Help! My baby needs a nap!

[mugglesmom]

I'm going crazy here.  DS is 11 weeks old and takes about 1-2 naps a week if that.  He falls asleep when he's nursing but only for about 10-15 minutes.  He sleeps well at night, goes to sleep about 10pm wakes 1-3 times to nurse and wakes up at about 8am.  We co-sleep so he barely wakes up I just pop him on the boob and he continues to sleep.  I however stay awake for a while before I can fall back to sleep.  During the day when he looks sleepy I try getting him to sleep but he rarely goes for it.  I've tried swaddling him, bouncing him on the yoga ball, rocking him, humming to him, shhing him, putting him the swing, nothing works.  He might fall asleep for a few minutes but then he just wakes up like he's had a good nap and he's all set.  Sometimes when he wakes up he just sits there content and I leave him for a bit hoping he'll go back to sleep but sometimes he wakes up crying/screaming and I have to pick him up and soothe him.  I've tried leaving him in a swinging swing hoping that will help him sleep longer but that only works sometimes.  Please tell me there is some magic trick to getting baby to nap.  I don't want to let him cio but I'm in desperate need of a nap! 

[Abarat]

I'm sure you'll get tons of advice, but here's the one thing I have to offer.

Sometimes timing is everything.  Some babies need to be put down as soon as they start rubbing their eyes or showing other telltale signs of needing some sleep.  If you go past that it's all over, they can be up and good or super fussy because they're overtired and no amount of work will get them down with ease.

Case in point, we have a 9 month old that just moved in and I'm learning that as soon as he rubs those eyes he needs to be laid down.  He may fuss for a minute but then he'll be off to sleep.  If I wait too long it's done for and a nap just isn't going to happen.

At any rate, keeping an eye on those signs and acting quickly may help.  Doesn't seem like it'll hurt anyway.

Oh, and maybe some white noise will help him stay asleep?  I just started trying a lullaby CD for mine but then again his naps are competing with an active 2yo and 5yo in the house.

[newmamalizzy]

Have you tried lying with him in bed during the day like you do at night? 

Also, some babies are already overtired when they start showing visible signs.  He's a little young to have a regular daytime sleep pattern, but it may be that you need to anticipate his napping needs and try for a nap before he looks tired.  I can't remember how much awake time is typical for babies that age, but I know it's not much.  I remember when mine was 4 months old she only stayed awake 1.5 hours between naps.  Do you have a Moby or something similar?  A lot of young babies will nap really well in those.  If you do have one, I would try sticking him in it about an hour after he gets up in the morning.  Walk around for a while with him in there, and he may just surprise you by falling asleep.  OH - and do you still swaddle him?  That might help with the waking up after 15 minutes thing, too.

[AnnieA]

My DD is 12 weeks and she only stays awake about an hour between sleeps during the day. Sometimes her sleeps aren't that long, only about 30 mins but that's mostly because I try to put her down and that usually wakes her up. The other day I knew she was so tired and just needed to sleep and I was tired too so I held her for two hours while laying on the couch and snoozing myself. I know that can't always be done but it's the simplest solution in my house if both mama and baby need to sleep! And with DD, sleep begets sleep. So after she took that 2 hr nap, she was awake for about 20 mins and then went back to sleep in the swing for another 30 mins while I pumped and ate a snack. I do use white noise when she sleeps to try to encourage her to stay asleep.

[nstewart]

My DS was never a very good napper (still isn't) either.  I think you'll just have to figure out what works for your babe, but I agree with what PPs have said so far.  For my DS I know the thing that really worked was to have him nap in the Ergo or ring sling.  Sometimes it was the ONLY way to get him to nap.  I would often drive to the mall, buy myself a coffee, put DS in the Ergo or ring sling with a tummy full of milk and he'd fall asleep and sleep for a good hour to hour and a half while I window shopped.  The other thing that worked (which PP suggested) was to lay down with him in bed and nurse him to sleep and have a nap myself.  Also I agree with the white noise helping too!  It may be that he's so over-tired now that he isn't able to nap very well until you get more consistent naps happening.  And remember, his sleep cycle is still really short and will get longer over time so he may very well just need lots of short naps still.  You can also try the "No Cry Nap Solution" for suggestions.