daytime naps...they're tired...do you let them scream until asleep?

[Notyummy]

my 15 week old dd goes down quite well at night, including going into her cot and going to sleep on her own. during the day she will go to sleep in the car or if taken a walk in her pram, but if i try to get her to go in a cot or bouncy chair for a nap she screams and screams...record so far 40 mins. sometimes rocking her helps, but not always. she is going to nursery in jaN where they will put her in a cot for daytime naps, so she will have to learn. Do i just keep putting her down when she is obviously tired and let her scream|? sorry....first time mum without a clue!

Try putting her down a little earlier. It could be that she's over-tired and fighting sleep as a result. Avoid using the bouncy chair for naps, I think, if you want her to get used to regular naps in a cot.

i agree with prettycandles, try putting her down half an hour earlier. also i make sure that the curtains are open so dd has something interesting (er, a tree) to look at when i leave her.

Do you have any 'sleep cues' for night time (a particular toy, song, words, etc) You could try creating a cue for a day time nap. I've got a 17 week old who hates day time naps too so we are working on them at the moment. I have noticed he starts to look tired (rubbing his eyes, etc) then I take him upstairs, turn off the lights, shut the curtains, tuck him in, give him a special toy, say 'nap time now, sleep tight' then walk out. Sometimes he will grizzle then fall asleep but not always. I am afraid I just can not let him cry so I do all I can to help him go to sleep without taking him out of his cot but always try to stop as his eye lids are really droopy. Does not always work but my plan is to be consistent as I can and hope that he learns the routine. Have no idea if it will work but fingers crossed!!! There is just too much fun for them in the day to sleep I think then they get over tired.

Our lives sound so similar. I am back to work in jan and still cant get dd sleeping in day. She has just taken to a snuggle though and I am going to persevere next week and let her take this to bed.

Hi notyummy. Just wondered if you had any more success with daytime napping. If so, what is working for you? My dd 17wks resisted strongly to going in the cot today (and most days), but is now happily tucked up in her pram downstairs!!!!! Minx!!! Will it ever get any easier?

Hi - DD now 4 months and we were having same probs - would nap for a max of 30 mins - mainly when on the move and would scream if put in cot. All of a sudden (fingers crossed) she's started to sleep first for an hour and then y'day 2 hours in the middle of the day. This was in her pram however - but I don't think this matters. I was taking her out for a walk around lunchtime, waiting until she had been asleep for about 40 mins or so then heading home hoping she would stay asleep, which she started to. Now I just put her in her pram when she looks tired around 12-1 ish and she sleeps! The pram is in a quiet spot, in the kitchen. It's taken a couple of weeks of trying diff things then she's started sleeping longer all of a sudden. HTH (mind you now I've posted this she will prob wake up and start giggling....)

My advice is to not worry about the nursery thing - in my experience the nursery was better at establishing their routines. Both my babies went to a private nursery and had better daytime routines as a result. My DS2 who is now 11 months had to be rocked to sleep in his pushchair to go to sleep during the day, when I was in 'charge'. After starting nursery you can now put him down, wide awake and off he goes - usually without a whimper. I don't know what they do, but it must be magic or maybe its drugs - its not unusual for me to pick him up and the whole room of 6 babies to be having their naps!!!!