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Hi Aditi,
Thanks so much for answering my questions, it really helped!
You mentioned that you’re currently settling her to sleep in your arms by rocking or bouncing her. One likely reason she’s waking up shortly after being placed in the bassinet during the day is that she’s becoming dependent on that movement to fall and stay asleep. This is also why she sleeps longer when contact napping—because you can continue rocking or bouncing when she stirs.
At night, she’s likely sleeping for longer stretches in the bassinet because her circadian rhythm and sleep pressure are working together to help her fall and stay asleep. During the day, only sleep pressure is at play, which means she stirs more easily.
The key to extending her naps is helping her learn to fall asleep in the bassinet itself. However, I completely understand that this may be too big of a step right now. A great in-between step is to gradually reduce the amount of movement she relies on while still letting her fall asleep in your arms.
Here’s how you can gently start this transition:
1️⃣ Follow your usual pre-sleep routine – Take her into her bedroom and swaddle her.
2️⃣ Hold her while rocking or bouncing and sing/hum a lullaby – This lullaby will become a sleep cue.
3️⃣ Once the lullaby ends, continue rocking or bouncing while shushing softly.
4️⃣ Gradually reduce movement – Stop rocking/bouncing but continue shushing while standing still.
5️⃣ Then, stop shushing and simply hold her still in your arms until she drifts off.
6️⃣ Once she’s asleep, gently lay her in the bassinet.Since newborns spend half their sleep in light REM sleep, she may wake when you lay her down. If she does, try using the Settling Pyramid to help her fall back asleep. If she struggles to settle, you may need to try settling her directly in the bassinet using the Settling Pyramid from the start.
One thing to keep in mind is that babies usually find it easier to fall asleep for naps earlier in the day. As the day goes on, naps often become more challenging—especially around 8 weeks, when babies hit the peak of the Period of PURPLE Crying. Many babies experience a fussy, unsettled time in the late afternoon or early evening, which can make bassinet naps more difficult.
Because morning naps tend to be easier, you may want to start practicing either the Settling Pyramid or gradually reducing movement during these naps first. As you’re more likely to experience success with these naps.
Morning Wake-Up Time
Right now, it sounds like her wake-up time varies between 6:30 AM and 7:30 AM. Would you be open to narrowing this to a consistent 30-minute window, waking her by 7 AM at the latest?
This small adjustment can make a big difference in helping her circadian rhythm mature, as it’s still developing at this stage. A more consistent wake-up time will also help bedtime become more predictable, reducing any variability in her sleep schedule.
As she continues to grow, a set wake-up time will naturally help her first nap fall into a more predictable rhythm, making daytime sleep easier to manage.
Wake, Feed, Play, Sleep Routine
At 8 weeks of age, it’s completely normal for babies to only have a few wake windows throughout the day where they stay awake after a feed. So it’s fantastic that you’ve already been able to follow the wake, feed, play, sleep routine during these times!
As she gets older, you’ll notice more of these wake windows, until eventually, it becomes the norm—waking from a nap, feeding, playing, and then sleeping again. This natural progression will make daytime sleep patterns even more predictable over time.
Do these suggestions sound doable?
Emma