Naptime

Claire was unusually fussy last week. After going down for a nap she would wake up crying about 30 minutes in to the nap; her diaper was dry and she wasn’t hungry. After settling her down it was really hard to get her back napping. We were baffled, up until last week Claire had been a pretty easy baby. I keep a log of all feedings/naps and realized that Claire was awake more than she should be for a baby her age. Up until last week Claire would feed, be awake for a bit, and then take a nap usually until her next feeding. This cycle happened so naturally that I never gave it much thought. But last week, we realized that Claire wasn’t falling asleep like usual. After her morning feeding she would be awake for most of the morning, maybe taking a 30 minute catnap before the next feeding. After that feeding, she would be awake for a little while, I would put her down for a nap and she would wake up wailing after 30 minutes. It would take a lot of soothing to get her back to sleep because she was so overtired at that point she couldn’t soothe herself. Eventually she would go back down, but by then it would be time for her next feeding. So I was faced with two unpleasant options - wake her up to feed her or let her sleep and feed her when she wakes. I tried both options and neither was successful. When I woke her up she was crabby and would fall asleep during the feeding. So I would have to put her back down and try again in 30-40 minutes. When I let her sleep, she would sleep too long for a baby of her age to go in between feedings. She would wake up very hungry and I would have to settle her down just to get her to nurse. Both scenarios she was very fussy the rest of the day and way off her daytime feeding routine.

So knowing this we have been very diligent about putting Claire down for her nap before she gets overtired. It is trial and error figuring out how much she can be awake before entering the dreaded ‘overtired’ zone. When she starts yawning or looking drowsy, I swaddle and put her down for a nap. She has been napping so much better. I am sure in a few weeks Claire will completely change her napping routine and we will be making adjustments, but right now we are all much happier.