting down for naps, they were in the swing. Better to have them sleep there than none at all. This is what a last-generation pediatrician told me with my daughter. She would ONLY sleep in her swing, the old-fashioned front-to-back battery-operated type, until she was 4.5 months old. When I caved to the pressure of others, she screamed herself to self to sleep most nights until she was 15 months old. Nothing worked. Nothing. Not even the swing when I tried to go back to it. I wish I'd had more confidence to listen to my instincts as a young mom. |
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Post by lesleyanne on Jul 17, 2017 22:57:24 GMT
Parenting is hard. When my now-14 year old was that age she was constantly attached to me. I could never seem to put her down. It IS exhausting. But it also ends. And the housework will still be there. Be kind to yourself and don't try to do it all. Babies don't mind the clutter or a unswept floor. |
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Post by ahiller on Jul 17, 2017 23:00:45 GMT
At that age, DD still took naps in a swing. I can't remember but DS did but I'd start there.
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seaexplore
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Post by seaexplore on Jul 17, 2017 23:10:39 GMT
My now almost 6 year old didn't sleep more than 2 hours at a time for the first 8 months of her life. Yep, that's right, 2 HOURS AT A TIME! She hated sleep. My DH is a SAHD and he used to let her sleep on him for naps. She was ok being down when she wasn't sleeping or tired but holy hell the lack of sleep was brutal on me! I went back to work, teaching 7-8 grade math/science, at 10 weeks.
My 16 month old is a great sleeper! I nursed (or bottle from DH when I am working) him to sleep from day 1 for naps and bed. He's still nursed to almost sleep for both now. He goes down around 9 and sleeps until 7 most days. Takes a 2-3 hour nap daily also. It's fabulous! When he's awake tho- he wants to be ON me. I get NOTHING done.
I have tried to wear both kids. No go. It's just not easy for me to get stuff done with a kid attached to me.
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suzastampin
Pearl Clutcher
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Post by suzastampin on Jul 18, 2017 3:00:13 GMT
...but if they weren't setting down for naps, they were in the swing. Better to have them sleep there than none at all. This is what a last-generation pediatrician told me with my daughter. She would ONLY sleep in her swing, the old-fashioned front-to-back battery-operated type, until she was 4.5 months old. When I caved to the pressure of others, she screamed herself to self to sleep most nights until she was 15 months old. Nothing worked. Nothing. Not even the swing when I tried to go back to it. I wish I'd had more confidence to listen to my instincts as a young mom. I'm so sorry. It's so hard being an inexperienced mom and there's so many different opinions. My grandson only wanted to sleep in his car seat. And he woke a couple of times a night. He spent 3 nights a week here while his parents both worked nights. He didn't sleep through the night until he was a little over a year old. Nana was tired some mornings. They are only little for a short time. Don't worry about the housework. There will always be time to do it later. |
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Post by leslie132 on Jul 18, 2017 3:16:04 GMT
Buy a Rock N Play. Best invention ever. My twins slept in them for 6 months. What makes them even nicer is that you push a button and they fold up ( it reminded me of a TV dinner stand when they folded.... if you know what I mean).
These were easy to fold and go when we went traveling, and we also moved them to different rooms in the house as I would put them in the RnP when I needed to get something done.
These were a gift to me from an exhausted mom who said she loved hers. I have since made this my go to gift for baby showers!
LOVE LOVE LOVE my Rock N Play!
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Post by crazy4scraps on Jul 18, 2017 3:22:32 GMT
Buy a Rock N Play. Best invention ever. My twins slept in them for 6 months. What makes them even nicer is that you push a button and they fold up ( it reminded me of a TV dinner stand when they folded.... if you know what I mean). These were easy to fold and go when we went traveling, and we also moved them to different rooms in the house as I would put them in the RnP when I needed to get something done. These were a gift to me from an exhausted mom who said she loved hers. I have since made this my go to gift for baby showers! LOVE LOVE LOVE my Rock N Play! This was good too, but not until my DD was older and more conditioned to taking daytime naps. She needed the constant motion of the battery operated swing to nap when she was younger and the Rock n' Play isn't motorized. |
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Grom Pea
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Post by Grom Pea on Jul 18, 2017 3:33:14 GMT
I never figured out, I would just nurse them until they fell asleep and sneak out, but at 15 weeks I'd be still snuggling with them. You do need a better carrier like an ergo. I make heavy babies, like 100th percentile in weight babies and I wore mine until they walked confidently, one at 18 months and one at 15 months, because I was always on the go. I was carrying my kids until they hit roughly 30 lbs, taking a co-op preschool class where I didn't get to set they younger one down for 3 hours at a time. The ergo saved me.
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Post by leslie132 on Jul 18, 2017 3:44:37 GMT
Buy a Rock N Play. Best invention ever. My twins slept in them for 6 months. What makes them even nicer is that you push a button and they fold up ( it reminded me of a TV dinner stand when they folded.... if you know what I mean). These were easy to fold and go when we went traveling, and we also moved them to different rooms in the house as I would put them in the RnP when I needed to get something done. These were a gift to me from an exhausted mom who said she loved hers. I have since made this my go to gift for baby showers! LOVE LOVE LOVE my Rock N Play! This was good too, but not until my DD was older and more conditioned to taking daytime naps. She needed the constant motion of the battery operated swing to nap when she was younger and the Rock n' Play isn't motorized. Mine wasn't motorized either, but I believe they are now a days. At the time I didn't need the motion....they seemed to like the contouring of the seat! Heaven sent! |
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Post by crazy4scraps on Jul 18, 2017 3:57:01 GMT
This was good too, but not until my DD was older and more conditioned to taking daytime naps. She needed the constant motion of the battery operated swing to nap when she was younger and the Rock n' Play isn't motorized. Mine wasn't motorized either, but I believe they are now a days. At the time I didn't need the motion....they seemed to like the contouring of the seat! Heaven sent! A motorized one would have been amazing! |
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Post by utmr on Jul 18, 2017 4:37:08 GMT
Mine loved their bouncy seat. Kind of a cloth sling on a wire frame with a little contraption underneath that vibrated.
Bouncy, swing, car seat, your chest, whatever works...
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craftymom101
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Post by craftymom101 on Jul 18, 2017 4:48:56 GMT
Are you putting her down for her nap awake? Or asleep? It was right around 16 weeks old that I had to train my boys to fall asleep on their own. That way, when they wake up slightly after 20-30 minutes of sleep, they are used to self soothing and can put themselves back to sleep.
I also read The No Cry Sleep Solution. It really worked with my boys.
For us, the key was learning to self-sooth. If I remember the book correctly, the author equated putting a baby to bed already asleep then having the baby wake up after 20 minutes in his/her crib to an adult falling asleep in a comfy bed and waking up naked on the kitchen floor. I liked that analogy!
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Post by refugeepea on Jul 18, 2017 4:49:12 GMT
I was hoping this thread would be for an older baby like mine who is almost nine. Nine years, not months.   What helped my daughter the first 4 months was a swing and then she slept in a car seat (the infant kind and then the regular upright one). I've heard that's frowned upon now.  |
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