Is it OK for my 8 month old to nap in the living room during the day?

[Pugletpops]

I read that baby should nap in the same place she sleeps at night. My daughter only naps for half an hour unless I hold her. Believe me, I have tried every suggestion on the Internet to lengthen them and nothing has worked!

Anyway, I can get her to nap in her cot but it is a challenge to transfer her without her waking. The cot is an ikea cot bed with a high rail that doesn't lower, and I'm not the tallest person. Add in my c section scar that is still sore and it's a nightmare to hang over the edge of the cot as I slowly lower her down.

I have had success in tucking her up on the sofa and patting her to sleep. No lowering or transferring, it was pretty easy. But it's not the safest sleep spot, so I was thinking of using a nap mat or the mattress from our travel cot on the living room floor, so she'd be supervised. I figure she'll be napping at nursery soon so the rules about having the same sleep space won't apply, right? We don't have this problem at night, she is an excellent night sleeper. I can't lay her down awake during the day in her cot to avoid the transfer, I tried Ferber which worked great for night time but I don't see the point in putting her through those tears just for a measly thirty minutes!

The one thing I wouldn't use is the sofa, as they can roll off.

Ds is almost 9 months. We had the same with 28 minute naps until very recently. I also tried with the cot but transferring him was too hard. He sleeps well in the pram rocked or walked to sleep. I spent months googling and stressing like you. Actually I’d rather have a baby that naps in their pram than a cot in a dark room. A pram can come anywhere. About 8 months I pushed him into a 2 nap schedule. The first wee while of 2 x 30 mins he was shattered but then naps started to lengthen as I often read they do between 8-10 months. Now we pretty reliably get 20-30 mins in the morning then 2hrs in the afternoon. Some people say 30 mins isn’t restorative but I can’t get him to do 1h and 1h. Also 30 mins morning and then a 2 hr after lunch nap is basically the Gina Ford routine and I think another few of the “sleep consultant” plans. Don’t know never read them. Since I have relaxed and allowed DS to do what he naturally wants to do I’m much happier.

Nursery will crack this! They are geniuses at getting reluctant kids to sleep.
We always do naps in the bedroom as we don’t want to tiptoe around (also have an older child and dog.

As others have said, I used cot upstairs with blackout blinds and quiet to signal big sleep and they napped downstairs or wherever I happened to be in the day and I didn't keep it particularly quiet (has radio on, washer etc)

Sounds like you’re winning 🙂 my son didn’t get close to sleeping through until 20 months and still doesn’t all the time at 25 months

Mine always napped in her pram. I found this was better as meant I didn't always need to be at home for nap times, could be out & about if need be.

She never napped in her cot tbh - just pram, car or on me. 2.5 yrs now & no longer napping - how I long for those days.

I think downstairs in the day put to bed awake at night is fine and helps them distinguish between naps and nights. If you only ever put them down upstairs in the quiet and or dark it's a nightmare if you're out or using anyone to sit them like gran. Imagine having a hospital appointment and screaming over a tired baby.

All safety advice is to stop when a baby can roll ...eg NCT 2031, NHS

I have minded children sleep in the same room as non nappers even on a school holiday...even the terrible nobody can get them to sleepers and pitch black no noise babies. They then sleep better at home when parents go in the room etc.

I have a 7 month old and a 5 year old, I think the 5 year old once had a day time nap in her own bed 😂

The baby naps all over, sofa, car, pram, our bed, little sisters bed. It really doesn’t matter. Don’t worry what you read, as long as baby is safe, all is good.

It took ages to heal! After the op, I think about six weeks after, it was smelly, oozing n bleeding from a tiny hole. GP said go to the midwives, midwives said 'what do you expect us to do, it can be normal'. I went on antibiotics, this helped it heal up, then the same thing happened another six or eight weeks later. This time a nicer GP said it was granulation and prescribed an antibiotic cream which really helped. And now several months later there's a tiny hole, there was a bit of blood when I first noticed it but Savlon Advanced Healing seems to have put a stop to it. The GP was so un concerned and I don't have anyone to watch baby while I get properly checked out I'm caring for it the best I can, it's much better again but a bit stingy.

For both of my children I used a different place to sleep during the day initially than the one used at night hopefully signalling the night one was for a longer sleep. Once they were bigger I had to use the night time one for day time naps too because they were too big for the downstairs crib.

😱 that’s shocking, it should be fully healed after 12 weeks, not gaping after 8 months, poor poor you. Savlon is for grazes not unhealed surgery wounds and there’s also what you can’t see internally. You really need to be seen. Can you OH not watch baby whilst you go to the doctor? Your health is really important.

You really need to go back infection can cause blood poisoning infertility etc....can nobody help for one hour? Is dad not around....if you get seriously ill someone else will have to step in for days or longer.

I think the opposite napping somewhere different during the day is better as they know that bed equals long overnight sleep. Also if they only sleep at set times in their bed then you’re fucked if you want to go out or on holiday. Being flexible with where and when makes your life easier.

I would be thankful for this and stop worrying about the short daytime napping. Be very careful what you wish for, a longer daytime nap could push her sleep pattern into disrupted night time sleep. I know which I would rather have!