Help me help her nap!

[NoTeaForMe]

Hi all,

My baby is 11 months old and still won't go to sleep in her cot by herself. She's much better at night but in the day I have to rock her to sleep.

I really want to break this habit but I don't know how as I won't leave her to cry as I do think it's cruel at whatever age. I can't carry on cuddling her to sleep as she's getting heavy and it can't continue for ever!! She gets so upset if I try to leave her, or occasionally, after being virtually asleep in my arms, she has just woken up instead and then refused to have a sleep for a while.

We're on holiday for just over a week as of tomorrow, so I've got my husband with me for that time so I'll have his support - though he is happier to leave her to cry.

Please help me!!

[bagelmonkey]

If she will cuddle to sleep maybe the no cry sleep or nap solution is right for you? I haven't read it, but other people seem to have found it helpful. Right now I'm trying to find any way to get DD to nap......

[Mimosa8]

I have the same problem too, in that my DS refuses to nap without some form of rocking/swaying. He is 8 months and getting really heavy!I also find that if he is in my arms, he likes to arch backwards and crane his neck which makes holding him very difficult. BUT! In the last couple of days, I have managed to persuade him to nap by the use of a duvet and a springy mattress. I bunch up the duvet so that it forms a nice squashy mound. I place DS on this so he's comfortably reclined and then I sit facing him and bounce away on our bed whilst singing his lullaby.This leaves my hands free to pat or stroke him. He eventually falls asleep. I never leave him there unsupervised. I either sit there with my iPhone until he wakes up or transfer him gently to his cot/safe surface. Not the best way to get the nipper to sleep but it saves my shoulder/back!NB I haven't been brave enough to try this at night when he wakes up crying. I think this only works if the bub is in a reasonably good mood. Although it worked today when he was crying - I managed to distract him into watching me sing!good luck! Xx

[Iggly]

On holiday you might find you use a buggy more for naps - is that an option?

I got DS to self settle for naps by putting him down drowsy and patting - it didn't work at first but kept doing it every nap and he got the hang of napping in the cot then got the hang of self settling. But even now at 2 he sometimes needs a bit of a cuddle but it's so quick, I don't mind.

[bagelmonkey]

Iggly - how did you get him drowsy in the first place?
As soon as DD hats a whiff of a nap coming up she goes hyper :(

[Iggly]

We had a brief routine - in sleepbag, then I'd feed or rock then sit down with him on me and he'd drift off with some help. Always in a dark room. The aim was to get him used to napping and know it meant sleep time. It was harder during times when his naps were changing or if he'd had some excitement. I napped at the same times every day from 9 months which really helped.

[fififrog]

Are you averse to her crying a few minutes while you sit next to her? I've only just started putting DD into her cot for naps 2 weeks ago and she's just 6 months. She is totally awake when I put her in, not drowsy, but she is yawning/ rubbing eyes etc. I shut curtains, put her in sleeping bag, pop in cot then sit next to her not looking at her or talking. She does cry, sometimes quite hard, but for less than 10mins and it has the feel of a protest (I don't want to go to sleep, playing is more fun!). I expect this crying will reduce over time, it certainly did with getting her to sleep in the evenings. As I understand it, the key is to be present for comfort, but non-interactive to reduce stimulation. I expect to try ultra-gradual withdrawal in time, but will not rush into anything!

Hope you can get something to work for you.