Dropping the Nap
It hurts to even say it. Our family has just gone through the process of dropping-the-nap. We were all big fans of naps (especially on the weekends, when mom and dad got a chance to nap, too!), but the time has come. How did we know? Bedtime was starting to become a struggle. It would take our little guy too long to fall asleep. He was stalling at bedtime, getting upset when we left, and would just not settle down. He was even waking in the middle of the night. I can’t say that we did it perfectly, but here is how we are surviving the transition.
We started the transition just before we left for vacation. I’m not sure if this helped us or hurt us, but as a stay-at-home mom, it was nice to have some distraction and extra hands (thanks, Mimi!) as we adjusted to a no-nap schedule.
We were OK with quick catnaps – but didn’t let them last for too long. A quick snooze on the couch before dinner? Sure. Falling asleep in the car for a few minutes? OK. It is an adjustment for the body to go from naps to no naps, and sometimes you just need a quick nap to make it to bedtime. I tried not to let him sleep for more than 20 minutes and these naps did not seem to interfere with bedtime. Remember, each child is different.
We started quiet time. Sometimes it is a movie in the afternoon (remember – no judgment here). Today it was just a few minutes alone in his room. My best advice is to start small and work your way up. Our first quiet time lasted 5 minutes. We went over the rules before we started. He had to stay in his room, but he did not have to sleep. He could have the lights on or off. He could lay in his bed or on the floor. He could look at books or play with his toys. He was in charge of quiet time. He set the timer and I closed the door and let him do his thing. Honestly, I wasn’t sure how it would go. When I opened the door at the end of those five minutes, do you know what he said? “That was really fun, can we do that again tomorrow?” Absolutely. After you establish the rules and boundaries - and they understand how it works - you can gradually increase the amount of time. Some folks also have a special basket of books, activities and toys that is only available during quiet time. Do what works best for your family.
We made bedtime earlier. We moved up bedtime by about 30 minutes, and it really seemed to help our little guy not get too overtired. An overtired child can be even harder to get to bed and can tend to wake in the night.
We dropped the nap, and now bedtime is back to normal. It was an adjustment, but we’re also more easily able to be out and about during the day. It worked well for our vacation, and we’re thankful to be done with those bedtime battles.
If you’re looking at a 3-to-2, 2-to-1, or no nap transition and could use some help, let me know. It’s easier to do it with someone cheering you on. Send me an email at nikki@nikkinelsonsleepconsulting.com to get started.