I have 4 month old boy/girl twins and I think I'm about to go crazy... My little girl is a terrible day sleeper which makes her very cranky all the time. I try to keep them both on the same sleep/food routine. I read the Save Our Sleep book and tried to follow the routines in there but it just doesn't seem to be working (because she won't sleep for long enough). They go to bed at 7pm and she wakes for bottles around 1am then again around 5.30am, then I wake both up at 7am. My son sleeps through most nights (he is a really easy baby - thank god!! But could also do with longer day sleeps. He just doesn't get cranky like her.). About an hour after they wake in the mornings, my daughter is scratchy and tired again. I keep them up until 9am but I only ever get 40 mins naps out of her. She is still tired and cranky when she wakes but I can't get her back to sleep for about 30-40mins for another 40 min nap. Throughout the day she has about 6x 40 naps which I know is bad as she is not getting the quality of a long sleep. They are on 4 hr feeds. I've started some basic solids but it hasn't made a difference. I obviously need to give my son lots of attention too which is very difficult at times because she is so demanding and wanting to be held. They both have dummies and I thought removing them would help. After about five days of her screaming and almost ending up in a mental hospital, I gave it back.
I'm pulling my hair out! What do I do?? How can I make her sleep longer in the day so she will stop being so cranky? Is it because they are still too young to self settle?
Any advice will be appreciated.
6 Replies
They may not be ready to self settle. Some babies just take longer to develop this. What happens if you let your daughter sleep past 7am? Some babies just need to be left to sleep when they are sleeping. I can't imagine the juggling you need to do with twins to get everyone's needs met!
Could it be that she just can't stay awake for 2 hours and becomes over tired? My son is 8 months and has only recently been able to stay awake for 2 hours. Might be difficult to 'sync' the two of them up though..
I have twin boys who are now two and there were days I just had them on different schedules to help them nap longer. I found if I tried to get them on the same it made one of them very grumpy all day. For the cat napper put her down at the first signs of tiredness even if it's before your twin boy going down. As they get older, they will end up on the same schedule.
Sounds like they are sleeping well at night so great job mummy.
Oh Hun I feel you. Not that I had twins but the lack of sleep and taking car of two at the same time can drive anyone nuts!!
Has your little girl always slept like that from the beginning?
Sleep promotes sleep. With your girl I wouldn't be waking her in the mornings, let her sleep as long as she likes, maintain the routine with your boy if it is working for him.
When my lo was around the 4 month mark she did the exact same thing for a while but now at 6 1/2 months is a lot better. I tried to stick to a '2 hour routine' awake for two hours, sleep for two hours. Although when she was cat napping she would only last 1 1/2 hours awake before becoming grizzly.
I still dream of the day when both my kiddies will nap at the same time so I can sneak in a nap too!!
I wouldn't wake them at 7 , "never wake a sleeping baby" all my old relatives told me this , all have 6+ children and feed on demand your little girl might have a bigger appetite then your boy. Good luck x
Great answers.
Just a thought to check for something else like reflux.
I'm also a mum to twins. With all my kids, I found Tizzy's advice On routines worked best from 5-6 months / start solids.
Also a reminder that there's another growth spurt at 4 months = cranky-pant babies