Talk to me about daytime naps in the cot

[onionlove]

Hi everyone,
I'm going round in circles trying to sort out a good nap for my DS (18 months) during the day. He has recently starting sleeping in a cot at nursery just after lunch, has a 5 minute mess around then settles straight to sleep (oh what I would give). Previous to that he used to nap in a push chair there and when he is at home he used to nap either in the car or the push chair at home. He will still fall asleep in the car but although I used to put him from car to push chair when we got home to finish his nap he won't do that anymore and gets upset. I thought to myself "oh I'll try him in his room maybe he prefers the cot now" but I was wrong and he screamed the place down. Not sure where to go from here, whether to persevere trying to get him to nap in his cot in the daytime (ideal solution, more restful sleep for him and means I can get things done) or just wing it and let him sleep wherever/whenever. Do you think its possible to achieve where the nursery has now had success? He has a pretty good nighttime routine, takes him about 45 minutes to settle and he was starting to sleep through until a big tooth appeared this week(!). I don't want to disrupt his nighttime routine either, just not sure what to do. Any thoughts would be much appreciated.
Thanks
Onion xx

[Iggly]

How do you put him down in his cot at home? He might need more cuddling etc and you telling him it's nap time. DS goes out like a light for his nannybut not the same for me, despite being in the same place for his naps! I'll give some milk, then put him down and rub his back until he sleeps.

[onionlove]

Hi Iggy,
During the day I don't really get to put him in the cot because he screams the place down when I carry him into his room, he's OK at night but during the day doesn't want to be in there at all unless its to browse his books. I think I'm just going to have to bite the bullet and get him in there.

[HoneyPablo]

I would be inclined to keep trying him in his cot. It might take a few days but he will eventually settle. The same rules apply as for when you settle him at night. He needs some cues that it is nap time. That's probably why he settles so well at nursery, the routine is the key.
The cot must only be used for sleeping, so remove any books or toys or he will be too stimulated.
Make sure the room is dark and the curtains drawn before you take him in for his nap. Do they use any music at the nursery? We have Gina Ford's bedtime lullabys cd, but lots of nurseries use whale music.
Try patting him to sleep or stroking his face. Down the forehead and nose, closing the eyes as you stroke normally works. I normally do this silently, without making eye contact.

[memphis83]

My DS (1) always slept in his bouncy chair/pushchair but I couldnt get anything done so I started putting him to bed, the first week he cried for nearly an hour, after about 20 mins I would go in and shush/pat him to reassure that I was still there, Then it just clicked, now I put the quilt on him and he closes his eyes straight away.
We also hae a lullaby toy that I play at bed time and nap time.

[onionlove]

Thanks for replies honeypablo and memphis
This gives me hope that I can do it even after all this time. Will keep on trying :-) Memphis, like you say I just need to get things done during the day so we aren't busy cooking, washing up, tidying etc. in the evenings all the time.
Wish me luck!

[stansmomma]

my little fella has always been put in his cot for his nap in the morning, and in the pushchair in the afternoon. mainly because in the morning he's still in his jammys and it seems the obvious choice to put him to bed, and in the afternoon we may have been out walking or ive rocked him whilst holding a cup of tea in one hand and the pram handle in the other. but to be honest, pretty much everytime i put him in the cot to nap in the morning he cries for a few minutes, i rarely go back into the room though, the trusty monitor lets me know he's ok. you could try drawing the curtains and giving him a warm drink in the bedroom on a chair in your arms, with some soft music or a short book? then put him down, kiss and leave the room. i do think the key is catching them before they get too tired though, and consistancy. unfortunately our little angels know all to well that mummy is soft and doesn't like the crying.

[Iggly]

Can you have a little nap routine so he knows what's coming? I tell DS 5 mins before that it's nearly nap time then we have his routine - lightship, sleepbag, feed, cot.

[JenniferR]

I'm currently trying to get my baby to learn to sleep in her cot during the day. She screamed a lot at first and seemed like she'd never go down. We kept at it though and now she will sleep in her cot! She still screams and we sometimes need to spend half an hour putting her down but we figure that the more we try to more used to it she will be (she isn't napping as long as I'd hope at the mo). The time it takes to put her down is getting shorter and the screaming isn't as bad as when we started.
I should add that we do not use the 'cry it out' method. Instead we put our hand on her chest and make 'shhh, shhh' noises- I know that this may sound odd but it really works and reassures her that we are there. Takes a while for it to work, but it does!
I would recommend 'the no-cry sleep solution' by Elizabeth Pantley. You need to have patience with this method but I personally am trying to make a go of it to avoid the 'cry-it out' approach- here's hoping it will work.
PS- In the book it suggests spending some relaxing time with little one in the cot outised of sleeping time so that they get used to it and don't see it as a place they dread- may be worth a shot??

[wearymum200]

Fwiw my experience with ds1 suggests that you may never crack the daytime cot thing. ds1 was always a good sleeper at night, but refused to go in cot in day at home after 16m (but slept at nursery). I took the view that i was happy with night time routine and didn't want to b**r it up, so just let him sleep in the pushchair in the day. He dropped nap altogeteher at 18m.

[memphis83]

You will get there, just stay positive, and sending you luck you can do it!