Sleep Support for Babies and Toddlers

Short naps

• Arielle D. Hi Courtney! At what times are you offering the naps? Typically, daytime sleep begins to consolidate between 3 and 6 months of age, so 3 months is on the early side for naps but a solid schedule may help.

3 year old naps

• Arielle D. Hi Sunny! This is SUPER common. Can you tell me about naps at school? What time? How long? And what do you try at home?

• Sunny They lay down on cots from 12-2, and his teacher said he usually falls asleep in 5-10 minutes and sleeps the full time. At home we usually aren't able to try and put him down until 12:30/1. We read books and do the same nighttime bedtime routine. He sleeps in a crib but can easily climb out. When we do (rarely) get him to nap at home he doesn't fall asleep until after 2, then nighttime sleep is messed up!

Our Q&A is now over.

Getting past the 4 or 5 am wakeups

Our Q&A starts now!

Molars coming in

• Arielle D. Hi Michele! Teething actually does not affect sleep like that. I know that's super frustrating to hear (parents never want to believe me haha!). You can read more about my thoughts on teething here: http://seacoast.citymomsblog.com/sleep/regressions-and-sleep/ I'm a little confused - have you already done some sleep training with her?

• Michele Yes, I had done sleep training with her and would go in after a couple of minutes. Sometimes I wouldn't go in because the crying got worse. However, she has not been a great sleeper and maybe because I have picked her up on occasion.

• Arielle D. Yes, it's essential to be 100% consistent with schedule and method when sleep training. I would recommend finding a method you feel you can be 100% consistent with, and sticking with it for a good two weeks. That should help!

Night weaning

• Arielle D. Hi Julie! When you say she "falls asleep on her own most of the time" - what do you have to do to get her to sleep initially? Is she falling asleep while nursing or taking a bottle at the start of the night? And what about for naps? At what times is she napping and for how long? And when is bedtime?

4 month old doesn't nap long, is that ok?

• Arielle D. Hi Mishell! Can you share your baby's schedule? In general, any nap under 1 hour is not considered restorative. Offering naps at correct times in the day can help with these micronaps during the day. Also, how does he fall asleep at night? Do you have to do anything to help him or is he falling asleep on his own?

• Mishell Hi Arielle, It's hard to know his exact schedule since he is with a sitter during the week. But typically he wakes up at 6:30am and is ready to for a nap around 8:30 (which is when he sleeps for an hour), then he goes down again around 11:30/12 and that is when the 20-40 minute power naps begin. He will then nap again around 3ish and again at about 5:15. I try to then put him down to sleep by 7:30pm. I am sure I am not putting him to nap at the appropriate times. When he is with me, he usually falls asleep while nursing. But when he is not, the sitter does put him down and he falls asleep on his own. At night, we have a routine of a bath, book, swaddle (even though we just transitioned to a sleep sack) and then I nurse him to sleep. I nurse him since that is the time he would normally eat anyways. He typically stays asleep until 6:00/6:30. However, in the last week he has been a little unpredictable and may wake after an hour or 2 and I just rock him a little to sleep (without taking him out of his bassinet). But, we will also be transitioning him to the crib soon as well. Oh fun! :)

• Arielle D. Ok - he's napping too late in the day. I wouldn't let him nap after 5pm, and I'd back up bedtime a bit if your schedule allows for it. Also, it sounds like he has a nurse to sleep association, which is why he's not extending his naps during the day. A way to break this is to move nursing to the START of his nap or bedtime routine rather than the end.

• Mishell Great! Thank you!

• Arielle D. You're welcome!

Nap Training

• Kristy GO get not, "got get"

• Arielle D. Hi Kristy! What time are you napping her and hold is she again?

• Kristy We are trying to offer 3 - 830am 11:30 or 12 and then 2 or 230. She is 5 months.

• Arielle D. Ok, does she sleep well in a stroller or in the car? The third nap can be "on the go" and some babies do best when they are on the go for that nap.

Wakes up too early!!

• Arielle D. Hi Tameka! Have you ever tried limiting her nap to 2 hours? When we look at sleep in children, we look at overall sleep needs in a 24-hour period. It could be that her long nap is cutting into her overnight sleep. Sometimes, limiting the nap to 2 hours and moving bedtime back a bit can help improve early morning wakeups. Perhaps something like - nap from 1-3, bedtime around 7. It's also important to look at total wake time. That time in the morning that she is awake is a LONG stretch of time even for her age, so tightening up her wake time AFTER the nap can be really helpful in combatting the early mornings. It's sounds counterintuitive - people often think later bedtime equals later wakeup, but that's just not the case!

Toddler goes to sleep fine but wakes several times a night?

• Arielle D. Hi Lovette! Can you tell me what his daytime schedule looks like? When does he nap and for how long? When is bedtime?

• Lovette He wakes about 6:45am we get dressed have breakfast at home, go to school he has second breakfast at school around 8a. They play go outside then he has lunch then naps there from about 11:30ish-3:00p they have snack at 3:30 then play more outside. I pick him up we have dinner at 6pm then bath bed routine for bed at 8pm. He sleeps with a blanket now, but no pillow and he is still in a crib. We have not transitioned to toddler bed yet, but are thinking about it.

• Arielle D. Ok, so.... Is it possible for daycare to cap his nap? That's a REALLY long nap for his age. I find that most toddlers can't sleep longer than 2/2.5 hours during the day without nighttime begin disrupted. His bedtime is also a bit too late. If you're able, I would try to get him down for bed closer to 7ish. When you put a child to bed too late, their body fills with hormones that make it difficult for them to fall asleep and stay asleep.

• Lovette Thanks I will ask daycare and try to get to bed earlier!

• Arielle D. Perfect!

Reflux

• Arielle D. Hi Bethan - Oh, I'm so sorry to hear this. The combination of reflux and age is difficult because at her age, circadian rhythms are not yet established so it's difficult to get them on any sort of predictable schedule because their sleep is erratic. If sleep is that hard, however, I would speak with the doctor and get a referral for a GI specialist. That little sleep is concerning.

Sleep without crying

• Arielle D. Absolutely possible! What kind of sleep training are you doing?

2 to 1 nap transition

• Arielle D. Hi Emily! At what time are you offering him a nap?

• Emily I have been pushing it to between 11:30 and 12. We started out pushing nap time slowly later every couple of days, and even when it was an earlier nap time, like 10:30/11, it was the same nap length.

• Arielle D. Ideally, on one nap, we like the nap to be at least 90 minutes. How does he fall asleep at night? Does he have any sleep associations? Does he depend on you to help get to sleep (or back to sleep)? Additionally, how long have you stuck with one particular time to start the nap? Or do you change it up every day?

• Emily He falls asleep on his own for his nap and at night, with a little blankie, and sleeps through the night. For the past week I have put him down for nap between 11:30 and 12, but he starts yawning and rubbing his eyes as early as 8:30 some days. Luckily it has been unseasonably warm here and we have been able to play outside to help push the nap, but it's getting cold again and he is a mess.

8 month old ewu

• Gloria Alsowe transition from three to two naps at 6 months because he was fighting the third cat nap and I thought maybe the short amount of wake time before bed was causing the early wake-ups. Because even when he took a 345 cat nap, he still went down for the night at 6 / 6:30. Initially on two naps I did 2,3,4 for Wake time. Then transitioned to 3,3,3 thinking maybe that 4 hours before bed was making him over tired and causing the early wake up. None of this mattered, still ewu

• Arielle D. Hi Gloria! So an age appropriate wake up is any time after 6am. I know we would all love for our babies to sleep until 6:45/7, but nature doesn't really work that way! Has he always woken up before 6?

• Gloria Yes. It was 4:30 - 5:30 am for awhile. He would babble awhile and fall back asleep until 6:15. And I was fine getting him up 615. So it is a little better at 5:45 now the past few weeks. But I don't want to get him that early and then by 6:15, he will be snuggling back to sleep. I know this is not that bad of an issue so maybe I should just deal with it haha period just thought maybe I could tweak it because it would be nice if he could be up just a little bit later in the evening, I mean past 6 p.m. but I suppose that will come with age

• Arielle D. It will definitely come with age! I typically recommend naps around 9 and 1 at his age, with bedtime around 3 hours after he wakes from his second nap. Sounds like you're doing that!

• Gloria Thanks for the reassurance

• Arielle D. You're welcome!

Toddler Waking shortly after put down

• Arielle D. Hi Christina! Can you tell me about his daytime schedule? When does he nap and for how long? When is bedtime? It sounds like he may be overtired. Typically, when a child is overtired, they will wake within 1-3 hours after going to bed.

• Cristina He naps from 12-1:30/2 and bedtime is 7/7:30. Usually when he is with me he sleeps better at night but not always. However with our day care provider his naps aren't as good as much as she tries. The home is on a noisy street which doesn't help. The last few nights he hasn't napped well for her so perhaps that is the case.

• Arielle D. Ok, I would definitely get him down earlier for bed. I would aim to get him down about 4/4.5 hours after he wakes from his nap. I realize this puts bedtime much earlier than it is right now, but it will *really* help with those night wakings.

Nap transitioning

• Arielle D. Hi Jackie! At 8 months, I typically recommend napping babies at 9am and 1pm. This helps to push out their nap schedule a bit, which builds sleep pressure and leads to longer naps. When you drop to 2 naps, you'll need to back bedtime up a bit. He will need to go to bed around 3 hours after he wakes from his second nap.

Toddler Self Soothing

• Arielle D. Hi Charlotte! Can you tell me what his daytime schedule looks like? When does he nap and for how long?

• Charlotte Wakes around 6 or 6:15 but doesn't get out of bed until the light on his monitor comes on at 6:30am. Daycare from 8:30 - 3:00 with a nap from 1:30-2:30 (sometimes he starts napping a bit earlier). They wake him at 2:30 so I can pick him up at 3:00. Dinner is around 6 and we start putting him to sleep around 7:30 or 8.

• Arielle D. Ah ok. He's overtired! I like to see toddlers napping for at least 90 minutes. Given that his nap is considered "short" for his age, his bedtime is far too late. I would try putting him to bed closer to 6:30. I bet this will help him immensely!

• Charlotte Thanks!

Night waking/ sleep training

• Arielle D. 1) Extinction with a cap is fine as long as the cap isn't super short. Some babies will give it a good cry for up to 2 hours. After that point, I think capping is a good idea; however, I also believe you have to do what you can handle and be 100% consistent with. 2) If you chose extinction for your method, you would use it for night wakings and naps as well. 3) You can absolutely keep a night feeding if needed! What you would do is set a cutoff time and not feed her before X time or after X time. As a general rule, I typically recommend not feeding before midnight or after 4:30/5am.

22 month old early wake ups

• Arielle D. Hi Meghan! At what time is she taking the nap?

• Meghan When she is home 1-3, sometimes 3:30 or 4 at daycare 12:30-2:30

• Meghan Daycare is 2 days per week.

• Meghan Also we don't reinforce the early wakeups by letting her get up. She will stay in her crib until about 6:30

• Arielle D. Sorry for the delay - it has been busy in here!! I would try capping the nap at 2 hours, and then putting her to bed around 7. See if that helps.

• Meghan Thank you :)

• Arielle D. You're welcome!

Baby still wakes up to much at night

• Arielle D. Hi Jennifer! Sounds like she has a feed to sleep association, which basically means she's dependent on the bottle to fall asleep. How much is she eating during the day? How many times and how many ounces? Also, how does she fall asleep at the start of the night? Does she fall asleep while eating?

• Jennifer Thank you for the reply it was hard transitioning from breastfeeding on demand to bottlefeeding i have mangaged to reduce her to 5 bottles a day with 5 oz each feeding plus she is eating 4 to 5 solid meals a day than she wake up 3 times at night for a bottle......at the start of the night she has her bath than bottle and i rock her for a few minuetes after with her binky and lay her .uk n bed....she sleeps in her crib till 1 than wakes if i try rocking her or giving binky she screams and kicks till she has a bottle than goes back down for two hours than up again her bedtime schedule is 8 to 5

• Arielle D. Is she taking pumped breastmilk or formula?

Getting past the 4 or 5 am wakeups

• Arielle D. Hi Tamara! Is there a reason why you are holding him off until 6? I would personally recommend feeding him at 4:30/5 and then letting him sleep. Thoughts?

• Tamara Hi Arielle, I had gotten advice from a sleep consultant about pushing out feeds and holding him to his best standard in order to ultimately drive towards a 7-7 overnight sleep pattern. If I go back to feeding him at 4 or 5 am, is he less likely to ultimately drop this feed or push it back to the goal of 7 am? I know it's a tricky time because they are less tired as it's end of night/early morning - do most babies over time end of sleeping longer, or is there something I should be doing to help this? His daytime schedule ideally is: wakeup 7:30, nap sometime around 9/9:30, feed at 10, nap 11:30/12, feed at 1, nap 2:30/3, feed at 4, bedtime 7. But nap lengths are variable and his schedule gets thrown off at daycare and he does come home exhausted, usually having been up since 3pm there. Should we put him to bed even earlier? Thanks!

• Arielle D. Hi Tamara - he is still SO young. My personal thought is that he's young and that if he wants to eat at 4 or 5 and is going back to sleep after, then there is no problem there. Each sleep consultant has their own thinking on this. I believe that a baby should not get up any sooner than 6am for the day. I also personally believe that while a 7 to 7 schedule sounds glorious, it's near impossible for many infants. We have to be mindful of biology and how a child is biologically designed. In general, it's age appropriate for infants and young children to wake anywhere between 6am and 8am, and to go to bed between 6pm and 8pm. Sure, there will be outliers here and there that wake on the early side, but in general that's what we are working with when it comes to babies. In my opinion, I believe that if a 4.5-month-old wants to eat at 4:30/5 and returns to sleep after, there is no issue here. If a 4.5-month-old wakes at 4:30/5, eats, and then does NOT return back to sleep, that's a cue to me that the baby no longer needs the feeding at that time and the feeding should be eliminated. I would DEFINITELY be putting him down earlier. If he is up at 3, I'd be putting him to bed at 5. I know it sounds nuts, but it will really help prevent him from becoming overtired. At his age, I recommend a schedule such as: Wake by 7am (but no sooner than 6am) Nap 1 8:30/8:45 Nap 2 12:15/12:30 Nap 3 1.5 hours after waking from nap 2 Bedtime 1.5 hours after waking from nap 3

Getting a nearly 3 year old to fall sleep alone

• Arielle D. Hi Becki!! Is he still napping? If so, for how long? And at what time are you putting him to bed?

• Becki He still naps, normally goes down at 2pm and I wake him 90 minutes later. He does fall asleep quicker in the days he doesn't nap (it takes him 30 minutes as opposed to an hour but he still needs us in there). He goes to bed at 7.30 so falls asleep at 8.30.

• Arielle D. I would consider a gentle method with him, something like the "chair method" or "camping out" method. I think you'll likely just have to set some serious boundaries with him. I'd also recommend napping him sometime between 12 and 1pm. This way, he will be falling asleep at night at a more age appropriate time. 2-year-olds I work with are typically going to sleep for the night by 6:30/7pm.

Early wakings

• Arielle D. Hi Kristin! I would consider trying an earlier bedtime for a bit to see if it helps. If she naps at 1 for 45 minutes, then 6/6:30 is a huge stretch for her. I typically recommend a 3/3.5 hour wake time at 9 months. Has she ever woken at 6 or later? Is this early waking a new pattern for her?

6 month old cannot stay asleep

• Arielle D. Hi Mandi! At what times are you doing her naps? It sounds like her bedtime is probably too late.

• Mandi She wakes at 7:30 usually and naps at 9am and 12pm consistently. The last nap is very inconsistent since I have to pick up my older kids from school some days and she will catnap in the car. Any suggestions on a good time for the last nap/bedtime?

• Mandi Well, I take that back a bit. She usually naps 2 hours after she wakes up... so if it's a quick 9am nap she will nap around 12 although every once in awhile she takes a longer morning nap and I'll put her down later than 12 if that's the case.

• Arielle D. Ok, I would try pushing her second nap to start around 1pm. If she skips the third nap, I would get her to bed much earlier - around 5/5:30 or about 2 hours after she wakes from her second nap. I realize this sounds super early but if her naps aren't great or the third is skipped, putting her down super early will help prevent her from becoming overtired, which can lead to those night wakings. Is there a sleep training method you're comfortable with? I'd probably explore methods and figure out what you can be most consistent with and begin implementing that method with a tightened up schedule.

• Mandi We're fine with CIO, we did that at 3 months which helped her go to sleep. It just seems harder at night because I'm always afraid she's hungry (although our pediatrician did say she should be fine through the night now). I will try tightening up the schedule and see if an earlier bedtime helps. If we are home and she does get a third nap in, what time should that be? Then what time would you suggest for bed?

Almost 6 month old suddenly waking to eat at 3pm

• Mary Kate Also she's gaining fine and is around 60% for weight. She's exclusively breastfed. Thanks!

• Arielle D. Hi Mary Kate! Have you ever done any sleep training with her?

• Mary Kate Hi Arielle - sorry I'm late. I've never needed to...

• Arielle D. What's her sleep schedule look like? When does she nap and for how long? It could be that her bedtime is too late.

transitioning from bedsharing

• Arielle D. Hi Nan! Ok, so first I would definitely drop him down to 3 naps if he's almost 5 months. It may seem like you're helping him by offering MORE naps, but you're actually making it difficult for him to learn to consolidate his daytime sleep into longer stretches of sleep. How long is his first nap? With regard to transitioning from bedsharing, I would start by seeing if he will nap in the crib. If he's not having it, don't force it until you're ready to move him completely. And yes, I would just transition him all at once. One additional side note is that Rock and Plays are not safe for sleeping per AAP Safe Sleep Guidelines, so if you can get him sleeping flat on his back for naps, that will be great!

• Nan He usually naps two hours in the morning after about an hour of wake time. If he doesn't take a long first nap, I'll put him down after another hour awake and he'll usually take a decent second nap. Otherwise I put him down after 1.5 to 1.75 hours awake for the rest of the day, and he's usually awake 2 hours before bed. I'll start slowly stretching the wake times to accommodate 3 naps instead of 4, and try napping him in the crib before moving him in there at night. Is it reasonable to go down to one night feeding at this age? Would it be confusing for him to come to bed with me after feeding? I'm open to anything, but I'd like to minimize crying in the early morning hours because I don't want it to wake up my 2 year old. Thanks so much!

• Arielle D. OK, so I typically have a 5-month-old on a schedule such as: Nap 1 8:30/8:45am Nap 2 12:30/12:45pm Nap 3 about 1.5 hours after waking from nap 2 Bedtime about 1.5 hours after waking from nap 3 It's totally reasonable to drop to one night feeding as long as his doctor approves and he is a healthy weight. It may be hard to minimize the crying as you work through it, but it may not be difficult if you can start getting him on an age appropriate schedule. Often, that helps with the overnight wakings. :)

bedtime

• Arielle D. Hi Emily! How many naps is she taking a day? At what times and for how long?

• Emily she takes a morning nap around 9ish for about 1hr and then another nap around 145ish for about 1hr. and when i get home from work at 4 she will take a short 20min power nap after she nurses

• Emily thank you for taking my question!

• Arielle D. It may be challenging to get her a 7pm bedtime if she drops her third nap. If she continues to take a nap around 4 for 20-30 minutes, you may be able to get her there. Typically, I see 6 month olds going to bed closer to 6 still.

• Emily ahhh ok thank you it is reassuring to know that she is right on track then thank you very much

• Arielle D. Totally on track! :)

Naps at 9 Weeks

• Arielle D. Hi Sarah! When are you offering her naps right now? How frequently?

• Sarah We offer her first nap about an hour after she gets up in the morning, when she starts to stare into space instead of wanting to play. During the rest of the day, I try to get her back to sleep about 60-90 minutes after she awakens from her last nap. When we use the carrier, she's usually taking four 1.5-2 hour naps. Without it, it's cat nap city, and we're constantly trying to put her down. Thanks, Arielle!

• Arielle D. Ok, I would definitely recommend about 60 minutes right now. And cat nap city, unfortunately, is super age appropriate. Daytime sleep usually begins to consolidate sometime between 3 and 6 months, but usually closer to 4 months on the early side.

• Sarah Thanks, I'll definitely try sticking to the 60 minutes! Do you think it's better for her to get plenty of sleep in the carrier or keep trying to put her down with the constant wakeups?

• Arielle D. I would keep using the carrier for now. When she gets closer to 4 months, if she's still having trouble, you can shoot me a message! ;)

Drowsy but awake for 4-month-old

• Arielle D. Hi Laura! Are you using any particular method? What does her schedule currently look like? When is she napping and for how long? When is bedtime?

Toddler sleep

• Arielle D. Hi Leah! There are some sleep challenges that don't have a quick response, and this is one of them. When I work with clients with similar issues, it typically involves a lot of understanding about the child, his temperament, any developmental or cognitive delays, health issues, family dynamics, eating patterns, etc. Every toddler is so unique in this sort of situation. I work with clients with similar situations all the time, but it requires a lot of exploration and close work with the family. I think this is absolutely a solvable issue, but I don't think it's solvable in a quick Q&A (which is often the case with sleep, particularly with toddler sleep!). I hope this makes sense. Please feel free to message me or email me if you'd like to chat further.

19 month of still on 2 naps

• Arielle D. Hi Katie... wow! That's a LOT of sleep! Is she otherwise healthy? Given her age, I don't see any reason not to transition her BEFORE her sibling arrives. You could even give her a couple more weeks and then start the transition. The good news is that transitioning on the later side makes it MUCH easier typically. :)

• Katie Yes she's a healthy girl in the 80% eats very well and sleeps amazing. I just didn't want to mess with her schedule unless it was a good time. It would be nice to have her on 1 nap. How do I start the process? Slowly make her morning naps later? Thanks again!

• Arielle D. Sorry, it got so busy in here! I would jump into it by giving her a nap around 11/11:30 for a few days and see how she does, then slowly inch it forward. Some parents like the nap to occur between 12 and 1pm, but some children do better with an earlier nap (11/11:30) so you may have to play around with it a bit. I typically work with families for 2 weeks during the transition because it can take some time to figure out the best schedule for each child.

Improving naps

• Arielle D. Hi Nicole! One way to improve naps is to only offer an age appropriate number of naps per day. Offering too many naps gives them no reason to extend the ones they are taking! I would recommend 3 naps at 4 months. Typically I like to see naps happening around 8:45/9 (if he's waking at 7), 12:15/12:30, and a third nap about 1.5 hours after the second nap. Bedtime should be about 1.5 hours after waking from the third nap. This may make bedtime earlier, however.

• Nicole For additional context, he falls asleep on his own in his crib within about 5 minutes of putting him down, and has been doing that pretty much since about 8 weeks. He is awake 60-90 minutes between naps.

• Nicole How do I make the switch to 3 naps though without him getting overtired?

• Arielle D. You'll have to back up his bedtime a bit. Are you able to do that?

• Nicole Since currently his last nap of the day is usually around 5 or a bit after, he wakes up sometime between 5:45 and 6. I then nurse him and we start his bedtime routine between 6:45 and 7 (I like to feed him twice before bed to help him 'tank up'). How much earlier should I move his bedtime?

• Arielle D. I would not let him nap any later than 5pm. I would have him asleep about 1.5 hours after his third nap.

Night waking/feeding

• Arielle D. Hi Komal! Have you done any sort of sleep training with him?

• Komal We do a bedtime routine at night and he falls asleep on his own without props. We let him cry it out for 15 minutes or so when he wakes up at night then husband goes in to calm him and puts him back drowsy but awake. Aside from that we haven't done much. We haven't done any formal sleep training. Anything you recommend?

Sleep Training

• Arielle D. Hi Katy! yes, sounds like it's time to do some training. Can you move the 3-year-old into your room for a bit while you work on training? Or have a "camp out" for the 3-year-old somewhere else in the house for a few days?

Extending naptimes

• Arielle D. Hi Katrina! 12 months is a tricky age for naps and notorious for wakings at 40 minutes in. I would definitely leave her until it has been an hour. Naps are always harder to work on than nights, so I would still be giving her that opportunity to fall asleep and extend the nap. At 12 months, I recommend a 4 hour wake time after her nap. I typically recommend a wake time sometime between 4/4.5 hours for quite some time if the afternoon nap occurs around 1pm.

• Katrina Thank you!

• Arielle D. You're welcome!

• Katrina Forgot to say how long does the 4-4.5 wAke time go on? I would love to coordinate a later bedtime with my toddler.

• Arielle D. Hi Katrina - I recommend it for quite some time. Even for some 2-year-olds. It will really depend on what happens when he moves to one nap.

• Katrina Great thanks!

6 month old with orthotic helmet and sleep troubles

• Arielle D. Hi Sarah! I always recommend speaking with the doctor if there is something medically involved with how a child is sleeping (I would consider the helmet the medical involvement here). You may share with the doctor that it has been 3 weeks and his sleep is severely disrupted. I'm sure you wouldn't be the first (or the last!) to ask the doctor. See if he has any tips and share your concern about him getting stuck upside down! Sometimes these things really need medical advice (which I, unfortunately, cannot give!).

2 year old wont sleep in crib

• Arielle D. Hi Stacey! Don't beat yourself up over it! It's definitely fixable but it will likely take some time. How far into 2 is he? Meaning is he just barely 2 or is he closer to 2.5?

Staying asleep through the night!

• Arielle D. Hi Christine! Can you tell me what his daytime schedule looks like? At what times does he nap and for how long?

• Christine He's a horrible napper. I'm lucky If i get 30 minutes from him! I try the one hour rule but he seldom goes back to sleep. When he sleeps longer than that I'm shocked. His naps are inconsistent but usually 2-2.5 hours after his last wake up. He usually takes 3 naps a day.

• Arielle D. It sounds like he could benefit from some sort of sleep training. It sounds as though he's dependent on you to fall asleep/back to sleep. I'd also work to get him on an age appropriate daytime schedule. I would recommend something like: Nap 1 - 8:30/8:45am Nap 2 - 12:30/1245pm Nap 3 - about 1.5 hours after he wakes from his second nap Bedtime around 1.5/2 hours after waking from last nap. His last nap should not go beyond 5pm or it may affect nighttime sleep. His bedtime will likely equal out to be much earlier than 7:30. This is ok will help prevent him from becoming overtired. An overtired baby has a hard time falling asleep and staying asleep.

• Christine Thanks for answering my question! Should I nurse him at the beginning or end of our bedtime routine. Does it matter? Usually it's bath-nurse-book-bed. I'll try this nap schedule and an earlier bedtime and see how it goes! You're right, he probably is overtired. Should I change our bedtime routine?

• Arielle D. I would just be sure he's not falling asleep nursing. Otherwise, that routine looks good. :)

• Christine Thanks! I'll give it a try! :)

• Arielle D. Good luck! :)

• Christine Hi Arielle! I wanted to update you on how things went last night! I put my son down earlier and tried the nursing>bath>book>bed routine. Before I had been starting his 3rd nap at 5pm. Last night we didn't do that and it really helped! He went to bed around 7:10 and stayed asleep all night! He was up at 5am though so i went in to turn the sound machine back on and then he slept until 6:30! Should I have gotten him out of bed at 5? Or is it okay that I went in to help him go back to sleep for a little. The new routine worked really well too!

• Arielle D. WOOHOO!!!! No, definitely don't get him up any earlier than 6am. Awesome work!! :)

• Christine Thanks! I'm so excited we're making progress! you're advice really helped us. :)

• Arielle D. Awesome! You can find me on Facebook, too. :) Expect to Sleep Again Sleep Consulting

• Christine Hi Arielle-I have another question to follow up on my post. If baby wakes up in the night, should I go to him or leave him. He doesn't really cry, rather whines and coos and whimpers. I've been going to him to put in the pacifier but I think I might be perpetuating an association by doing that. Should I just let him cry and whine until he falls back asleep? He has no problem falling asleep in his own. Naps have improved tremendously! But he's still waking a couple times at night. Thanks!!!!

• Arielle D. Hi Christine! If he's just kind of fussing and whining, I would leave him. :)

4 mo old night feedings

• Arielle D. Hi Renee! Her schedule is quite off for her age. I would recommend something like the following: Wake by 6/7am Nap 1 - 8:30/8:45 Nap 2 - 12:15/12:30 Nap 3- about 1.5 hours after her second nap Bedtime about 1.5 hours after waking from her third nap. Babies are biologically wired to go to bed sometime between 6pm and 8pm, so her bedtime isn't helping her overnight sleep. Do you currently nurse her to sleep? That may also be part of her problem. She may be relying on you to nurse her as she wakes between sleep cycles in the night.

• Renee She is usually awake by 7a. I do nurse her to sleep. She might get another nap that I didn't list at daycare, I just wasn't sure. I know the bedtime hour may be off, but I don't get home from work until after 6pm. I do nurse her right when I get home. Then she is awake for about an hour and goes to sleep for about an hour waking for 9-10p feeding.

6 month old - Not great sleeper, getting worse?

4-month old will not get to sleep on her own!

• Arielle D. Hi Jenna! It does sound like she could benefit from some overall changes. 8-9pm is definitely a late bedtime, and I would drop the swaddle at this point. If the Moro Reflex is still a problem, you could consider using a Merlin's Magic Sleep Suit for a bit. Are you familiar with sleep suits? What does her daytime schedule look like? How many naps is she getting and when are you offering her naps?

• Jenna We do have a Magic Merlin that we have not tried yet! Would I use that all day or only at night? We're currently on a pretty good eat/play/sleep cycle of about 3 hours, sometimes a little longer. She typically seems to start to get tired (rubbing eyes/yawning) 1-1.5 hours after eating (shorter if she really didn't sleep before). So after she wakes and eats first thing in the morning, I can usually get her right back to sleep and then the rest of the day she plays and hangs out after she eats. She'll fuss for a bit when she's tired and I will try to get her to sleep. If I can't sometimes she is then totally fine and will skip that nap entirely.

• Arielle D. Hi Jenna! Sorry for the delay - it's busy in here! Yes, I would try the Merlin for all sleep for a bit. At 4 months, I typically recommend a schedule such as: Nap 1 - 8:30/8:45am Nap 2 - 12:15/12:30pm Nap 3 - about 1.5 hours after waking from nap 2 Bedtime about 1.5 hours after waking from nap 3. I don't like to see naps end after 5pm because napping that late can affect overnight sleep.

• Jenna Thanks! Haha, it's very busy. So would each nap be 1-1.5 hours or 2? And then for the last nap say she went to sleep from 12:30-2:30 then she would be up until 4 essentially, have her last nap then up 5:30-7ish and go to bed for the night?

• Arielle D. Yeah, if she gives you nice naps like that! If she woke at 2:30, her next nap would be at 4. I'd be sure to wake her by 5pm (naps after 5 can tend to encroach on nighttime sleep), then bedtime around 6:30.

Help 16 month old no sleep

• Arielle D. Hi Edith! Sounds very exhausting, indeed. When I get clients with similar situations, it typically takes us about two weeks to get things sorted out, so it's difficult to give you "quick" direction with this. I would recommend doing some research on different sleep "training" (I really dislike that term!) methods that you may feel comfortable with implementing with her. I would also move nursing to the start of any pre-sleep routine instead of at the end during which time she's probably falling asleep at the breast (is this correct)? Also - what does her daytime schedule look like? When does she nap and for how long? What time is bedtime? When does she wake up for the day?

• Edith Yes, you are correct she sleeps while nursing. I have been trying to stop this so she is not used to using the breastfeeding as a way to sleep. Naps, she is down to one nap midday typically after lunch. Same after lunch she nurses and sleeps at the breast. I transfer her to her crib and she sleeps for an hour or two, it's never a consistent time frame. Bedtime she would sleep at 7-7:30pm now she recently started to stretch it until 8:30-9:30 sometimes. Same bedtime routine but she refuses to sleep. She wakes up usually at 4 am to nurse and sleeps until 7:30-8. But if she wakes up to nurse before 4 am she wakes up at 6-6:30 am and is up for the day.

• Edith I should add that wake ups at night are long because she is asleep and I try to transfer her to her crib and she wakes up. I literally have to hold her for at least 30 minutes to an hour.

• Arielle D. Ok, I would back up her bedtime. Sounds like she is overtired by bed. At her age, she should be going to bed about 4/4.5 hour after her nap. This probably puts her at about 6/6:30pm. When a baby is overtired, her body fills with cortisol, adrenaline, and norepinephrine - these hormones make it difficult to fall asleep and stay asleep. So I would first start trying to get her on an age appropriate schedule, then I would look into a sleep training method that you may feel comfortable implementing. I work with clients in this sort of situation it can take some time, but typically is resolved within 2 weeks.

• Edith Any suggestions on how to get her to sleep at that time? I am not sure what to do next or how to start sleep training. Please recommend reads, support?

• Arielle D. If you shoot me an email, I can send you a flyer with information on different methods. My email is arielle@expecttosleep.com.

• Edith Done. Thank you!

Two to One Nap Transition

• Arielle D. Hi Stephanie! I would definitely let him sleep at 11 if he's tired. The problem is that pushing him may be making him overtired, which can then lead to those night wakings. Additionally, I would probably try to tighten up bedtime a bit. Again, those night wakings sound like they are related to being overtired. At his age, I typically recommend waking a child in the morning by 7/7:30 and bedtime sometime between 6 and 7. How long are his naps?

• Stephanie Thank you so much! His nap can range anywhere from 1-2.5 hours. It seems to be related to how many hours he has slept at night.

• Arielle D. It probably is related to his overnight sleep! I like to look at how much a child needs in a 24-hour period and figure out a good, individualized "formula" for their sleep on one nap. How many hours of sleep does he do best with?

• Stephanie Somewhere between 13 and 14 hours. Thanks again!

• Arielle D. So I would do the earlier nap, but then back up his bedtime. I bet this will help!

• Stephanie Great! I will try this. Thanks again!

• Arielle D. You're welcome!