Napping Issues

[Unregistered]

I have a 5 month old that started 2 weeks ago. He is having difficulties napping. I also know he wakes up a lot through out the night. I do not rock kids to sleep and she knows this so at nap I lay him down, he cries the whole 30 min then I get him up repeat at next nap and same thing. Only once in awhile he will sleep and it's always only 30 minutes. When he wakes I leave him for 30 min before getting him up. I know they do not do this at home so will this even work? And yes I know all his needs are met, he's just used to being held all the time plus rocked to sleep.
So will this work if they aren't doing this and is there anything I can change or do to help this? It's really putting some anxiety in some of the other daycare kids.
This family has other children that I've had since babies and I didn't have these problems.

[Silly Songs]

Did you tell mom/ dad that you're having a tough time ? It's not good for baby to not sleep well .

[Unregistered]

Yes they are well aware of it. He is the same at home. The doctor told her that he's waking so often at night is because he's over tired so they need his naps to be longer and more consistant. I'm going to talk with her again this evening and tell her they need to be doing the same at home because it's stressful on everyone. Not to mention he wants to be held constantly which obviously I can't do

[Indianadaycare]

I have a 5 month old that started 2 weeks ago. He is having difficulties napping. I also know he wakes up a lot through out the night. I do not rock kids to sleep and she knows this so at nap I lay him down, he cries the whole 30 min then I get him up repeat at next nap and same thing. Only once in awhile he will sleep and it's always only 30 minutes. When he wakes I leave him for 30 min before getting him up. I know they do not do this at home so will this even work? And yes I know all his needs are met, he's just used to being held all the time plus rocked to sleep.
So will this work if they aren't doing this and is there anything I can change or do to help this? It's really putting some anxiety in some of the other daycare kids.
This family has other children that I've had since babies and I didn't have these problems.

I have had the same issue several times. The way I've handled it is to make sure I have a consistent, nap "ritual" that I follow EVERY TIME. Even though baby is new, and he won't be familiar with your ritual, even within one week, he will come to anticipate sleeping when you start this ritual (You make up your own ritual, but mine is: I dim lights, turn off music, speak in whispers, change diaper, turn on noise machine and sway in front of pnp for a minute, then lay down)

Yes, baby will cry in the beginning. He doesn't know what's going on But what has worked well for me is after 10 minutes or so, going in and patting her back softly with no talking, still in the dark/dimmed lights. I do not pick up, turn up lights, talk, etc Then I leave. I repeat this every ten minutes. Some babies I've had will fuss/cry/scream for an hour the first day or two (with me going in to pat softly every ten minutes) because they think when I come in to pat, I am going to get them up. They get madder! But. The second day, crying may be the same or a little less, third day less, and so on. Within one week IF I AM CONSISTENT they go down like a charm.

I've done this with many babies over the years. It's my tried and true method.

And doctors right: your dcb is sleep deprived at this point, which makes it much harder for him to settle into good sleep. There's no way around this, IMO. He needs to get used to self settling, and then he'll adjust and be a well rested, happy baby. And YES, you can do this even if it's NOT done at home. I have two families that pick up at the first whimper; never let him cry. But it works for me at dc, because he knows the "ritual"/routine.

Hope that helps, and good luck! I know it's crazy hard when you are dealing with a non sleeper! :hug:

[Givingthemgrace]

What you are doing is what I would do. I would give it a while. My 4mo DCG took a month to adjust to not being held while sleeping.

[AuntTami]

I have had the same issue several times. The way I've handled it is to make sure I have a consistent, nap "ritual" that I follow EVERY TIME. Even though baby is new, and he won't be familiar with your ritual, even within one week, he will come to anticipate sleeping when you start this ritual (You make up your own ritual, but mine is: I dim lights, turn off music, speak in whispers, change diaper, turn on noise machine and sway in front of pnp for a minute, then lay down)

Yes, baby will cry in the beginning. He doesn't know what's going on But what has worked well for me is after 10 minutes or so, going in and patting her back softly with no talking, still in the dark/dimmed lights. I do not pick up, turn up lights, talk, etc Then I leave. I repeat this every ten minutes. Some babies I've had will fuss/cry/scream for an hour the first day or two (with me going in to pat softly every ten minutes) because they think when I come in to pat, I am going to get them up. They get madder! But. The second day, crying may be the same or a little less, third day less, and so on. Within one week IF I AM CONSISTENT they go down like a charm.

I've done this with many babies over the years. It's my tried and true method.

And doctors right: your dcb is sleep deprived at this point, which makes it much harder for him to settle into good sleep. There's no way around this, IMO. He needs to get used to self settling, and then he'll adjust and be a well rested, happy baby. And YES, you can do this even if it's NOT done at home. I have two families that pick up at the first whimper; never let him cry. But it works for me at dc, because he knows the "ritual"/routine.

Hope that helps, and good luck! I know it's crazy hard when you are dealing with a non sleeper! :hug:

I agree with this. You definitely need to establish a nap time routine for everyone. We have lunch, then diapers are changed, and then we go into the nap room. Everyone sits on the floor until it's their turn, I pick them up one by one, snuggle them for a minute and pat their backs and sway infront of the pack and play, and then I lay them down and say "shh. It's ni ni time. TeeTee's right here" and move on to the next one. When everyones in, I turn on some soft music and sit down in the corner. I sit there for 5 minutes(my back is turned to them so they can't interact with me), and usually everyone is long asleep by then. Even if they're not, I leave the room and come back in 10 to check on them. Everyone is asleep by then.

DCB 1.5 started here last week Tuesday. He SCREAMED and cried for the first two days during nap except to sleep for about 30 minutes. On Friday, he didn't scream, but still cried for a while and then slept for an hour. By Monday when he came back, he fussed for a minute and was asleep before my 5 minute mark when I left the room. Haven't had one problem with him all week.

My other DCB 1.5 still sleeps in moms bed with her at night, but goes down without one single peep for naps. I started the routine with him(he was my first DCK) because he was a second shift baby at the time, so he was here when it was bed time and I was not about to lay down with him. He STILL sleeps with mom at home, and will scream and cry if she tries to put him down in his crib, but he's my best sleeper here. First to fall asleep, last to wake up, and never a single peep.

I firmly believe a routine makes life so much easier and makes them anticipate sleep and start winding down for it. Can you lay down in the middle of a birthday party and take a nap? I can't . I have my own bedtime routine of shower, teeth, pjs etc.

[Unregistered]

thank you. I do exactly what you do for you ritual. He was only here 3 days last week due to mom thought he was getting a cold and he's been here this week. It has not gotten any better. I talked with parent last night and they agreed they need to stop their bad habits and be consistant with what I am doing so hopefully they actually will do this and will help. Problem is they will be out all of next week and dad will be with them so who knows what will happen, and he'll be here only 3 days the following since I'm closed. So basically after the New Year I'll probably be starting back at square one unless they actually do this.
What about the nap length? When he has napped it literally has been 20 min, 30 min was pushing it. I let him stay in there 30 min before getting him up. Is this what you do? Its just frustrating because his day time fussiness is definately due to lack of sleep.

[Indianadaycare]

I agree with this. You definitely need to establish a nap time routine for everyone. We have lunch, then diapers are changed, and then we go into the nap room. Everyone sits on the floor until it's their turn, I pick them up one by one, snuggle them for a minute and pat their backs and sway infront of the pack and play, and then I lay them down and say "shh. It's ni ni time. TeeTee's right here" and move on to the next one. When everyones in, I turn on some soft music and sit down in the corner. I sit there for 5 minutes(my back is turned to them so they can't interact with me), and usually everyone is long asleep by then. Even if they're not, I leave the room and come back in 10 to check on them. Everyone is asleep by then.

DCB 1.5 started here last week Tuesday. He SCREAMED and cried for the first two days during nap except to sleep for about 30 minutes. On Friday, he didn't scream, but still cried for a while and then slept for an hour. By Monday when he came back, he fussed for a minute and was asleep before my 5 minute mark when I left the room. Haven't had one problem with him all week.

My other DCB 1.5 still sleeps in moms bed with her at night, but goes down without one single peep for naps. I started the routine with him(he was my first DCK) because he was a second shift baby at the time, so he was here when it was bed time and I was not about to lay down with him. He STILL sleeps with mom at home, and will scream and cry if she tries to put him down in his crib, but he's my best sleeper here. First to fall asleep, last to wake up, and never a single peep.

I firmly believe a routine makes life so much easier and makes them anticipate sleep and start winding down for it. Can you lay down in the middle of a birthday party and take a nap? I can't . I have my own bedtime routine of shower, teeth, pjs etc.

Sounds like a wonderful routine! Love the idea of sitting (with back turned) for five minutes and then leaving.
Curious what the others do when your new dcb is screaming in his pnp those first couple days? Do they get upset? Cry? Ignore?
Routine is king in my dc world with babies only! (soon to be toddlers though. )

[Indianadaycare]

thank you. I do exactly what you do for you ritual. He was only here 3 days last week due to mom thought he was getting a cold and he's been here this week. It has not gotten any better. I talked with parent last night and they agreed they need to stop their bad habits and be consistant with what I am doing so hopefully they actually will do this and will help. Problem is they will be out all of next week and dad will be with them so who knows what will happen, and he'll be here only 3 days the following since I'm closed. So basically after the New Year I'll probably be starting back at square one unless they actually do this.
What about the nap length? When he has napped it literally has been 20 min, 30 min was pushing it. I let him stay in there 30 min before getting him up. Is this what you do? Its just frustrating because his day time fussiness is definately due to lack of sleep.

I would not get him up until your nap time period is over. He will cry to get up. It might even wake the others. But IMO, not for too long. I had one or two that did that; they were used to napping for ~30 minutes when they came to me. When they woke at dc after 30 minutes, I would go in and do the patting thing.... they would get mad when I left, but again, this only lasted a few days. Now they take 2-3 hour naps twice daily! Babies really need a lot of sleep! It's when their little brains are growing and developing! I wish more parents would push through it and realize deep sleep is critical for the health of their children.
Toddlers I care for typically take two naps daily ~ 2 hours each.

[Play Care]

I know my advice is going to be the opposite of everyone else's, but I'm okay with that. When I have an infant that young, I DO *some* rocking
Infants come out of the womb used to being moved around to sleep - and when do they wake up? When mom is trying to sleep, . So they come out, and now are expected to know they have to sleep in one position and not move...

Of the three infants I've had in care, all of them required some motion to get drowsy enough for real sleep. I planned it in to my day. And as they got older, decreased the amount of time until I would put them down and that was it. A couple of months maybe? But worth it to me to not have an infant screaming while others were trying to nap. And worth it for my nerves

I currently have a 7 month old. Our routine is diaper change, bottle (I sit/rock in the glider) and by the time bottle is finished his eyes are heavy and he's ready for sleep. I do have an assistant but when she's not here, the other kids are at the table with special activities reserved just for this time. It takes maybe 10 minutes, tops at this point. And for that I get one hour naps in the AM and 2-2 1/2 naps in the PM, well worth it.

[AuntTami]

I know my advice is going to be the opposite of everyone else's, but I'm okay with that. When I have an infant that young, I DO *some* rocking
Infants come out of the womb used to being moved around to sleep - and when do they wake up? When mom is trying to sleep, . So they come out, and now are expected to know they have to sleep in one position and not move...

Of the three infants I've had in care, all of them required some motion to get drowsy enough for real sleep. I planned it in to my day. And as they got older, decreased the amount of time until I would put them down and that was it. A couple of months maybe? But worth it to me to not have an infant screaming while others were trying to nap. And worth it for my nerves

I currently have a 7 month old. Our routine is diaper change, bottle (I sit/rock in the glider) and by the time bottle is finished his eyes are heavy and he's ready for sleep. I do have an assistant but when she's not here, the other kids are at the table with special activities reserved just for this time. It takes maybe 10 minutes, tops at this point. And for that I get one hour naps in the AM and 2-2 1/2 naps in the PM, well worth it.

All of my kiddos are "toddlers" so my routine works for them but if they were younger, I would agree that some snuggling and movement is necessary for them to fall asleep.