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Posts Tagged ‘naps’

by Elizabeth Pantley, author of The No-Cry Sleep Solution

Napping is an important element of your child’s healthy mental and physical growth. A daily nap refreshes a child so that she can maintain her energy, focus, and ability to learn for the rest of the day. Some studies even show that children who nap every day are more flexible and adaptable, have longer attention spans and are less fussy than those who don’t nap.

How Can You Tell if your Child Needs a Nap?

Here are some of the signs that your child needs a daily nap:

• Wakes up in a good mood, but gets whiny and cranky as the day progresses
• Has more patience early in the day, but is easily aggravated later on
• Cries more easily in the afternoon and evening than earlier in the day
• Has an afternoon or early evening slump, but gets a second wind afterwards
• Yawns, rubs eyes, or fusses while getting ready for bed
• Often falls asleep in the car or when watching a movie

How Much Naptime Does your Child Need?

Children differ in their sleep needs, some needing more or less than shown here – but what follows is a general guide that applies to most of them. Even if your child’s sleep hours add up to the right amount, his or her behavior tells you more than any chart possibly could. When in doubt – always try for a nap, since even a period of quiet time can help a child feel more refreshed.

Average Hours of Daytime and Nighttime Sleep

* Newborns sleep 16-18 hours daily, spread over 6-7 sleep periods. ** These averages don’t signify unbroken stretches of sleep.

© Elizabeth Pantley, The No-Cry Sleep Solution and The No-Cry Sleep Solution for Toddlers & Preschoolers (McGraw-Hill)

When Should Your Child Nap?

The timing of your child’s naps is important since a nap that occurs too late in the day will prevent your child from being tired at bedtime. Generally, the best nap times are:

• If your child takes two naps: midmorning (around 9:00 to 11:00) and early afternoon (around 12:00 to 2:30)
• If your child takes one nap: early afternoon (around 12:00 to 2:30); after lunch

If your child tends towards short naps, don’t give in and assume that it’s all the nap time that she needs. Try some of these tips for increasing the length of naps:

• Give your child lunch or a snack a half hour before nap.
• Keep the sleeping room dark.
• Play soothing music or white noise during the entire nap.
• Make certain that discomfort from teething, allergies, asthma, ear infection or other health issues aren’t preventing your child from taking a good nap. If you suspect any of these, schedule a visit to your health care professional.

Watch for Signs of Tiredness

Tired children fall asleep easily. If he isn’t tired he’ll resist sleep, but if you miss his signals, he can become overtired and be unable to fall asleep when you finally do put him to bed. Your child may demonstrate one or more of these signs that tell you he is tired and ready to nap – now:

• losing interest in playtime
• rubbing his eyes
• looking glazed or unfocused
• becoming whiny, cranky or fussy
• losing patience with toys, activities or playmates
• having tantrums
• yawning
• lying down or slumping in his seat
• caressing a lovey or blanket
• asking for a pacifier, bottle or to nurse

The Nap Routine

Once you have created a nap schedule that works with your child’s daily periods of tiredness, follow a simple but specific nap routine. Your child will be most comfortable if there is a pattern to his day. He may come to predict when his naptime approaches and willingly cooperate with you.

Nap Routines Change

Children’s sleep needs change over time, so remember that the routine that you set up today won’t be the same one you’re using a year from now. Be adaptable!

Excerpted with permission by McGraw-Hill/Contemporary Publishing from The No-Cry Sleep Solution: Gentle Ways to Help Your Baby Sleep Through the Night by Elizabeth Pantley, copyright 2002, http://www.pantley.com/elizabeth

by Rachel Paxton

No mom looks forward to the day when her children stop taking their afternoon naps. I have been dreading this day, and it has finally arrived.

Different children stop taking naps at different ages. I have heard of many children giving up their nap at age two, but I hung in there with my twin boys until they were almost three and a half. When they started refusing to go to sleep until 11:00 p.m., I knew something had to change!

Giving up naps is a difficult transition for a toddler, and difficult for parents too. My boys were thrilled when I told them they didn’t have to take their naps anymore, but the first couple of days they were passing out on the couch right before dinner…they could hardly make it through the day.

It has been several weeks now since they stopped taking their afternoon nap, and we are definitely making progress. First of all, I have found that catnaps are okay when they just can’t make it through the day, but I can’t let them sleep for very long (i.e. more than an hour). The couple of times I let them sleep longer they were up until 11 p.m. again!

When I can keep them up all day they are generally asleep between 9:00-9:30 p.m. We start getting ready for bed by getting pajamas on, brushing teeth, reading books, etc., around 8 p.m. They will then sleep between 11-12 hours. Depending on what time your children need to get up in the morning, this will definitely affect what time they go to bed at night. My boys get up around 8:30 a.m.

I have one son who falls asleep really quickly, and one that plays in his bed for quite awhile before he falls asleep. During our first week of no naps, my sleepier one fell asleep at 7:30 p.m. one night and slept until the next morning! On the other hand, my other son just tonight couldn’t fall asleep until after 10:00 p.m., and I put them to bed before 9:00. The key is consistency. Putting your children to bed at the same time every night is important, as well as getting them up at the same time every morning. They won’t always fall asleep at the same time, but at least if they are in bed they will have the opportunity to fall asleep. I have also found that wearing them out definitely helps! Make sure they run around and get some of their energy out during the day.

Giving up naps doesn’t happen overnight. The afternoon is definitely longer, especially for me, but I am enjoying them going to bed at an earlier time and I realize this is just one more step in the process of them growing up!

Rachel Paxton is a freelance writer and mom of four. For resources for the Christian family, including parenting, toddler and preschool activities, homeschooling, family traditions, and more, visit http://www.Christian-Parent.com