Help — my baby only takes short naps!
By: Sasha Heron
Tags: Attachment Parenting, Motherhood, Baby Sleep, New Mothers, Gentle Sleep

Photo by Brytny.com on Unsplash

I struggled with this with my younger one, too. You’ve probably already tried a white noise machine, blackout curtains and keeping the room cool… but no matter what you do, your baby only naps for 20, 30 or 40 minutes. It takes just as long — or longer — to get the baby down as he/ she is actually napping. If you’re taking care of more than one child, exhaustion kicks in fast. Plus, the baby wakes up super cranky and stays that way for the next 60-90 minutes until it’s time for the next nap. Ugh, I get it. I really do.

Ok, first things first — know that daytime sleep and nightime sleep are very different for babies. Many don’t get into a solid rhythm around napping until around 6 months or so.

Also, know that baby sleep cycles are usually 30–40 minutes depending on the kid. So what’s happening is that your baby is waking up after only one sleep cycle. Until your baby begins to link cycles, the naps will be short. Well, how do we go about helping them link sleep cycles?

Here are some tips that helped us and other mamas we spoke with:

When the baby wakes up from nap, give the baby a few minutes to settle. If the baby is cooing or talking to themselves, don’t go get them right away. Even if the baby sounds like he/she is whining, give them a few minutes. Learn to distinguish between a cry to settle themselves back into sleep and a cry for help. If my baby was settling himself, tossing and turning or fussing a little, I’d give him 5 or 10 minutes. If it was a cry for help, I went in right away. (Note: This is NOT the same as the cry-it-out method.) When your baby is awake, it’s time to play. Brighter lights and healthy stimulation. Tummy time. Playing with siblings. Reading books. Listening to music, tickling, singing. This will help them to better distinguish between sleepy time and awake time as well as increase their body’s natural “sleep pressure” which a baby needs to take a nap. Babies, like adults, need a certain amount of sleep pressure to fall asleep. Ever notice how even if your baby is tired, they can’t fall asleep 45 minutes or 1 hour after waking? It might actually make them more frustrated and take them longer to get down. For babies older than 2 months old, try to wait at least an hour so that they can fall asleep with ease, but also follow your baby’s lead… Their waking time will increase to 1.5 hrs and then to 2 hours. Knowing how much waking time your baby needs to build up amble sleep pressure will also lessen the amount of time it takes to put the baby to sleep. If your baby is 3-4 months old, start to set them down in their crib or bassinet drowsy but awake. This helps curb any sleep associations from sticking which can be really hard to curb later. Also, regardless of your baby’s age try to get into awake-feed-play-asleep cycle. If all else fails and you’re able to take a time out, try to lay down with your baby once he/ she wakes up from a short nap. Doing this can help them start to link their sleep cycles.

Finally, be patient. I know it’s hard. It’s like entire days are just about transitioning from nap to nap. Those turn into weeks and then months, but this too will pass. Our baby didn’t take longer than 40 minute naps until he was almost 5 months old. They will take longer naps when developmentally ready, and yes, there are little things you can do to help them along.