Naptime for a 3 Year Old

In short...when this exact scenario played out w/ my 2.5 yr..I gave up and gave back the paci for naptime ONLY....seems to have worked so far~!! Haven't had problems at all at bedtime or car rides. He knows its for naptime only. In fact he looks forward to it. Nap time is no longer my daily battle. I have no intentions of takin' it away at this point either!!

BTW that first week after 2.5 months of not napping.. My lil' guy had 5 days straight of 4+ hr naps. He was exhausted to say the least. And he was back to his happy go lucky lil' boy!! You only know what's best for lil' guy. Just wanted to give you another option.

Best wishes
Aj

Give him something else to soothe with.
My son, we took away his paci... but he has a lovey. A stuffed cow that he LOVES sleeping with. It is his buddy.

Also, if he is tired, then he does need a nap.
My son, recently turned 4, and he still naps, everyday. He does NOT last all day without one otherwise he gets mega fussy and over-tired.
He is napping NOW in fact.
But we/I have a daily routine for naps, just like bedtime. The same routine everyday. And I make sure that every morning, we are out doing something physical. Boys, needs lots of runaround time....

all the best,
Susan

Hi, I'm going through a similar situation right now with my just turned 3 year old son, the difference is he didn't have a pacifier just decided he didn't want to nap anymore even though he used to love to nap. He's starting Pre-K soon so I was very flexible with him for almost 2 weeks and if he didn't want to nap after 15 minutes he could leave his room. Well when he didn't nap it was like someone switched my happy go-lucky child to a cranky, whiny, miserable child showing tantrums for the first time. Today was the first day I insisted he stay in his room for at least an hour. Yes, he was crying, yelling "no nap!" and beating on the door, but I stayed strong and made him stay in his room. After about 45 minutes he fell asleep and slept for 2 hours. When he awoke I had my pleasant and lovely son back. I would insist on the naps, children that age need the down time, they also are neurologically healthier when they sleep more. I read some kids with ADHD and behavioral problems have insufficient sleep. To be on the safe side keep trying to work the naps in or quiet time for at least an hour.

According to a great book "Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child" by Dr. Weissbluth, here are the stats: Mos. 13 to 15 - 1% have 3 naps, 43% have 2 naps, 56% have one nap. Mos. 16 to 21 - 23% have 2 naps, 77% have 1 nap at 18 mos.; 12% have 2 naps, 88% have 1 nap at 21 months. Mos. 21 to 36 - 5% have 2 naps and 95% have 1 nap at 24 mos.; 0% have 2 naps, 91% have one nap and 9% have no naps at 36 mos. On their third birthday, most children (91%) are still napping every day. At age 4, about 50% nap 5 days each week, and by age 5, about 25% are napping about 4 days each week. Naps are usually gone by age 6.
Hope this helps.

Bernie

Hi Tracy
I have a three year old too and went through same situation when I took away his pacifier.I decided to try to cut out the nap-boy I learnt fast that that was a bad idea.So I reintrodued the nap.OK what advise to give,strong strict boundaries,try to stay calm and not show him your upset.Try the nice approach -naptime is apart of his routine.If this doesnt work a few trips to the "naughty step" might work.I find with my son,I try to be this fun loving Mum but I am the boss and there are lines not to be crossed. This is still a work in progress lol.
Best of luck
B.

The best way for us is to use quiet voices to read a book or two and then hold him quietly in a chest to chest hug in a rocking chair, for about 5-10 minutes. That's when my husband is there. If it's just me, I say we're going to lie down with the baby, and we all lie down. He kicks and rolls a little to get some energy out, and then after 5-10 minutes settles down, I just lie there very still and don't say anything.
good luck.

First of all - Don't Ever Give In! This is what he wants. Have you ever thought of putting a gate up in the doorway of his room so he can't get out. Go someplace (its summer and should be nice but maybe put some earplugs in and your favorite music and go where you can barely hear him and he can't see you) and let him scream, cry, yell or whatever he is doing until he settles down. It is hard on mom but if you have this much trouble now just think what it will be when he gets 12 and it will get worse unless you nip it in the bud now. If you have to take all his toys away if he throws them - do. Eventually he will give in because mom means business.

Good Luck and stick with it!
N.

You're lucky he napped so long! My son gave it up at 2.5, right before my twins were born. And yes, he still needed the nap, but I certainly didn't have the time to lie with him or drive around with him or all the other things I used to do to get him to sleep. It was super frustrating. Now he's three and a half and sometimes he still needs a nap, but there's no way he'll ever take one now. Anyway, I instituted quiet time instead and on the days he's really tired (like once or twice a year), he lies down and actually falls asleep on the floor or the bed or wherever. I put a CD into his CD player and he has to stay in the room for at least that long. Works like a charm for us, but everyone has to find their thing. I wouldn't keep going like you are, though, as you'll wear yourself out and your son has all the control. Just put him in his room and say, "feel free to nap if you want, but you must stay in your room until I get you" or something like that. If he doesn't comply, can you lock the door? Just until he gets the message... It's a tough age, though. I found three and three and a half much more difficult than the supposed terrible twos! Hope you get through it...

I agree with the moms who say to drop the nap. My son stopped taking a nap at age 3. We still make him take a"rest" which just means he has to stay in his room and play quietly by himself. He hardley ever resists but when he does thorow a tantrum about it, I take away his blankie for a few minutes. That usually gets his attention. But we never give in. I feel like the quiet time helps him not be so much of a booger later on and I get the quiet time I need as well. He also goes to bed earlier.

My child stopped taking naps when she turned three. I was tired of fighting her. She has never been a good napper. It took a few months for her to adjust not taking a nap and not be tired but if she layed down late in the afternoon which she does occassionally I let her take like a 15 min. to 20 cat nap. I actually like it better that she does not nap now because she goes to bed earlier and easier at night. It used to be a battle for her to go to bed at night. Not any more :)

Drop it. Sounds like he's done. You'll miss the break, but it sounds like you're not really getting one anyway. And the tradeoff is a nice early bedtime! Just be prepared for a transition period of cranky late afternoons. And plan your dinnertime for a very early possible bedtime. My daughter was sound asleep by 6:30 every night for quite a whilesfter she stopped napping. Which was also right at age 3 and right after she stopped nursing down for her nap! But I was so much happier when I just stopped trying to force the nap. That just got me frustrated and angry.
He'll get throughout the "bougar" phase after a while, but it's hard! Good luck!

I'm sorry to hear that...sounds exhausting! It is kind of funny to think how kids hate naps so much but I WISH I could take naps more often (took up nap time in college but that was the only time I had to take them haha). Here is a site that will hopefully help you out...good luck!

http://www.theskinnyscoop.com/search/nap?utm_campaign=the...

I would change up naptime...maybe put on a movie for him and don't tell him it's naptime, just resttime. That's about the age that my kids wanted to buck the naps too, but the movie thing works great. If they eat all their lunch, they get to pick the movie and if not, I get to pick it. 9 out of 10 times they fall asleep (my 5 year old still does). :)