Sleep for 6 Month Old

Updated on March 17, 2010
A.W. asks from Woodridge, IL
6 answers

My 6 month old son is going to bed earlier and earlier. Tonight he could have gone at 5 but I waited until 5:30. I thought the time change was going to have him going down later since his normal 6 would really be 7 but the opposite happened. Any suggestions on how to get him to bed later without a meltdown?

Schedule (very loose)
wakes up between 530 and 700 am
first nap around 830 or 900 for a little over an hour
second nap around 1130 for half an hour to an hour
third nap (he's starting to phase this one out) around 230 for about an hour

If he doesn't take his third nap, he's cranky most of the night. I have had no luck getting him to take longer naps. This is only the third week that he's napping in the crib. He used to wake up every time I put him down and it would escalate so I would just hold him through his naps.

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E.M.

answers from Chicago on

I think phasing out that third nap is giving you the trouble. It would be unrealistic to expect him to stay awake from 12:30 all the way to 7pm. It might be best to think of his naps in terms of the time in between. Depending on the baby, they can probably stay awake around 2.5-4hrs in between naps. So if you he is phasing out one and you are now only going to put him down for two naps try to push them a little later. And also space them out evenly.

Maybe first one is around 9am (1.5hr) and the second one is at 2pm (1.5hr). I know you can't control how long he sleeps, but maybe with only 2 naps he'll sleep longer. This sleep training does require you to put him down and let him cry a bit. We did the gradual method of going in and checking on him 5min, then in 10min. etc when he cries. Don't know if you're open to that. But now he hardly ever cries, and if he does its only for a few minutes.

We've sleep trained our son to nap at 9:30 (2hrs) and 2:30 (1.5-2hrs). He gets up at 6:30-7, and sleeps at 8pm. We try not to divert from this more than 15-20min. I realize it's hard when they wake at different times. Our son sometimes gets up early (5ish), so we give him a small bottle, stay very quiet and put him back to bed. Then he gets up again at his regular time, so he stays on schedule for the rest of the day. Also, at that second nap, it's important to wake him if he sleeps too long. Otherwise it may interfere with his bedtime.

Hope this helps. Good luck.

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N.M.

answers from Denver on

Whenevr he gets sleepy try keeping him up as much as possible. (a cool washcloth rubbing his face or back will do the job-may not be so happy but it will get him up) Play with him, lay him on his stomach surrounded by a few favorite toys or attention grabbers. Then, at desired betime give him a nice warm bath follwed by a head to toe lotion rub down, topped by a warm milk bottle. He should be out during or after the burp. lol be sure hes warm and wake him in the morning if he doesnt wake you first :) Try not to let him sleep too much throughout the day.That should do it. Godspeed.

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J.W.

answers from Chicago on

My 6 month old daughter sleeps from 7:30p.m. to 7 a.m. She naps twice a day from 10-11:30 a.m. and then from 3-4:30p.m. It's normal for babies to sleep 10-12 hours a night and have 2-3 naps during the day at this age. It could also be that he's going through a growth spurt and needs more sleep for a couple of days.

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N.P.

answers from Chicago on

that age baby usually need 3 daily naps PLUS a full night's sleep. So put him down at 5, enjoy dinner and then wake him up around 7 for a walk and play and maybe a bath, feed him one more time then he'll be ready to sleep again by 8:30 at the latest.

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D.B.

answers from Chicago on

I agree with the other poster, not knowing his schedule makes it hard to give advice. I am assuming at 6 months he is taking at least two naps a day. Try pushing back his last nap. If his last nap usually starts at noon then push it back to 1 or 1:30. If that i not possible, put him down at 3 or 4pm and let him sleep for an hour (no longer than that). Sounds like he is not getting enough sleep during the day. He might need more naps. I wouldn't worry too much about giving him another nap so late in the afternoon. He is only 6 months old and will still be ready for bed by 8 or 9.

L.A.

answers from Austin on

Give us his schedule and we can have a better idea of what is going on. What time does he wake up?

How many naps during the day, what time?

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