Gina Ford Routine

mavislohsp

Registered User
Hi Moms & Dads,

I have tried to implement Gina Ford's routine. So fare i have no issue on the morning nap. However, it seems to have something wrong on the noon nap.
My baby is 4 months old now, he normally sleep 45mins to 1 hour for the morning nap, wake up between 10 to 10.30 am. When I tried to let him sleep his afternoon nap at around 12-12.30noon, he will not settle himself within half an hour, he would play in his cot, afterwards he would cry. This normally will carried on for about an hour or one and a half hour, then he sleep by himself.

I wonder which part has gone wrong. I have tried settle him within and after 2 hours after he last wake up, but both didn't work. Can anyone enlighten me please? Thanks!
 
why not listen to your baby's cues instead of following someone else's routine? i HATE gina ford, for that very reason. i know it works for some, but for many it just doesn't.

the best thing you can do is get to know your own baby's cues for sleep/eating etc. then make your own routine that works for the two of you. besides, most of the time, once you figure it out, baby has gone and grown and his needs change anyway.
 
from my experience - if you listen to your baby, you will find out that your baby will fall more or less into the routine that Gina Ford suggests...give or take 1 hour here and there...and least that is what happened for my first two kids. instead of 7pm-7am, my kids were 8pm to 8am with a very similar nap schedule (though not 100% perfect) to the one suggested and all i was doing was following my baby's cues. take it as a reference and you will have less stress - adjust and adapt it to your own baby and you will find it very useful. good luck!
 
i detest Gina Ford too... to think that one routine would fit all babies and to force caregivers to follow it by second is silly. listen to your baby - they usually have a routine of their own and would be much more comfortable with that. also would suggest not to hardcode it... follow an easy pattern. your baby would have different moods and needs every day.

routines if not hard coded help a lot and babies thrive if they have one. do listen to your baby - they are much more intelligent than gina ford gives them credit . all the best !
 
i think you either hate GF or love her. We followed her schedule loosely for our second son who is now 10 months. If your child's nap doesn't quite fit into her schedule, don't worry about it. Like those mentioned above, follow your child's cues and he/she will be a happy little baby!
 
I guess I shall do as what suggested above, follow her schedule loosely and listen to my baby's cue. Thank you so much for the advices!
 
i will suggest feeding a heavy lunch before the noon nap. your baby will be a lot sleepier trying to digest the food:)
 
I have problems feeding him too. He is very playful and keep pulling out from my breast, he often drink for about 15 mins then started to doze off on my breast and no matter how I tried to wake him up, he might just wake up for a little while then fall asleep again. I was thinking that since he has sleep, I shall put him back to his cot and let him continue to sleep. However, he might sleep for 10 mins and start crying hysterically. I tried pick him up again and offer him milk, he will suck and straight away doze off on my breast again. I tried offer him formula, he then refused. I tried left him cry in his cot, he will continued to cry for more than an hour then fall back to sleep. I really clueless on what to do. Moms out there, any advise? Thanks!
 
some babies are very efficient feeders. Neither of mine would ever drink for more than 10 minutes per feed....the amount that they drink is not always judged by the time they suck. My girl loved to suck, but after a few minutes of feeding, she was comfort sucking and not getting anything from it
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Perhaps following your baby's cues can also be the answer to his feeding problems. babies have strong survival instincts, they will eat when they're hungry, and they will
sleep when they're tired.

I wouldn't worry if he is gaining weight and generally happy during his waking hours. if this is not the case, then you might want to talk to your pediatrician to make sure he is ok physically.

good luck.
 
thanks everyone, I have started to understand and learn how to observed my LO's cue. His sleep has also improved ever since we sleep train him. Yes, I still a bit worried about his weight gain, but as others said, as long he is happy and active, and hitting his milestone accordingly, I think he is fine. Thanks everyone!
 
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