teach 8 mo to nap on cot - how?

[PebblePots]

So my Dd has been enjoying naps on 'mummy mattress' so far, but I am thinking ahead to when I go back to work & she will need to nap on a travel cot at the childminders & a cot at her grandparents.

Thinking of doing similar to bedtime where I cuddle for 10 mins after milk ntil she's asleep then put into cot. She accepts this is normal at bedtime & goes to sleep even if she wakes up a bit when I put her down.

Ideally I would be able to put her down awake for naps & she puts self to sleep but I think this is too ambitious as a first step.

However I just hate the thought of messing up nap times as she's bound to wake up & get upset when I starry putting her in the cot! Thoughts on my plan, moral support & tips please!

Sorry for typos my phone screen is minute!

I would start doing all naps at home in the cot/travel cot. Use the same cues for sleep time, ie dim room, quiet, milk etc and hopefully she will start following the cues wherever she is. That's what works for my son anyway.

Thanks for the reply!

Hi Pebble,

The way I did it is I started off just putting him in the cot and letting him play in it several times a day, just to get him used to it and feel happy about being in there. Then I started putting him in there for one of his daytime naps, and over the course of several weeks progressed to all naps and night-time sleep. It may not work the same for all babies, but I found that this approach led to virtually no sleep disruption.

Good luck!