My 15m goes to sleep fine for nap, but then wakes up about every 20-30min off and on for over 2hrs. I'll go in and either just rock him or nurse and he'll go to sleep, then wake up again about 1/2hr later... at night he sleeps fine 8pm-7:15am... any ideas how to get him out of this pattern, it's been about a week or so.
I know what you mean about making noises... but he's standing up screaming. Up until this point he has slept fine and would toss & turn and put himself back to sleep, now he's UP.
I have been through this with my two DS's. I would go into their room and rub their back until they calmed down and then leave before they fall asleep and let them fall asleep by themselves. Don't take him out of his bed if you can avoid it or he might get confused and think that naptime is over.
Here's the thing:
MANY babies and kids, intermittently "wake" during a nap.
BUT... this does not mean... "you" have to then, wake them up just to rock them or etc.
What it means is: the baby/child, like an adult... goes through sporadic sleep rhythms/stages of sleep/deep sleep etc. AND yes, intermittently a baby may 'seem' to wake or make noises or etc.
BUT... if 'you' then wake the baby/child... they will then, actually WAKE... and not be able to go back to sleep.
So, the thing is: know your baby's cues... and the difference between him WAKING up and crying/screaming/needing a feeding or you... OR, if he is just having a normal sleep and is just making noises or moving a bit in the crib. I mean, no one sleeps still as a statue. Adults, babies, children all toss and turn when they sleep, and/or make noises.
MY kids as babies, would OFTEN make noises and fidget around in bed... BUT they were, just fine. They were, not fully awake but just making noises in their sleep etc., and they then on their own, went back to sleep. But, they only did that, IF "I" did not wake them. So, I let them.... go about their own sleep patterns.
BUT, I also fully knew, my kids cues and noises and which noises or movements... meant, that they were just tossing in their sleep or if they needed me and a feeding.
Sometimes, it is the parent... that is 'waking' the baby. Because, their cues and patterns of sleep is not understood.
Not all noises/tossing and turning in a baby... means that you have to actually wake them up or pick them up or talk to them.
It is often, that the baby is just making normal.... noises as they sleep and/or tossing around.
15 months is also a growth-period, and they go through a lot of changes.
He's standing up screaming because he knows you'll come in and rock him or nurse him, at 15 months they more than know us.
Go in, lay him down, no picking up, rocking or nursing, tell him matter-of-factly "it's time to sleep," rub his back or leg until he's calmed down and leave his room while he is still asleep so he can learn to put himself to sleep. Don't interact by talking, holding, etc., let him know this is sleeping time, and that he needs to do it.
I am not a fan of CIO for infants but at 15 months I would let him cry it out when he wakes.
Maybe you should wait a little longer for his naptime. When my son is sleepy, he will take a 3 hour nap. That time gradually shrinks to a about 1 1/2- 2 hours. Which is ok, but I find that when his naptime has cut itself in half, if I let him stay up about another hour before I put him down for a nap, he sleeps longer again because his is more tired. Then I just make that his new naptime. I hope what I just said makes sense.
He must really like it when you go in and rock him or nurse him. That seems like a reward for the wrong behavior. For one of mine, I had to go in and physically lay her down and tell her to go to sleep. 5 min. later (she is screaming), I would calmly do the same thing in a quiet voice, then 10 min, and 15 min if needed. No reward for screaming other than a reminder that it is time to sleep. After a while he should get tired of it.
