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Parenting

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Original poster

Anybody had a toddler that gave up their afternoon naps before 2 years old?

24 replies

Tapster · 04/04/2008 15:07

If so how did it happen - gradually/immediately and how did you handle it. How did you know to give up.

My DD'a (nearly 17 months) afternoon nap seems to be getting later and later. She normally slept 1-2.30/3pm. This last week its been hard to get her to bed at 1pm she doesn't seem that tired. Today she went to sleep at nearly 2pm. She is having a longer nap 2 hours each time so she is tired and she is sleeping through the night but she won't go to bed until at 8pm instead of 7pm so me and DH hardly get an evening it feels. She just seems too interested in life to sleep. I am tiring her out all morning as well to try and improve her appetite (mixed success). Maybe its just a blip, I'm exhausted and about to have a quick nap.

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Wheelybug · 04/04/2008 15:10

yes.

DD was 20 months when we finally gave it up. She was not going to sleep at night until about 10pm so we knocked it on the head.

To be honest, I can't really remember whether there was a big lead up to it - I guess there must have been. Try her without a nap and see how she does - dd was fine. I made sure she had a bit of quiet time after lunch instead of an actual sleep and she was fine. Even now though (3.2) she can stay up late quite easily so needs no 'help' in being able to !

Wheelybug · 04/04/2008 15:11

Apparently my brothers and I all gave up napping at about 12 months.

sweetkitty · 04/04/2008 15:20

DD2 was just before her second birthday. She was going to bed at 8pm and singing and playing in her cot to well gone 9 sometimes nearer 10. Didn't like the idea of her up there all by herself for over an hour.

We cut her nap back to an hour but that didn't work so we didn't put her down at all. There are times when she goes a bit ballastic but we have quiet time in the afternoon (like now they are watching Peppa Pig) where we have comfort toys/blankets/bit of TV.

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geekgirl · 04/04/2008 15:22

yes, ds gave up just after 12 months. he was always an atrocious napper really - never got more than 30 minutes, even when he was a newborn.
Maybe see if it she will drop it and go to bed earlier?

scoopmuckanddizzy · 04/04/2008 15:27

My dd started doing this a while ago.

Why don't you try putting her down 5 mins earlier each day until she's going to sleep at 1 again.

I did this and it works, it might take a week or so but 5 mins earlier is only a slight difference so hopefully she won't notice!

BTW my dd is 2 and a half and still napping although not every day.

HTH

terramum · 04/04/2008 15:27

DS stopped having his nap at around 18 months - 2 yrs old. I didn't notice at first tbh as I never physically put him down for a nap - he just used to fall asleep during an afternoon breastfeed...it was quite gradual though at first some days he would ahve one & some he wouldn't, depending on where we were or what we were doing...but it wasn't too much bother. He just needed careful handling towards the early evening in the run up to dinner when he was really tired. Lots of cuddles, quiet times with the tv or reading etc & dinner had to be served right on time or he would fall asleep without having any ...but overall I don't remember it being too bad - just a pain for me getting things done as nap time used to be my tidy time.

StarlightMcKenzie · 04/04/2008 15:33

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pistachio · 04/04/2008 15:43

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CarGirl · 04/04/2008 15:48

Tapster have you taken into account the clock change - 8pm is 7pm, 2pm is 1pm IYSWIM

Skimty · 04/04/2008 19:38

DS 19mth has just had two days without his nap.
I think it's too early TBH but he was going so mental about naps even at 2pm that I was losing my temper and it wasn't good for any of us. The clocks changing really put him out.
So I just stopped. We've stayed in the afternoons because I don't really want him napping at 5 and ataying up all night!

Mercy · 04/04/2008 19:45

Yes, my dd stopped abruptly at 20 months - I wouldn't mind but she'd only started having one regular long nap at 5 months anyway

(but a bit later during the summer she went back to having a nap most days for about 2-3 weeks - weather was very hot though)

mybestfriendiscalledstig · 04/04/2008 19:48

Have you tried waking her earlier - dd is woken at 2.30 regardless of when she went to sleep (although that's partly because I need to get her ready for the school run )

Dd is just 2 & starting to drop hers (will skip it every few days)

MinkyBorage · 04/04/2008 19:49

dd1 started doing this when she was about 2 and could go some days without a nap at all, but would be exhausted by lunch time the following day falling asleep in her food. I moved her nps to 11:30, and have had no problem since then. The first few days were a bit of a struggle, but well worth it. If we were out in the buggy or car, then she would generally fall asleep t 11 ish.

puffling · 04/04/2008 19:50

if she's still sleeping for 2 hours, it's not surprising she's not tired till 8. If you want your evening back, shorten her nap.

peanutbear · 04/04/2008 19:51

my dd now 21 mths has not had a day time nap for ages now

because it got later and later and like yourself so did bedtime so I just stopped the nap I tried putting her down earlier but it didnt work

eekamoose · 04/04/2008 19:51

My DS gave up at exactly 2 years old. But then went through a phase when a little bit older of falling asleep in car/buggy if we were out in the early afternoon and I could transfer him on to the sofa to sleep for an hour. That lasted quite a long time (maybe 6 months). So, did I engineer it so that we would be out in car/buggy in early afternoon quite a lot? Most definitely! lol!

He needed the sleep. He just didn't think he did! (joys of 2 year olds).

Flo23 · 04/04/2008 19:54

DS1 used to sleep for 2.5 hours just after lunch. He was consistent with this, I could plan things around his nap, things around the house would get done, and I loved the peace I had for that time. Then he just stopped. He didnt nap for less time, one day he had a nap, the next he didn't.

I tried to keep it going, but that was it! No more naps from just before his 2nd birthday.

Mercy · 04/04/2008 19:54

2 hours at 17 months isn't excessive though ime.

liath · 04/04/2008 19:55

Dd gave up naps at 20 months or so, it was fairly sudden IIRC but even now at 3 she will occasionally have one if she's very tired (but only in the car or buggy). She usually goes to bed at 7pm so that's a bonus.

Ds looks like he'll be following suit - 11 months and only napping once a day now!!

SmugColditz · 04/04/2008 19:56

have you considered that the clocks have changed, and that what was 7pm is now 8pm?

serenity · 04/04/2008 19:57

All of mine gave up daytime naps at around 18mths (roughly coinciding with when they started sleeping through the night)

I came to the conclusion that someone hated me, and it was all one big cosmic joke at my expense.

Actually it wasn't that bad as they were all fairly laid back kids anyway, but still.......

MadamePlatypus · 04/04/2008 20:09

DD is 17 months and has a nap of about 1.5 hours at lunchtime. She goes to sleep at about 7.45, and is up at about 6.30, so sleeps 12.5-13 hours a day. However, we have a 4 year old who definitely wouldn't be asleep by 7, and they share a room and have the same bed-time, so no real incentive to give her an earlier bed-time.

I think a 2 hour sleep and lights out at 7 would be unusual for most children (although all are different and there are big sleepers). If you want to try to keep a nap, I found with DS that loads of physical activity in the morning helps. Even at 4, if he has been running around on the beach in the morning he will catch some z's on the way home.

fannysparkle · 04/04/2008 20:52

Ds stopped naps at about 18 months and it was because like you his sleeps were getting later and later and so eventually i arranged my day around him. eg- i made sure no car trips or walks in the buggy after 2 pm so no risk of him falling asleep without me knowing. Keeping him amused till 4pm and then gave him dinner, 5pm bath and once he was in his P.j's i didn't care when he fell asleep as i would just put him in his cot. HTH

Original poster

Tapster · 05/04/2008 20:30

Thanks there is such a huge range. I'm so not an evening person and I really need DD to go to sleep by 7/7.15pm in order to cook dinner and have a bit of an evening with DH. So the late naps and late evening sleep I'm finding really hard. DD does need about 11.5 hours at night but I prefer to wake up at 6.15am that have dinner at 8.30pm. Its not the clocks changing as we were abroad last week and so she got used to the time change.

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