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Hi Nicole and George,
It sounds like your little one has a challenging start to life. It’s great that he is home with you, and I really hope the surgery in the not-too-distant future goes well.
I was just wondering if you have been able to work through the course and pick out things that you can do. It sounds like you have already created the ideal sleep environment for your little one, which is great! It also sounds like his overnight feeds are naturally reducing, which is also fantastic.
Unfortunately, his short naps are normal at this age, but there are some specific things that you can do to help extend these daytime naps. In the video Managing Catnaps, I discuss why these short naps occur, two approaches you can take, and more importantly, the strategies that you can use to extend those naps. Have you been able to watch this? If not, then it might be a good place to start.
One strategy you can work on is adopting the wake, feed, play, and sleep routine. Then, when your little one is tired and needs a nap, you could use the settling pyramid instead of feeding him off to sleep. This will help him learn to fall asleep without the bottle, which is key to extending the daytime naps. If you feel this is too difficult to do at this stage, you can just try to use the settling pyramid for the morning nap. You’ll be more likely to have success with this nap, as babies tend to find it easier to fall asleep for their first nap of the day.
I hope that helps!
Emma