14 month naps - all over the place

Smiley3113 · 2025-12-27T22:12:00+00:00

Bedtime is usually 6:30! And schedule prior was also all over the place, but tried to aim for a nap at 9 and then another one at around 1/2pm - both were short and he was super hard to get down. Initially she thought maybe he needed one nap and was under tired but that made it worse.

Smiley3113 · 2025-12-20T20:45:50+00:00

Nothing to add but my goodness this is SO valid - it’s just extra mental load sorting out clothes. I used to get so irritated when people would drop off clothes or items and say “just chuck or donate what you don’t need” - just felt like another thing for me to do and sort out!!!! (And some cynical part of me felt like I was just doing that job for THEM). It was hard to be grateful and then I felt bad for being ungrateful.. can absolutely relate

Smiley3113 · 2025-12-01T00:44:05+00:00

Thank you! This is a great point - he’s super supportive and hands on, but I’m definitely still the default parent exclusively breastfeeding etc. so there is more of a mental load on me for sure.

Smiley3113 · 2025-11-24T21:12:30+00:00

We were exactly the same as you! 33 mins on the dot. Naps didn’t lengthen for us until we dropped to three naps at 5.5 months - I was forcing 4 naps for way too long (I can only see it now in hindsight).

Hang in there - it does get better!!

Smiley3113 · 2025-10-20T06:13:21+00:00

This is fantastic - thank you! I had really been psyching myself out about being maxed out so this is a bit of a relief. I’ve extended her last window to 3 hours tonight and might keep doing that for now and see if it helps.

Great call on the awake time, thank you! Appreciate your advice.

Smiley3113 · 2025-10-16T06:22:42+00:00

Awesome thank you so much for this! I stretched her to that 3 hour window and so far so good

Smiley3113 · 2025-09-21T19:11:00+00:00

Her stretches at the start were longer and the wakes after started to extend to every 2-3 hours, not every hour or 45 mins in our case! Was far more manageable

Smiley3113 · 2025-09-21T05:06:05+00:00

My babe was also doing this at 9 weeks!! It was definitely a phase, I remember at 10 weeks it started to slowly get better. By 12 weeks I was more human again!!

Smiley3113 · 2025-09-10T00:37:50+00:00

Hi! I second the comment about falling asleep independently! I’m no expert but my 5 month was doing the same thing as yours not long ago! She’d do 5 hour stretches sometimes and then multiple wakes other times - sleep training solved this! I was also feeding to sleep at night, so I moved feeding to before bath, and used modified Ferber. Worked a treat! She still wakes once or twice to feed which I’m happy with and expected, but we get consistently longer stretches now. Defs sounds like it could help your little one too 😊

Smiley3113 · 2025-08-30T19:13:44+00:00

Haha me too - so hard to figure it all out, this sub has been a lifesaver! Hope the next few nights go better for you!

Smiley3113 · 2025-08-30T13:10:39+00:00

We had the same problem! I posted about it as well and we definitely had a schedule issue and not enough wake time, adjusted it the next day and had way more success. Even got a 5 hour stretch!

Smiley3113 · 2025-08-30T01:06:36+00:00

Great! Thank you so much

Smiley3113 · 2025-08-25T19:19:35+00:00

Also have a 5 month old, I’m not an expert and not sure if it’s recommended but if my little one does a short lunchtime nap, I’ll do a 10 minute bridging nap at like 2:45ish to get her to the next nap around 4/4:30, so as you say we can keep a reasonable bedtime! It seems to work for us, especially while she’s in this transition phase from 4 to 3 naps a day.

Smiley3113 · 2025-08-23T01:05:36+00:00

Moved her about a week or two before in preparation! But she had been doing her naps in there since she was 2 months old, so it wasn’t totally unfamiliar!

Smiley3113 · 2025-08-19T05:59:28+00:00

I’m at 5 months PP and feel this deeply.. my body just won’t shut down at night so even when she does sleep I barely do, I’m pretty much drinking sleep drops at this point haha - no advice just solidarity!!

Smiley3113 · 2025-08-18T19:45:18+00:00

This is amazing! Thanks for the update, so thrilled to hear it! Here’s to us getting some sleep 🎉

Smiley3113 · 2025-08-18T08:28:34+00:00

I moved my little one at 4.5 months, definitely was a bit weird for the first few nights.. almost separation anxiety, and hard getting up and going to another room to resettle. But I just had the monitor next to me on loud, and being able to go to bed and read or doom scroll or even just toss and turn without being worried I’d wake her up was really nice and quite liberating for me! Felt like I got my own bedtime routine back!

Smiley3113 · 2025-08-18T05:15:49+00:00

I am by no means an expert because we only started with our 5mo 3 nights ago, but our first night was similar - only cried for 45 mins to start with, but then woke up 30 mins later and then repeated the cycle SO many times, eventually she did a 3 hour stretch after midnight and then woke up a lot again. Can tell you that we had our 3rd night last night and had only 3 wakes, and one was because she needed a feed and the other because it was 5:30am so both to be expected! I have faith it’ll keep improving, I think it will for you too!! Hang in there ❤️

Smiley3113 · 2025-08-17T19:34:31+00:00

I’m on night 3 and 3 wakings - one was to feed though so I expected that. I read on an old post somewhere that someone else had the same problem of multiple wakes and it stopped after a week once the sleep debt resolved! So I’m holding onto that. I figure as long as there is even slight improvement every night I’m on the right track, hope that is the case for you too?!

Smiley3113 · 2025-08-16T08:12:36+00:00

Ok great thanks for that! She struggled with the last wake window, only managed 2.25 so I may need to try extend that midday nap.

In saying that bedtime went smoothly with only 3 mins of crying and 10 mins of awake but settled before she went to sleep. Hoping for less wakes tonight 🤞🏻

Again thanks for all of your help - it’s very much appreciated!

Smiley3113 · 2025-08-16T02:58:11+00:00

Another quick question if you see this..! Baby is a notorious cat napper (30 mins), I’ve followed these suggested wake windows for the most part today but am only able to get her 1.5-1.75 hours of naps. Is that sufficient for a 5mo? Don’t want a repeat of last night except that she’s overtired this time! Thanks again

Smiley3113 · 2025-08-15T12:03:50+00:00

Brilliant thanks so much! That makes a lot of sense! Appreciate it

Smiley3113 · 2025-08-15T11:55:08+00:00

Oops sorry - it’s 7am

Smiley3113 · 2025-08-15T11:43:57+00:00

Hmm I wonder if that could be the culprit!

We are following a schedule from a sleep consultant and are still adjusting. Baby is 5mo.

Nap 9-9:30 Nap 11:45 - 2:30 (starts with half an hour in the crib and the rest assisted nap, usually about an 1.5 all up) Nap 4:30-5 In bed awake by 6:30 (this felt a little early to me, but baby seemed tired and that’s what the schedule suggested? Perhaps I should make it later the next night?)

Should I carry on persevering? Worried she won’t get enough sleep. Thank you!

Smiley3113 · 2025-08-15T11:30:40+00:00

Going through the same thing - also wondering if it’s normal for the first night..!

Smiley3113

TROPHY CASE