Do toddlers need a two hour nap?

[SS1987]

Just after a bit of advice. Have a 17 months old daughter who has always napped well but nights have been hit and miss. She currently has an hour and a half in the afternoon but then is awake over night for anything from half an hour to two hours. Few days ago she only had half an hour nap all day and slept for 12 hours overnight. Just got me thinking is an hour and a half too much? Most things you read say two hour naps but I’m not thinking is she having too much day sleep?

Every child is different, so I would trust your instincts. 2 of mine were horrendous without their afternoon nap, the other one dropped it a whole year earlier.

It completely depends on the child.

My 17 month old is a little whirlwind and gets hysterical if she gets overtired. But she literally never stops moving ever so needs to crash. She has a two hour nap late morning at the moment. Then sleeps 7-6 on a good day.

When DC1 was around 19 months, he dropped all naps entirely on his own - I didn't want him to as had a newborn at the time so could've done with him still having that nap, but he was ready to 'drop' it and it's stayed that way ever since - he's just turned 3.

DC2 will be 2 in January and still naps/still needs them. He can nap anywhere from an hour and a half, to three hours in one solid block, and is still asleep by 7pm each night.

Each child is different. I find following their lead is much easier/less stressful than what things online tell you a child 'should' be doing.

Every child is different but if they need a nap they need it. It is not the reason for night waking. You need to look at your settling and sleeping routines in total. A nap at 5pm will make settling difficult. If you try to make her do without it life may be very tricky. Many toddlers still need a good nap at 2 to 2 and a half

All mine nap for 2 hours. Roughly 1-3. They sleep through. Eldest dropped it at nearly 4, my 3 and 2 year old still have it.

My three year old still needs a nap, used to love a solid two hours but now we're down to an hour every other day.

My 18 month has between 2.5 and 3 hours a day and sleeps through. My mother in law can't get over that we let her sleep for that long, she always wakes her after 2 hours when she has her, but like a PP says, every kid is different and you know what you're child needs I'd say.

My DS is 14 months and only has an 1/1.5 hrs a day max, he sleeps 7-8.30am though tbf

My 19mo son has anywhere from 1.5-2.5 hours, I let him wake on his own. He has always been a reliable napper too, but was very wakeful at night (every 45 minutes! He went back to sleep easily but needed me) until about 14mo. He now sleeps 19.45-05.45 ish. As others have said they are all different. However I have found that in comparison with some friends whose children have always been “good” nighttime sleepers - my son seems to be more flexible about naps than many. His nighttime sleep won’t be affected if we e.g. have a family event at lunchtime and split his nap into morning and early afternoon (for now, of course, everything can and does change!) - some other children won’t cope with this

Depends on the child. Try it for a bit and see how it goes, it could just be a fluke.

Settling and sleeping routines are good so that’s not the problem. No dummy and self settled since 5 months. I’ll stick with the longer nap and hope it’s just a phase thanks

If you think she'd sleep better with a shorter nap try it for a week and see how it works out.
My son napped for two hours until he was nearly three. My daughter dropped her nap at 16 months. Each child is different so maybe your child does need a shorter nap

My 2.5 year old typically naps for 2 hours although sometimes it’s less if it’s in the stroller or car. She definitely still needs it. However, I also know younger children that have completely dropped their nap. Trust your instincts.

Wow! I'm not sure my DC ever napped for 2 whole hours during the day, I'm so jealous!

What time is their nap? Can you give a light lunch at 11am then down for a nap 11.30-1.30? That way they will be nicely tired at bedtime.

At 17 months mine slept 3hrs a day- night times usually slept through, if she didn’t she was usually teething- naps now at just over 2 go from no naps to 2.5hrs and needing to be woken up. Also depends what they’ve been up to in the day

DS is 20m and he will only nap between 30-60mins!
And he doesn't sleep through the night yet so goes to bed at 8 - up at 11, 2, 5 and finally at 7!
Still breastfeeding and very tired haha. Thank goodness for cosleeping!

They’re all so different. You could experiment a bit with reducing the nap slightly and seeing if it improves night time sleep. Or sometimes shifting the time slightly makes a different. Just do what works for you, my first dropped his nap at 2yrs 4 months and my second dropped his at 19 months. I probably could have kept his going for longer but he sleeps like a dream at night 7pm-8.30am so I don’t really mind

My 3 year old still needs one. He usually has about 2 hours but he isn't having them every single day anymore. Sleeps great at night so I'm going to enjoy the midday break for a little while longer

My 23mo has two hours every day but copes ok if he has a shorter one for whatever reason (if we need to go out).

It totally depends on the child. DD dropped her nap at 27 months and was pretty bad at night even after that. DS is 26 months and still likes a nap each day, varying from 1-2 hours.