2 year old won't drop nap but isn't going to bed til 11pm - help!

[Lsquiggles]

I'm at my wits end and could really do with some advice. My soon to be 2 year old DD in the past month or so has not gone to bed before 10pm, more often than not 11pm.

She still has 1 nap during the day which I've started cutting down to 1.5 hours although she'll sleep 3 hours if I let her. Regardless of how long she naps she won't go to sleep at a normal time and then wakes up late, had a late nap and the cycle continues.

Has anyone else experienced this and what would you recommend? Should i completely stop her napping? In one way I feel she mustn't be ready to drop her nap as she can sleep for so long but we can't go on like this.

2 months ago she'd wake up at 8am, have a 2 hour nap from 12 til 2 and go to bed at half 8 like clockwork

I have a 2 year old who still likes a nap. She is awake from any time between 6 and 9 am nap between 12/3 and bed for half 7 sleep from 8.30. What time is her nap can you try it earlier ...

I think you need to get her up at 8am regardless of how late she went to bed, then try to get the 12-2 back

@rach2713 she usually wakes up at 8/9 so her nap is 12/1

My 2 year old is the same, and my older one was like it at 2. No nap, short nap, long nap, it seems to make no difference to the 10-11pm bedtime. And they are up at 7am. I have no advice, just trying to ride it out and hope it improves as my older one did!

@Hohofortherobbers even when (like today) I've managed to get her down for her usual nap, it's 11.30pm and she still won't go to sleep

@Veggiepotamus that's very reassuring to hear it isn't just us when did it start to settle down for you? It feel relentless at the moment, I feel withholding the nap is the only way forward but she's going to be so exhausted I just don't know what to do for the best!

Have you tried waking her earlier on a morning?

Try waking her between 7.30/8 nap 12/1 then bath story and bed for 7/8 if not has your health visitor got a sleep nurse on there team I had 1 with my 2 year old as we had a full year of no sleep at night time was up 10 plus times a night was a zombie but then she started sleeping so went to the total other end of the scale 🙉🙈

I would try and drop the nap altogether. All 3 of my dc had stopped napping by 2 because we had the same issue, ds2 was 18 months! We would sometimes do bedtime at 6 or 6:30 because they were so tired but this didn’t last long and it soon went back to 7:30.

It sounds a bit counterintuitive but I’d try waking a bit earlier allowing her to nap a bit longer/as long as she wants but ideally back up by 2/3 at the latest and then bed at the normal time. Give it at least two weeks before giving up.

It’s possible she’s overtired and actually needs more sleep