https://boards.hellobee.com/ Pregnancy, Baby and Parenting blog, by Hellobee en Fri, 24 Jul 2026 15:59:23 +0000 https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/evening-nap-interfering-with-nighttime-sleep#post-628720 Sun, 10 Mar 2013 16:01:47 +0000 pl0508 628720@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@Mrs Green Grass: I agree !!! It almost seems the more LO naps during the day the better he sleeps at night for some reason ! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/evening-nap-interfering-with-nighttime-sleep#post-628617 Sun, 10 Mar 2013 14:38:59 +0000 Freckles 628617@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@ladyfingers: I find that you get more consistency when they get older, and there are a lot more "blips" in the early weeks. Unfortunately! </p> <p>Also, I wouldn't worry about evening naps. I know that all the sleep books say that earlier bedtime is better, but sometimes it isn't possible. When i travel to the east coast, her bedtime is usually 9pm. As long as she is getting enough sleep, you can dictate her naps and bedtime. I know around the 3 month mark, her last nap ended at 6pm and her bedtime was a little before 8pm. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/evening-nap-interfering-with-nighttime-sleep#post-628593 Sun, 10 Mar 2013 14:16:52 +0000 ladyfingers 628593@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@tequiero21: well the other problem with that is its not a sustainable bedtime once I go back to work at 12 weeks. I won't be able to get him down any earlier than 8 at that point. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/evening-nap-interfering-with-nighttime-sleep#post-628558 Sun, 10 Mar 2013 13:51:17 +0000 tequiero21 628558@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I think the 530-7 or so that he is napping should be going down for the night! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/evening-nap-interfering-with-nighttime-sleep#post-628499 Sun, 10 Mar 2013 13:20:52 +0000 ladyfingers 628499@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@freckles: oh I know! I just always feel a little ridiculous asking for consistency in a 5-week-old's schedule lol. That makes sense about waiting a while to see if it resolves itself. I just was curious so if the evening nap was a problem I could nip it in the bud now. We shall see! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/evening-nap-interfering-with-nighttime-sleep#post-628464 Sun, 10 Mar 2013 12:50:52 +0000 Freckles 628464@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@ladyfingers: Oh, i didn't mean to say that doing a schedule was bad! At that age, i was stressed with feeding/supply issues that i had no energy to even focus on her sleep. My point was that something will suddenly change and we will go crazy as we wonder why our LOs are not following the lovely schedule/routine they were previously on. I agree with @kemma that you can try cluster feeding before his 9pm bedtime (even if he isn't asking for it) so that he feels full and goes down for a longer stretch. </p> <p>It seems like this has only been an issue for two nights, and i would only worry about tweaking things if it was going on for a week (which feels like 1 month when you're sleep deprived, i know). My friends used to tell me to just hang in there, it will pass...i know they sound like lame words but just know that it will get better. Keep us posted!! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/evening-nap-interfering-with-nighttime-sleep#post-628085 Sun, 10 Mar 2013 08:33:12 +0000 ladyfingers 628085@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@hilsy85: also 2 nights ago we had him down by 8:30 and he was up by 10:30. That was the first night in a week he didn't sleep a 5-hour stretch, which made me think 8:30 was too early. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/evening-nap-interfering-with-nighttime-sleep#post-628080 Sun, 10 Mar 2013 08:28:51 +0000 ladyfingers 628080@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@MaisyMay: we have been admittedly inconsistent with the swaddle because we've gotten inconsistent results. We need to just commit to it for a week or something but he always gets his arms out or wakes up and struggles to worm his arms out and works himself up into a frenzy. Sometimes it works but we have to get him in the swaddle and then nurse him so he's completely asleep when we put him down in it. Otherwise it takes longer to get him down because he's all upset he's in the swaddle. And I honestly haven't noticed him sleeping any longer swaddled. He also doesn't sleep in or really like his swing. He'll scream after 10 minutes in it. He sleeps best right now in his rnp.</p> <p>@hilsy85: he's waking on his own. We never wake him from naps but that was part of my question - if the EASY schedule ends up with him going down for a nap at 5 and he ends up napping till 7, should we wake him up by 6 or just let him be. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/evening-nap-interfering-with-nighttime-sleep#post-628069 Sun, 10 Mar 2013 08:15:29 +0000 hilsy85 628069@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Are you waking him up from that last nap? Or is he waking on his own? If you're waking him I would try to just let that be his bedtime...around 6 wks we started putting Lo down around 7/730; I don't think that's too early for a baby your Los age, and it will help you get into a routine for later on. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/evening-nap-interfering-with-nighttime-sleep#post-628066 Sun, 10 Mar 2013 08:12:59 +0000 autumn865 628066@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I would agree that something could be up like a growth spurt etc. I remember when my LO was that young we would seem to get in a schedule and all of a sudden something would change. In fact (lol) we are 6 months and things are still constantly changing! We used to let her take an early evening6 or 7 o'clock "nap" but found that keeping her up later slowly turned into MORE night wakings as time wore on to the point where she was up ever 1- 1.5 hour all night. So I would say adjust her bedtime and maybe try a dreamfeed before you go to sleep? None the less at 5 weeks I would resign to the fact that baby sleep is erratic and some nights you are going to get good spans and other nights you won't! Easier said than done I know! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/evening-nap-interfering-with-nighttime-sleep#post-628047 Sun, 10 Mar 2013 07:48:55 +0000 MaisyMay 628047@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Do you swaddle? I know that my LO sleeps longer when swaddled. Also, if needed for sanity's sake, could you have him sleep in the swing for a night? There are times when LO would sleep an extra hour in the swing.</p> <p>I know it's tough, but you are doing a good job! It's hard to remember that, but you are! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/evening-nap-interfering-with-nighttime-sleep#post-627967 Sun, 10 Mar 2013 05:00:21 +0000 loveisstrange 627967@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I think about 8 weeks is when we started moving C's bedtime earlier. It made a huge difference. She was much grumpier when we were trying to make her stay up until 8. She slept much longer and better. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/evening-nap-interfering-with-nighttime-sleep#post-627960 Sun, 10 Mar 2013 04:42:58 +0000 ladyfingers 627960@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@Kemma: thanks - we are still cluster feeding so if he wakes up at 7 we do 7, 8, then 9ish when nursing to sleep, but maybe he needs an extra feed or 2 in there. We have been doing a bedtime routine since week 2. </p> <p>@matador84: yeah we're still feeding on demand. I feed after every nap but if he needs it before a nap we do that too and his naps vary in length so it's not like I'm only feeding every 2 hours. He usually wakes from a nap hungry so whether its 30 minutes or 2 hours, I'll feed him if he's hungry. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/evening-nap-interfering-with-nighttime-sleep#post-627936 Sun, 10 Mar 2013 03:28:48 +0000 matador84 627936@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>At that age I don't think naps interfere with sleep and I was still feeding on demand. At 8 weeks I did a schedule where 9pm feed was last feed of day and no daytime naps were longer than 2 hours so nighttime sleep wasnt interrupted </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/evening-nap-interfering-with-nighttime-sleep#post-627934 Sun, 10 Mar 2013 03:25:55 +0000 Kemma 627934@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Firstly I don't think 9pm is an unreasonable bedtime for a 5-weeker, I know that my LO didn't really start moving her bedtime forward until she was at least two months old and 9:15 was about when she decided she was ready for sleep (it was almost like she actually looked at a clock and thought "9:15, time to go to bed!").</p> <p>I know some of the books recommend not letting baby nap past a certain time of night (generally about 1.5-2 hours before bedtime) so that they're tired enough to have a good stretch of sleep. My other thought was that as he's napping close to bedtime he's not cluster feeding enough to tank himself up for that long stretch.</p> <p>If you're aiming for a 9pm bedtime maybe try to have him awake from around 6:30-7pm and let him clusterfeed as much as he needs so that he can fuel up to give you that nice long stretch! Now could also be a good time to start establishing a bedtime routine so LO knows it's bedtime and not just another nap.</p> <p>Lastly, babies do go through a growth spurt at around six weeks old so the multiple night wakings might just resolve themselves in a few days. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/evening-nap-interfering-with-nighttime-sleep#post-627907 Sun, 10 Mar 2013 02:03:13 +0000 Mrs Green Grass 627907@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>The best thing I've heard is that sleep begets sleep. I haven't done much research yet myself, but that seems like a good basic rule and it really seems to be true. I wouldn't wake a 5 week old. I also don't think you can expect one day to be like the next.if you do wake, I wouldn't do it until 3-4 hours. We don't let lo go more than 4 which he rarely does (at 7 weeks), but he has low weight issues. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/evening-nap-interfering-with-nighttime-sleep#post-627906 Sun, 10 Mar 2013 01:59:47 +0000 ladyfingers 627906@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>And I'm not really trying to get him on a schedule per se. Before we started easy we weren't putting him down for naps and were mistakenly thinking he'd fall asleep when tired and nap on his own wherever he was. So he'd wake up at 7 and not nap again until 1. It was awful and he was a crying mess for most of his awake time. So we're just being more conscious of putting him down when it's obvious he's tired and making sure he naps -- even if it takes forever to get him to sleep. We're not trying to sleep train this early, just keep our house somewhat sane. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/evening-nap-interfering-with-nighttime-sleep#post-627905 Sun, 10 Mar 2013 01:55:49 +0000 ladyfingers 627905@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@Freckles: I guess, but he's not eating more frequently during the day or anything. His last growth spurt was between 3 and 4 weeks and I feel like that was a mess. His daytime is fine, it's just the past couple nights that have been killing me. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/evening-nap-interfering-with-nighttime-sleep#post-627901 Sun, 10 Mar 2013 01:42:30 +0000 Freckles 627901@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Could it just be that he is going through a growth spurt right now? I didn't do EASY until 8 weeks because the first month or so was just a messy colicky blur! I didnt cut nap times until they were reeeeally older, like 7 months. I wouldn't stress too much about staying on schedule at this age. </p> <p>For the first few months, I would be happy with these nice stretches then bam, something happens and I am thrown off! Growth spurt, sleep regression, wonder week or just plain baby crankiness will mess up our what we think is a perfect routine/schedule! Hang in there...just keep doing what you're doing and it will pass. 4-5 hour stretches at 5 weeks is amaaazing. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/evening-nap-interfering-with-nighttime-sleep#post-627898 Sun, 10 Mar 2013 01:33:35 +0000 ladyfingers 627898@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@gracecat I thought about that but isn't that kind of early for his age? I feel like we'll just end up with more "night wake ups" that way. </p> <p>I type this as he lays wide effing awake in the rnp next to me after having fallen asleep while nursing. This sucks. I need sleep. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/evening-nap-interfering-with-nighttime-sleep#post-627897 Sun, 10 Mar 2013 01:26:10 +0000 gracecat 627897@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I am no expert but I would suggest putting baby to bed earlier than 9 pm and in any event dont let the evening nap go for more than 40 minutes or one shorter sleep cycle. I hope the sleep gods are good to you!!! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/evening-nap-interfering-with-nighttime-sleep#post-627887 Sun, 10 Mar 2013 00:57:05 +0000 ladyfingers 627887@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>LO is 5 weeks and we have been doing a rough EASY with him for the past week or so, making sure he gets regular naps throughout the day every 1 hour or so. It's helped a lot with his crankiness - he used to stay up pretty much all day with cat naps that would basically come after an hour of crying, and which would always be on one of us, but now he has hour to 2-hour naps in his rnp and is much less cranky when awake. </p> <p>However, I don't know how to handle that nap time that stretches into early evening.</p> <p>For about a week, LO had been sleeping for a 4 to 5-hour stretch at the beginning of the night, waking for one night feeding. This was while we were still sorting out EASY so he wasn't really napping from 6 pm onward. He's be awake, fussy, and cluster feeding, but then would go down at 9 and give us that nice stretch. But the past two nights, he has napped from 6:30-7 and 5:30-7:30 and is going down around 9 but then waking up every 2 hours after that with 3 night feedings. And it's killing me. His night feedings can go on for an hour because he's so lazy nursing at night. So I'm not a happy camper.</p> <p>Is it because he's napping so close to bedtime? And what can I do about that? Keep him awake past a certain time? Fwiw, the past two nights that last nap of the day it has taken an hour + to get him down - he'll have been awake for 1 to 1.5 hours and be sleepy - yawning, rubbing eyes, cranky despite having needs met (this happens once we've already started putting him down) -- but it will take forever to get him to sleep. But then he naps 2 hours and I don't want to wake him up, but should I if his nap is cutting too close to bedtime?</p> <p>Can we be doing anything differently or is this just how it is and we need to suck it up? I've become a very mean and run down person the past couple of days. </p>