How to help a 10 month old who cries 50% of time we try to put him down for day time naps?

Question

Half of the time, he won't fall to sleep on his own during day time naps. He will cry for an hour straight if we let him. He sleeps 10 hours during the night straight thru. At night, he usually falls to sleep on his own when we follow a similar routine (read him a book, change him, breast feed him, say good night). Sometimes he falls asleep breastfeeding. When he finally takes a day time nap he takes one for around 2-3 hours or two at 1.5-2 hours a piece, but there is not really any pattern. If he refuses to sleep during the day, he'll cry off and on (we let him go 15 minutes) until the next eating time. Then, if my wife breastfeeds him, he's so tired he sleeps.Lately he's been getting up around 6:00 to 6:30 am for the last few weeks which he didn't used to do (he usually got up around 7:30). My wife feeds him (breast feed) and then lays him down and he usually goes back to sleep for a couple hours. He is teething, has one and one is coming in. He eats well. Any suggestions or comments

Answer 1

You really can't just put a child in his crib and expect him to go to sleep although sometimes it works. He's tired but he doesn't know it so you have to help him realize it. Turn off the tv or anything noisy 15 minutes before you lay him down for his nap so the house is quiet. Pull down the shades on the windows in whatever room he is in for awhile to make the room seem more relaxing. Then take him to his room, pull down the shades, and put him in his crib. After you have made the house more quiet and all that he'll realize that "hey, that bed doesn't look so bad" and he'll lay down and sleep.

Answer 2

These are trying times for you. Babies that teeth have a rough time with their gums being itchy and irritable. Some babies also get diorrhea and get really cranky. You are lucky he sleeps for long hours at night. The only way for you and your wife to get enough rest is to sleep when baby does. The crying during day time could be when you leave him by himself. He may be getting used to being carried all the time. Dont make this a habit. At 10 months, you could encourage him to crawl (actually even much earlier). There is nothing wrong if he sleeps during breast feed. Just stop feeding when he falls asleep or it could result the milk entering the wrong places and compound the problem. As far as I see it, there is no problem with your baby, especially because you say he eats well. Good luck.

Answer 3

Make sure your wife isnt eating anything that could be irritating his stomach since she is nursing and i agree with GOTTAGOTOGAL... You cant put him in his bed and just expect him to fall asleep. Also, if he's teething, he may not be that comfortable. Be patient...I'm going through the same thing with my 6mth old, who is getting his first tooth. Out of the blue, he just decided he would only nap for 5 minutes at a time and cry at night.

We have to understand that for breastfed babies, the breast are comforting to him so if Mom has to just allow him to nurse in her arms then so be it...babies need comforting for pain just like we do.

I say enjoy it while you can, there will be a day when you want to hold and hug that baby and he'll be 21 and wont let you.

good luck

Answer 4

If he's not tired, don't make him nap. You're not getting anything accomplished by making him cry, especially not during the day (though I'm not in support of letting a baby cry at all, and my 10 month old has never been left to cry).

If you need help coaxing him to sleep, a walk can do wonders. I have a baby carrier that I take my daughter out in whenever she needs help falling asleep and it works beautifully.

Answer 5

Try not giving him A nap at all during the day, try going for A stroll in thr park or even A simple car ride That always helps my 10 month old daughter, who does all the same things as him. Baby orial gel best thing ever, put it on his gums before A nap and breastfeeding because teeth hurt there(I know). Good luck and best wishes God bless your family

Answer 6

Try adjusting the time you put him down for a nap to after he has a good amount of time for physical play.

Make sure the lights are dimmed and play soft music.

Don't just put him down for the nap... Try to help him unwind first by reading a book or just cuddling for a few minutes.

Try to avoid letting him fall asleep while breastfeeding... He'll get used to it and it will be hard to put him down without it.

Best of Luck! Been there done that...

Answer 7

You mentioned that your son falls asleep when he is breastfed - so why not just do that when you can see he is getting tired?

Human milk contains hormones which make babies (and mommies too!) feel sleepy. This is nature's way of helping them both get the rest they need and it it makes sense to use this tool.

You do not have to worry that your son will ALWAYS need to nurse to sleep. It is not a bad habit, just something that he needs now and will outgrow in due course. We don't worry that carrying babies will stop them from crawling and walking, do we? We know that when they are ready, they will do these things all on their own.

Remember, you can't spoil a baby by giving him what he needs.

Answer 8

Try giving your baby a bath right before nap time. I always used baby bath with chamomile and lavender in it.... worked like a charm. After a bath with that stuff, my babies were asleep before I got done drying them off.

Answer 9

You child sounds very normal to me. I don't see that you have a problem. You child sleeps at least as much as a normal child that age.