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Welcome To The Members Area! Forums Baby Sleep Help Help with naps (5mo) Reply To: Help with naps (5mo)

  • Emma H

    Administrator
    October 29, 2024 at 10:27 pm

    Hi Catherine & Sébastien,

    It sounds like you’ve made wonderful progress with your little one’s sleep over the past week—well done! I’m so glad to hear the transition to her own room went smoothly.

    It’s also fantastic that she’s managed to fall asleep in her crib for that first nap a few times. This shows that she’s capable of it; she just needs a bit more time and practice to make it a regular part of her routine.

    I’ve answered your questions below to help guide you further.

    What to Do When She Wakes After a Short Nap

    It sounds like your little one may be in the catnapping phase, where she wakes up after a single sleep cycle, usually around 30-40 minutes. This is quite normal for her age and happens because she hasn’t yet developed the ability to link sleep cycles during the day. As she learns to fall asleep independently, she’ll start consolidating her naps and taking longer stretches. While this skill develops, here are two approaches you can try to help her get the rest she needs:

    1. Helping Her Resettle After She Wakes:

      • Step 1: Start by observing how long she typically naps in her crib, so you can get a sense of her natural sleep cycle during the day. For example, you might notice that she consistently wakes around the 30-32 minute mark. Tracking this for a few days can give you a good idea of her usual wake-up time.
      • Step 2: Once you know her cycle, try going into her room just before she usually wakes, and gently soothe her back to sleep. You can use familiar techniques like patting her back/bottom, gently rubbing her tummy, or quietly shushing. The goal is to help her link sleep cycles and ease back into another nap period.
      • A Note on Resettling: Resettling can be a bit challenging because even a short nap can take the edge off her sleepiness, making it harder for her to fall back asleep. So, if you’ve been trying for about 10-15 minutes and she’s still not resettling, it’s perfectly okay to end the nap and start her next wake window. Trying this approach consistently for a few days can sometimes help lengthen naps, but if it doesn’t seem to work, there’s no need to stress—her naps will eventually lengthen naturally.
    2. Embrace the Catnaps (Preferred Approach):

      • The other option is to go with her current rhythm and let catnaps be part of her day. When she wakes after a single sleep cycle, simply pick her up and start the next wake window.
      • Adjusting Her Wake Windows: If she takes a short nap, her next wake window may be a bit shorter, as she hasn’t had as much rest. You might find that she’s ready to go back down for another nap sooner than usual. With this approach, you’ll likely be offering more frequent naps throughout the day to ensure she’s getting enough total sleep.

    Both approaches are perfectly fine, and there’s no “right” or “wrong” choice—just what works best for you and her. With time and practice, she’ll naturally start to consolidate her naps and sleep longer as her sleep matures.

    Starting a Second Nap in Her Bed:

    If you feel ready, introducing her second nap in the crib and using the settling pyramid to help her fall asleep is a great step. The more chances she has to practice falling asleep independently in the crib with your guidance, the faster she’ll likely pick up this skill. Once she’s able to settle herself to sleep, her daytime naps should start to naturally lengthen, as she’ll be able to connect sleep cycles more easily.

    Since her crib nap may be short, you might need to adjust her next wake window to offer another nap a bit sooner.


    Fixed Schedule vs. Wake Windows:

    Since nap lengths can vary a lot at this age, it’s actually a great approach to focus on combining wake windows with your little one’s tired cues and following a wake, feed, play, sleep routine to guide when her next nap should be. This flexible, needs-based approach allows you to adapt to her changing nap lengths without being too rigid, which is key in these early months.

    Over time, you’ll likely notice a natural rhythm beginning to develop. Usually, the first nap of the day becomes consistent first (which it has started to already), and then the second, and so on. As each nap starts to fall into place, a more predictable schedule will gradually emerge, often leading to a more stable routine around 6 months. Until then, continuing with wake windows, tired cues, and the wake, feed, play, sleep rhythm will support her in getting the rest she needs.

    I hope this helps!

    Emma