20-Month Old Not Napping, but Needs It! What Are Your Napping Tips/schedules

My son has always been a great sleeper, but we went through a bout of this when he was 2. I still put him down between 1-1:30. First we read two books and then sing two songs. If he's really fighting it, I tell him to just take a 'Power nap' and only sleep for five minutes and then he can get up and play again. He's usually out like a light and then I let him sleep as long as he can. He's now 3 1/2 and hasn't busted me on the 5 minute thing yet! Good luck! :-)

Maybe try waking her in the morning a little earlier and see if that helps with the nap? It might be worth a try....

My daughter was the same way at 20 months... I finally tried moving her afternoon nap back an hour and it worked. After lunch we usually play outside (like another mom mentioned) or if it is really cold I drive to the near by mall that has a kid play area and let her run around there (nice because it is free).

So far it has worked (my daughter is 25 months now). There are still some days, very rare, when she does not take a nap BUT I still put her down for a nap and tell her that she has to stay there for an hour. I can hear her play for 30 mins and sometimes she falls asleep and sometimes not... at least we both have our alone quiet time.

Hi L.
Maybe she is trying to master a new skill which is makeing it hard for her to nap. I would keep doing what your doing and hopefully this is just a phase and she will get back to her naps soon.

Hi L.,

Leave the crib for bedtime and find a suitable place where the two of you can lie down together for nap. Once she's asleep, get up and do whatever or just nap with her (maybe not 2 hours, but some). You will find this time very special. And the time flies when they are little. It's worth a try and you probably need a nap too! :)

B.

Try more activity in the morning to wear her out or a later nap. Maybe postponing it an hour or so will help.

I take my son up to my bed or his big bed surround him with pillows just so he doesn't fall out. I lay down with him and tell him I'm tired and I want to nap. I pretend I am sleeping. Before I know it he is sound asleep and I caught about a 5 - 10 minute nap myself.
I agree, naps are still important.

We have a daughter around the same age. I agree they still need naps. She started to do the same thing. So, in my sleep book it suggests that at this age they can go down as late as 1:30. She just wasn't tired yet. I would make sure to wear her out and try the later time and she would go right out. Give that a try and see if it helps.

I didn't read thru the other responses so sorry if I repeat anything. I am thinking maybe she doesn't need to go down quite so early, maybe 12 30 is before she is tired enough? I would try pushing the nap back, like try 1 and if that doesn't work try 1 30 or 2 instead. I would say most 2 years olds still need naps so I wouldn't give up. My kids actually both took some kind of nap until they were 6.

Also some things we do before nap is read a story or two, cuddle a bit and then sometimes when I would lay them in bed I would rub their backs a bit and they would settle down. Another thing to do is to make sure their room is dark, you can put in room darkening shades-that helps a bundle for us. And maybe have a fan going or a cd, some kind of white noise in the backround to drown out any other noises going on out side of her room. Hope you find something that works--moms need some down time too!

It isn't unusal to see them try to give up naps at this age. My daughter gave them up by 2 and my little granddaughter will take them once in a while but most days goes without them and she will be 2 at the end of the month.

Since she isn't ready for a nap after lunch, can you wait and try to put her down around 2 instead? Maybe enough playing after eating will wear her out enough. It might just not be enough time between the time she wakes up and 12:30.

I used to play classical music (soft, for baby) in the kitchen and wheel my daughter around the kitchen table with the umbrella stroller tilted back so I could make corners with ease. She just wanted to fall asleep somewhere besides her own bed. She took the rest of her nap in the stroller and it kept her on schedule. She is 4 1/2 and still takes afternoon naps, although now of course (and since age 2 3/4) all of it in her bed. Good luck, and I think the trick is to just keep trying!

If you think that she still needs it, try pushing her schedule up a 1/2 hour and see if that helps. Perhaps her body clock has changed a bit and she is overtired at 12:30 when it used to be a good time is now too late. I'd try pushing things up a bit and putting her down at 12:00 and see what happens. Try it for a week or so and see if the new schedule will sync with her new body clock. If that doesn't work...try another 1/2 hour and re-evauluate again. Good luck.

Quick Edit: I've read and been told by many that a quick outside trip (walk, play, etc...basically the fresh air) is tiring on children...so perhaps an outdoor event prior to lunch could help with a nap.

I would start putting her down later in the afternoon. Keep her up another hour after lunch and play. Worked for my daughter.

There was just an article in... Parents, I think... about how they really need a nap until 3 yrs old. I happily showed it to my mom who doesn't really try to get my daughter to nap at all which only makes it harder for me when I have her home the next day... Anyway. My daughter is 2.5 yrs and over the summer she had been fighting naps but since we have NewBaby now I knew it would be important to keep them part of our schedule. So at 1 or 130 we go to "rest" usually reading a couple books first. And when she sleeps it's usually 2 hours. Some days we are not successful in getting to sleep, but as least she's generally quiet. And if she doesn't sleep, then at least she goes to bed easier at night. But yeah, basically just trying to enforce nap time about the same time every day. Oh, and when we got her bed, for a bit I tried getting her to nap there, but in the end, it's easier just to let her nap in our bed and she gets to choose who's blanket she wants, what books to read, and if she wants a doll or animal too.

Maybe try some "white noise". Put a fan in her room or outside her door and see if that helps lull her to sleep.

Try making the nap later in the afternoon. When my 2 year old decides she doesn't need a nap we do it later and she is usually exhausted by then. So, maybe try 2 pm instead of 1 pm or even later.

Hi L.,

Have you considered switching where she rests? Sometimes that change helps, it sure did with my son when he started having problems with winding down. I let him rest on a couch and he's been napping there in the afternoons for the past year. We read 3 or 4 books then I sing a couple of songs and rub his tummy (helps him relax) and he's out like a light for 2-3 hours. I don't worry about him rolling over and falling out. I put a few cushions or pillows by him at the beginning and stayed by him until he was in dreamland. Hope this helps you.

J. M

My son started the same thing around that age...but a child at this age IS NOT ready to go without a nap yet! Just keep trying things, white noise, etc, that has been suggested. What worked for me was to reward my son with a snack he really liked after he got up from his nap (fruit snacks worked for us--he picked out ones he wanted at the store). You could try other rewards too that your daughter likes, stickers, etc. It worked quickly for us, and I only had to do a "reward" for a few weeks, then it just kinda got phased out, but he got out of his "phase" of not napping. Oh, and lots of morning exercise/activity helps, too!

I use to work at a inhome daycare and your doing everything I would recommend so great job. I would also make sure you get outside EVERY day before nap snow,rain or shine let her get some fresh air and burn off that energy. I know it's no problem in the summer but once fall hits and the kids go back to school or winter arrives we parents don't really feel like bundeling them up but it makes a huge difference they really need to burn off that energy even if only running around the house a few times in a race or something.