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Behaviour/development

Talk to others about child development and behaviour stages here. You can find more information on our development calendar.

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Original poster

Is it time to drop the nap altogether?

17 replies

boredbuthappy · 12/04/2013 02:29

It is 9:30pm. DS (2yrs) is currently in bed and has been singing for over an hour. He's been doing this consistently for a couple of weeks now. He is happy to hang out in his room on his own, so no trouble there, but he used to be out like a light within 15-20 mins of being put down for the night. He is sporadic with his naps, some days he sleeps 2 hours, some days only half an hour. My gut is telling me the nap is on its way out, but would love a few pointers on how to move towards cutting it out completely.

Thoughts?

OP posts:

Doretaball · 12/04/2013 03:58

Our DD, now 2.5, was just like this a couple of months ago. We dropped the nap and now she goes straight to sleep when she goes down at 7ish.

I didnt really do anything to drop the nap. I just kept her busy in the afternoon and generally went out so that she didn't think about nap time. (She used to love it and take herself off to bed some days!) but her naps were getting later and longer and really affecting her sleep at night. I do now have to start bath time half an hour or so earlier, as she is really ready for it by then!

I feel like I have my evenings back again now as i dont have to listen to her for hours but do miss my hour of peace in the afternoon!

If she's really tired, I will nip out in the buggy so that she can have a doze but don't generally let get go to bed as she'll go into too deep a sleep.

Just do it and see how you get on - good luck!

babySophieRose · 12/04/2013 10:14

I have noticed that more activities in fresh air makes my DD sleep better. So with weather improving you could let him run in the park for an hour and see if he sleeps better?

sedgieloo · 12/04/2013 13:10

OP when going to sleep late does he sleep in late also? And how are late afternoons when not napping?

20wkbaby · 12/04/2013 13:26

My 18mo DD2 is doing a similar thing at the moment and has been since the clocks changed. I have been putting it down to the bedroom being lighter and her being visually stimulated whereas before it would have been too dark to see anything. I sincerely hope she is not ready to drop her nap - I think I need it more than she does!

Pascha · 12/04/2013 13:33

DS1 has done the same thing recently and so we've phased out the long daytime naps and its made such a difference. He still has a snooze if we are in the car, we usually let him have half an hour or so if he shuts his eyes. Other than that he goes straight through to bedtime now. 5-7pm can be a bit manic but we get through it by hook or by crook

neriberi · 12/04/2013 17:10

My DS is 2.5 and we've now abandoned his afternoon nap, he would go down in the evening and chat away to himself, then fall asleep BUT wake up at 1:30am and be awake pretty much on and off every hour or so calling out for us too, so we dropped the afternoon nap, new he sleeps all the way through from 7:30pm to about 7am.

The only downside to the lost nap is I can't play catch-up on household stuff so our, or rather my routine has shifted

mejon · 12/04/2013 19:49

Oh bugger, looks like my usually fantastic sleeping DD2 is getting ready too at 2.2. She's been taking up to 2 hohrs to drop off this week with lots of tears and tantrums and was crying and screaming at 4.45 this morning. I woke her from her nap after an hour this pm and she wasn't keen to get up (she normally has 1-1.5h). We'll see how tonight goes (I'm on my tab sitting next to the cot!!) and will try no nap tomorrow if we get a repeat performance. Oh well it's been good whilst it lasted -DD1 hardly napped at all as a baby so no.2 has been a novelty!

Ledkr · 12/04/2013 19:55

Same here tonight. Had a nap at 12.30 for an hour (which she really needed) but at bedtime wriggled off my lap when story was over then freaked out when we put her to bed.
She is only 2.2 I am gutted she may have to lose her nap.

fififrog · 12/04/2013 20:05

I personally think there may be some developmental nonsense going on here. My DD is exactly as OP described, though usually asleep by 8.30 - her naps have been 45 mins most nursery days these past two weeks but she then seems to have 2-2.5 hours some other days to catch up. I'm wary of cutting the nap, we went out on Sat and she had 30 mins at 3.30pm and the evening was a complete nightmare.

For us bedtime has been worse since she demanded a duvet at the weekend. Night has been a bit worse too so I think she's excited and rollicking around the cot... Just hoping things will stabilise a bit, i have hopes as she has had 1.5 hours (her norm) three days in a row :)

Original poster

boredbuthappy · 12/04/2013 23:28

sedgieloo he still wakes up at normal time (7:30 ish) when he goes to sleep late, and (luckily) he doesn't seem to be be bothered in the evenings when he's had little or no nap...hence why i think he's getting ready...to be fair though he's always been a little chap who's never really shown us 'tired signs', we've always been attached to a clock to determine when he needs sleep. At nursery he has a nap and it ranges from a half hour to an hour most days. In a way, I'm looking forward to no naps because he's gotten to an age where he's great to take out and working around the nap is limiting the things we do and when. I'd much rather know that we have a whole day to do things and not worry about how and where he will nap if we're out for the day.

OP posts:

capecath · 13/04/2013 14:05

DS1 is 2.8 and was behaving very similarly. We have "quiet play time" in his room for about an hour most days now, and sometimes he falls asleep but mostly not. He seems quite happy to take toys to his bed to play with. We always wake him after about half an hour if he does nod off.

pamelat · 13/04/2013 18:33

Same boat

Did this two weeks ago and ds (2years 11 months) can cope with it, and is going to sleep a lot better at bedtime

There's been the odd day that ive had to let him sleep as he's been beside himself but generally coped ok with it

We avoid driving far after about 3pm though just in case he drops off!!

sedgieloo · 13/04/2013 20:11

Hi boredbuthappy we have been going through this. My dd is 2 yrs 6 months. We actually cut her nap out, putting her to bed early only to put her back on a nap again in recent naps. That's mainly because she was getting very difficult as the day wore on (naughty) and she was also sleeping fitfully sometimes because of getting so overtired. We shorten her night now she's going to bed about 8 pm and get her up early and try and tire her of a morning. This helps me because I also have a young baby. Other friends have done differently. I may have stuck with the early bedtime if she did not get so difficult late afternoon. My hv suggested she may nap every other day.

If it happens that she is not tired for her nap she still has quiet time with books in her cot for 1.5 hrs and some quiet music on. She tolerates this well and it helps her not get quite so crazy tired and we bring bedtime forward.

sedgieloo · 13/04/2013 20:12

in recent weeks not naps. Should have previewed sorry!

Shnook · 14/04/2013 16:06

Op, definitely sounds like the nap is on its way out. Best advice I was ever given is when theyre dropping a nap but struggling to make it to bedtime, put them to bed earlier. Dont worry, it doesnt mean they'll get up earlier (although you might have to experiment to discover what bedtime works) -it just helps them make the transition from 1 nap to none and once theyre through that stage, bedtime will get later again. My DD went to bed at 6pm for a while when she dropped one of her naps and still slept through to 7am.

AnnieDelores · 14/04/2013 21:00

Just found this thread as DS is 20 months and is still mucking about in his cot, chatting and phaffing. I know he is tired as when I go up to stroke his head or his back his shuts his eyes then protests when I leave, but not for long. He naps for between 40 and 90 minutes at lunchtime and seems to enjoy it. But not going down till 9pm is not normal as he is usually asleep by 8pm at the latest after a 7am ish wake up.

Shortening the lunchtime nap doesn't seem t make a difference either way.

Not sure what to try!

MrsJdc · 18/04/2013 21:32

My DD is 21 months old and I've been noticing some very odd sleeping behaviour, similar to AnnieDelores. I'm just about to continue reading an article from a site I've used in the past and thought it might be worth a read??

www.mybabysleepguide.com/2012/03/age-of-great-resistance-14-to-24-months.html

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