{"id":54790,"date":"2019-10-09T19:56:47","date_gmt":"2019-10-09T19:56:47","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.babyhealthandcare.com\/is-your-child-ready-to-stop-naptime\/"},"modified":"2019-10-09T19:56:47","modified_gmt":"2019-10-09T19:56:47","slug":"is-your-child-ready-to-stop-naptime","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.babyhealthandcare.com\/de\/is-your-child-ready-to-stop-naptime\/","title":{"rendered":"Is your child ready to stop naptime?"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Kelly Sturtevant tried everything to get daughter Keira to nap. She\u2019d lie with her, read another story<\/strong>, sing yet another song. But the rambunctious 2\u00bd-year-old refused to nod off. \u201cI would spend the entire time running up trying to get her to fall asleep or yelling at her for getting out of bed,\u201d said the 32-year-old Calgary mom of two. \u201cAfter two hours, I was so flustered that I spent the rest of the day just angry that she hadn\u2019t slept.\u201d<\/p>\n

Naps serve a key function for young kids. \u201cSleep is important for learning, memory and growth,\u201d says Alyson Shaw, a paediatric consultant at the Children\u2019s Hospital of Eastern Ontario in Ottawa. But let\u2019s be frank: That\u2019s not why parents lament the day when kids outgrow naps. \u201cWorking parents, they get lunch, they get coffee breaks,\u201d says Sturtevant. \u201cStay-at-home moms, we get nap time.\u201d Sadly, not forever. Here\u2019s how to cope when it\u2019s time to lose the snooze<\/strong>.<\/p>

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Don\u2019t be a slave to the calendar<\/h2>\n

While most children give up naps between ages three and five, it can be normal for kids as young as two to stop, while 10 to 12 percent of children still nap at age five, according to Manisha Witmans, director of the pediatric sleep program at Stollery Children\u2019s Hospital in Edmonton. Expect some inconsistency during the transition. \u201cIt might be for a few weeks they\u2019re only napping three out of seven days, and then it might be two out of seven days,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

Know when to keep the sleep<\/h2>\n

If your child skips a nap, then nods off on late-afternoon walks or drives, she probably still needs her rest. Shaw suggests waking her by 4 p.m. so as not to sabotage bedtime. Monitor how your child handles days without a snooze: \u201cIf she\u2019s cantankerous and unmanageable, then probably the nap is still needed,\u201d says Witmans.<\/p>\n

Expect a good fight<\/h2>\n

Lyne Grimes\u2019s daughter was two when she started protesting her nap. When Gabrielle skips it, she\u2019ll either fall asleep in the car when they\u2019re out and about in Dartmouth, NS, or start \u201ccrying at the drop of a hat\u201d around dinnertime.<\/p>\n

According to Isabela Granic, a developmental psychology professor and co-author of Bed Timing, toddlers<\/strong> like Gabrielle are typical: Major cognitive changes occurring around age 18 to 24 months, and again at 36 to 42 months, can prompt some children to fight napping. \u201cIt\u2019s not necessarily because their physical bodies have decided they don\u2019t need it, it\u2019s their cognitive capacity to want more autonomy and power in the relationship, to fight for stuff when they aren\u2019t allowed to fight for almost anything,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n

So what do you do? A sleep-deprived child will show increased aggression, crankiness, hyperactivity, inattentiveness and a personality shift on days he doesn\u2019t nap. \u201cI would ramp up my efforts to try to get my child to sleep more,\u201d Granic says. \u201cIf those signs are missing, then the child might not need to nap.\u201d<\/p>\n

Help a protestor sleep<\/h2>\n

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\nHow to deal with toddler sleep regressions<\/span>If Gabrielle starts crying in bed, Grimes or her husband soothe her with a quiet voice. \u201cWe\u2019ll say, \u2018Now sit down and put your head on your pillow\u2019 and we\u2019ll rub her back for 20 to 30 seconds and then leave the room,\u201d says Grimes. Often, it works.<\/p>\n

Toronto mom Katie Lawrence has braved sub-zero temperatures to get 31\u20442-year-old Gwenyth to nap in the double stroller she shares with 71\u20442-month-old sister Sophie. Lawrence says the cold weather doesn\u2019t faze her \u201cas long as the sidewalks are clear and I have a hat and mitts and a warm coat on.\u201d<\/p>\n

When Granic\u2019s twins were dropping their nap, she played audiobooks. After five to 10 minutes, they would often quiet down and start dozing.<\/p>\n

Accept the occasional bad day<\/h2>\n

It\u2019s normal for a kid transitioning out of naps to have an erratic snooze pattern<\/strong> or an occasional afternoon meltdown. An early bedtime may stave off a crash, since most kids five and under need 10 to 12 hours of sleep.<\/p>\n

Trade naps for quiet time<\/h2>\n

Some parents put on a movie or leave their kids in their bedrooms with books or crafts. Sturtevant fills a \u201cquiet time box\u201d with books and toys like an Etch-a-Sketch, puzzle and no-mess water pens. \u201cKeira\u2019s gung-ho about this box; she\u2019s absolutely quiet sitting up there playing by herself,\u201d says Sturtevant. And don\u2019t be surprised if a child who isn\u2019t quite over naps nods off during quiet time.<\/p>\n

Give yourself a break<\/h2>\n

It\u2019s normal to feel resentful when naps disappear. \u201cIt\u2019s not because you\u2019re a selfish mother, it\u2019s because you actually need some downtime,\u201d Granic says. \u201cParents are tired \u2014 some work 12 hours a day. Some require exercise to feel human and that\u2019s the only time they can fit it in. Some have part-time jobs they can only get to during nap time. Some are introverts and need some alone time,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n

Although recapturing two hours of downtime might be optimistic, parents can still get a break. While her seven-week-old is sleeping, Leanne Loney of Val-d\u2019Or, Que., sometimes curls up on the floor while her four- and two-year-old play around her. \u201cI can rest a little bit,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n

Maintain a little consistency<\/h2>\n

While most children can adapt to napping at daycare and not at home, it\u2019s important to provide some predictability. \u201cIf routines are changing every day, the child will give you signals,\u201d Granic says. \u201cIf she\u2019s tired, cranky and hyper, that\u2019s something you\u2019re doing wrong.\u201d However, if that daycare snooze leaves her lying awake at night, ask about shortening the nap or substituting quiet time.<\/p>\n

Celebrate when it\u2019s done<\/h2>\n

Some parents find the end of nap time<\/strong> liberating. \u201cAt the beginning, we missed the nap, but I find we have so much more freedom,\u201d says Alexandra Collins of St. John\u2019s. \u201cNow we can go swimming from one to three. We aren\u2019t slaves to nap time anymore.\u201d<\/p>\n

Read more:
Sleep and feeding schedules for your baby and toddler
Snooze control: An age-by-age guide to naps
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