Skipping naps..
Show your support
Maybe he’s going through a regression? Also how many naps does he take? My toddler is down to one nap. He sleeps 2 hours for nap and 10 hours at night
Samzies girlfriend!
Just one a day now.. it's been 1 nap a day for a good while now. He's turning 20 months this month. I also thought it could be like a growth spurt/milestone
I have had to lay down with the kids to make sure we all get a nap. Personally, I need to take a nap, or I'm not a nice mama at the end of the day. So, I will take the kids into either their room or our room, put on some calming music, and we all fall asleep. Occasionally, if our oldest isn't going down, I'll leave the 20 mo in his bed and take the older one into our room. He can work on his ABC mouse app quietly while I and the little one get a nap.
I think the time change messed with my son's naps. What I'd suggest is giving him a loose schedule so he can become more predictable. So have a wake up time and bedtime set, meals at a certain time. I've also started prioritizing movement in his day to make sure he's getting exercise and is tired throughout the day I noticed I need to start winding him down 4 hours after he wakes up. He naps 1.5 hours and then he'll be ready for bed within 5 hours of nap. This just helps me keep the days similar even if he doesn't wake up at the same hours every day
Definitely try waking him early and at the same time everyday it makes bedtimes for everyone so much better. The sweet spot for bedtimes is between 7-8. Anything outside of that can cause problems. But likely it’s just his circadian rhythm is off. So try that for a few weeks and you should see improvements (it will be rough at first, but don’t give up). Also, I believe that 10-12 hrs is just for nighttime sleep, not including naps. Keep in mind that we usually we need to subtract about a half hour to an hour from the time we’ve been in bed to know how much sleep we actually got, if that makes sense. For example, I have to be in bed 9 hours to get 8 hours of sleep at night. Timing his food- so that he eats at the same time everyday will also set his circadian rhythm. This is so important for health outcomes for the rest of our lives so may as well start now!
Ok just double checked, it’s 12-14 hours of total sleep in a 24 hour period . So we should aim for 10-12 at night plus a 2-3 hour nap. Which is why it’s essential to wake him early. Also, keep in mind that wake windows change as they age. The older they get the longer their first window starts to become and the shorter their second window becomes, sort of opposite from when they’re babies. For example, a 20 month old will need about 5-6 hours of wake time between waking and the first nap, and 4-5 hours of waking between the end of the nap and bedtime. Hope this helps!
My daughter goes to daycare so we follow the same schedule at home. She takes her nap at 1pm and then goes to sleep at 7:30 and wakes up between 5:30 and 6:00
I've had my daughter on a schedule since she was 2 months old. I've gotten her to like naps like it's a reward. She now comes up to me saying nap night night with her blanket and it's always right on time to the schedule I've set. She goes to sleep for 12 hours at night too and we cuddle in the morning after she wakes.
@Alex nice! Do you mind sharing your LO's schedule including meals? I've been able to get him on a schedule since I posted this but he woke up at 430am today & skipped lunch. Fed him after his nap. It's feeling like we're going the right direction with a consistent schedule just a little off with his meals today.
My little one is doing the same, except she's waking about 2.5 hours after going to bed at night and only sleeps for about 8 hours at night. Usually gets one nap a day, but has been skipping them or having a 10 hour wake window before napping. I've spoken to her Pediatricians and they shared some kids just sleep less, just like some adults.