I'm sorry that I cannot be of help here - my babies all took naps, at least through kindergarten - and one through first grade. What I do want to say, however, is at this point I wouldn't worry about what will happen when you go back to work in two months - a lot can change between now and then. She may have adjusted to this new schedule and not be screaming any more - or she may be taking naps again. A LOT can happen with a baby and her schedule in two months time . . .
Hi! Our baby is 7 months old and she went through a rough period that our pediatrician (and my Mother in Law) referred to as "The Witching Hour" - although it was usually longer than one hour! It's a growth spurt where the babies have so much extra energy and they don't know what to do with it, so the only thing they can do is scream. It's almost like exercising. For our baby the witching hour would usually happen around 2 or 3 o'clock and again at 6 pm - sometimes that would last until 10 pm or later. Then someone clued us into "the yoga ball trick"
Get a yoga ball, sit on it and hold your baby in front of you like she's sitting up - hold her legs in one hand, so they're straight out in front of her (sometimes this helps if gas is the issue) and then bounce. It's amazing. It would always calm our baby down and she would often go to sleep while I was bouncing.
I hope this helps. Good luck!!
Hi Adriana,
I feel your pain. When my son was around 3 months old I had the same problem. I read "Happiest Baby on the Block" and starting implementing the strategies and it really helped! I started swaddling my son again (We mistakingly stopped swaddling when he was just a few weeks old thinking he didn't like it. We didn't realize it was normal for babies to try to kick and squirm their way out of the blanket. They really do need the swaddling to help them feel safe and secure.) and that really seemed to help. He was almost 5 months old when I weaned him off the swaddling. He's been a great sleeper ever since! He sleeps from 7:30pm until 7:30am and takes a nap every day for about 1 1/2 hours to 3 hours. Good luck!
Juli
I had trouble with my son falling asleep. We used th3 20 minute rule. It is sometimes hard for babies to get themselves to go to sleep. I would read him a book or just sing to him and make the room dark, put something that smelled like me next to him (like a t-shirt) and then leave some music on. He would cry but I had to let him. I waited 20 minutes (which seemed SO long in the beginning). If he was still crying after 20 minutes then I would check on him. If there still seems to be nothing wrong and he was still crying then I would take him out and play with him. If that doesn't work than she might be in pain and you should call her doctor. Hopefully this or something else helps, it's hard to have a tired baby.
Hi Adriana- I feel your pain! My son did the same thing. Facilitating more of a schedule helped both of us. He eats, then activity and then sleep- I put him down for naps in between 1 1/2 & 2 hours after when he last woke up- this was key. If you let them get too tired, it becomes harder and harder to get them down.
When he really wouldn't go to sleep, turning on a hair dryer really helped to calm him down and put him to sleep. We've also used music and other white noise.
When it's time for naptime (judging by his cues and how long it has been since he last woke up) I swaddle him, rock him for a few minutes to calm him down, and then put him in his crib once he's drowsy. It's still not great- he only naps for about 40 minutes most of the time, but that is definitely better than before!
I suggest reading babywise or the baby whisper- both helped me understand setting up a schedule. Try the hair dryer- that is always or go to when all else feels lost.
It has become better for us as he has gotten older, so there is hope! Hang in there!
Our little girl wouldn't sleep anywhere but my husband's chest, and took tiny little naps during the day, hardly anything. We had hours-long screaming fits at night. We tried everything, until I finally came across the Amby. I could have cried, it worked so well. She slept in it at night, with occasional bouncing when she woke up, and she took naps in it during the day.
It took us some time to work our little girl up to longer and more frequent naps, but we finally got there.
There's a lot of good advice from the other respondents; it's the same kind of stuff we did. I generally went by the Healthy Habits, Happy Child book, with the gentler approach. I so hope you can get your baby to nap. I totally sympathize.
Have you tried wearing your baby in a sling like Hotslings? My daughter had a hard time falling asleep until I would wear her during the day. Now it isn't a problem for her to take her naps. She just wanted to be next to me and feel me. I hope this helps.
I am a mom of two girls, now 8 and 11. The more I wanted them to nap, the more stressed I got and the more stressed the baby became. I realized that when they were going through nap transitions, their naptimes changed and we all became stressed out. The best advice I could give you is to let the baby cry at nap time for about 1 hour. Make sure baby has full tummy, dry and is warm, but not too warm. Then, shut the door and don't go back for about an hour if still crying (obviously let her nap if she's sleeping, but not for too long or else you'll never get her down at bedtime). Then get her up and carry on with your day. Try to keep to a schedule for naptime and for bedtime. The more you go in and check, the worse it becomes. Good Luck. (P.S. It always helped me to have a soothing cup of tea when I had to wait for the crying to stop - if really bad, a glass of wine in the evening!)
Every baby is different, so I would hesitate to take any one approach as the magic cure for an over-tired baby who is having trouble sleeping. Both of my kids were very different nappers. I suggest taking a look at one or all of the following books:
1) Secrets of the Baby Whisperer by Tracy Hogg & Melinda Blau
2) Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child by Marc Weissbluth
3) On Becoming Baby Wise: Giving Your Infant the Gift of Night Time Sleep by Gary Ezzo & Robert Bucknam
Each one is full of great tips on how to help your child sleep and offer examples of different situations that may helpful to your particular situation.
I used a book called Secrets of the Babywhisperer. Sounds cheesy, but the system works great. It's all about listening to your child while you teach them to fall asleep on their own. It worked, but it's difficult. I hope you find a way that works for you!
Get the book "Healthy Sleep Habits Happy Child"--- it can be kind of harsh--- but it saved me. I had twins who didn't like to nap or sleep through the night.
Read the baby whisperer if you haven't already. She has great suggestions on a routine that most any baby can follow. I was going through the same thing with my now 5 mth old and he naps no problem cause I recognize the signs of tiredness before he goes into overload. Good luck!
I also have a 3 month old...First of all, are you bottle or breast feeding..Either way, the baby needs the calcium and magnesium, as well as MINERALS...Most babies colic is from a lack of minerals...Most formulas only have 11 or 12 minerals...
I used the extreme x2o throughout my pregnancy and now add it to tylers formula...
If you never heard of this, check it out at www.xooma.ca
or e-mail me and i will share with you exactly what i do...Tyler is SOOO healthy, considering he was a month early, that we are going to be featured on the MIRACLE HEALTH Network.com later this year.... [email protected]
Honestly, put her down earlier for a nap before she gets overtired. Try blackout drapes and white noise. You can get white noise DVDs online and at many baby stores. This worked like a charm for my daughter. It blocks a lot of outside noise(sirens, cars/honking) as well as talking, tv, etc. I know it is very hard, but if you try to be consistent (Eat, play, nap etc.) Overtime it will take hold. It may take a little bit of time to get her back on track. I've been there. GOOD LUCK!
try to bring her to the park at around 11am and feed her that way she is not hungry and would be able to sleep. run with her around the park and tire her out. by 2pm hopefully she will be ready to nap on her own. good luck!!!!
I feel for you...Remember she is still young I am all about schedule kids need it. This is the time to try this. Put her down two hours after she eats. She should take two naps a day. Also, some kids just don't need all the sleep. It will get better, also she should start showing you signs I didn't pick these up with my first. I hope this works.
Mother of two 3 1/2 and 7 months with one due in June
A great book on this type of behavior is "Healthy Sleep Habit, Happy Child" by Marc Weissbluth. I have 2.5 month old twins that do really well with both naps and sleeping through the night (10am-6am) by using many of the tips he gives and better understanding the role of sleep for infants. HOpe this helps.
You didn't mention if you are breastfeeding or not. If so, you may be putting too much caffeine in your diet and transferring it to her. If not, you should pick a specific naptime, put her down as usual and close the door, hopefully you have a baby monitor. Do this every day at the same time and she will fall asleep and have a pattern. It's tough listening to them cry but they will end up sleeping. Consistency is the key, make sure you pick a time when you can stay home and not disturb the nap. At 3 months they should be taking a couple of naps during the day, but you can start with one. My children also had a specific bedtime every night.
Try this if that doesn't work you may want to consult a doctor.
Adriana,
Despite the fact that she doesn't want to.. try setting the mood. Maybe like a padding for the floor, you lay w/ her.. make it seem like your tired. Or try putting on some calming music. With my son we had a schedule. He could play all morning until about 12:30-1:00 sometimes earlier(let them work up a sweat to be tired). But when it came "sleepy time" we'd shut down everything. Lunch(make them full so they don't have to get up to be hungry again), a shower (so they feel nice and fresh/clean), favorite pillow/blankie/doll etc. When you set them down, leave the t.v. off, no other babies.. one naps.. all nap! Try doing this on a daily basis.. like a "sleepy time" schedule.
**sweet dreams, M.E.