Sleeping FAQ: 4-6 Months – Lunchtime Nap

My 4mth daughter always wakes after the first 30 minutes of her lunchtime nap and then is slow to settle back again

For the last two weeks we have had great problems with lunchtime nap. My daughter wakes up after exactly 30 minutes and can stay awake for 1.5 hours before falling back to sleep. She has always had her lunchtime nap in the carrycot when we are out for walks. I have tried to be in quiet places after the first 25 minutes of sleep, but have also tried more noisy places, either way she wakes up after 30 minutes. She never cries, only opens her eyes and is fully awake. Before this began, she would open her eyes slightly, and be in light sleep for about half an hour then fall back to deep sleep. It is really frustrating, especially since it was working so well before. She is not hungry, she gets food last thing before we leave the house.

I have tried twice to make her sleep at home, but she wakes after half hour then too.

My daughter is fully breast fed, taking feeds of 10-15 minutes at 7am, 10.30am, 2.30pm, 5pm, 6.30pm, 10.30pm and 3am. At 11.15am she has 5minutes before we leave the house.

My daughter naps at 8.45-9.15am, 11.45-12.15pm, 1.45-2.30pm and 4-4.30pm. She settles at 7pm.

The sleep cycles of your daughter have started to change which is why she now wakes up completely after 30 minutes. As you are out with her during this nap it may help her to have a blanket across the pram, blocking out the light and stimulation. Now she is four months old and more alert she will be interested in what she sees going on around her. Once she has come into a light sleep in her pram she will hear noises and be stimulated by the light to wake fully.

This is why Gina suggests this nap is taken in a darkened nursery on most days. As your daughter is used to being in a pram, and having the movement to help her to settle, it will take her time to get used to being in a cot. If you decide to move her into her cot for this nap you must be prepared for her to cry down when she wakes after 30 minutes. She will need to learn how to settle herself back to sleep again, without the familiar motion of the pram.

If she is happy to lie in her pram whilst awake, and you are happy being out at this time, let things stay the way they are. As she does settle herself back again in time she is still sleeping for 1hour 15 minutes at this nap, just not in one long stretch. If you find that she is getting tired in the afternoon due to the lack of a longer sleep you may decide to get her used to sleeping in her cot in the daytime. Take a look at the Lunchtime Nap article on the web-site to help you to decide if you want your daughter to get more used to settling in her cot in the day.