When Did Your Child Stop Napping? - Clayton,NC

My son stopped at 3, but it wasn't by choice. He was enrolled at a preschool program and the nap time was cut out. I really don't think he was ready for it, but we didn't have an option.

My son, since infancy, has always napped, and still does. He is now 4 years old. Everyday, he naps.
My Daughter as well. Except now at her age... she will nap if tired. Not everyday. But just yesterday she napped afterschool. She was tired. She is 7 years old.

You just make it a daily routine.
My son naps 2-3 hours in the afternoon. He needs it.

Get your child out, in the MORNING, for runaround time. Boys, are very physical and need to runaround. Do it BEFORE nap time... not right before... but earlier in the day...

good luck,
Susan

I wish naps could last forever personally (for myself as well) but I think around 3 years is when naps start getting skipped even if they get tired ...here are some stats from other moms on this topic: hope it helps!

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

Kids get away from naps at different ages. My nephew stopped around 2 y/o (but he did have a regular bedtime of around 8pm and got up around 9 am, so he was still getting plenty of sleep); and my older son was still regularly napping (around his 5th birthday) while my younger son was usually skipping naps (3 y/o). My older son will still occasionally fall asleep in the car if we are driving after lunch (he's almost 6), but my younger son rarely does. However, my younger son can be a bit of a pill at night occasionally, because he really does need a bit more sleep, but not quite enough for a nap. Fun, fun! :-/

What ended up happening in my kids' case, was that they started skipping naps -- instead of taking a nap daily, it was every other day, and then every third day, and then once or twice a week. [If they took a nap, it was always at least for a couple of hours.] Let his fussiness, and bedtime/wakeup-time be your guide. He still needs at least 12 hours of sleep, so if he is going to bed at 8 p.m. and wakes up at 6 a.m., he should get a nap; but if he sleeps 12 hours at night or more, he may be able to do without a nap.

He probably needs "down time" as much as you need him to have down-time! It will help him have a rest which may keep him from getting (as) fussy later in the day, even if he doesn't actually get a nap. Just start instituting "quiet time" -- tell him he doesn't have to take a nap, but he *does* have to lie down and rest, or play quietly with his toys in his room. Most likely, he will end up falling asleep anyway (particularly if he needs a nap that day), but either way you will still get that break.

I think (hope) it's a phase because my 2 1/2 year old isn't napping well (if at all) anymore either.

If he doesn't nap (I can't force him to sleep) he still needs to stay in the room (we cosleep so he's in our bed) ALONE for at least a half hour.

That said, the non-napping is making bedtime much easier (though he does usually meltdown right before). He's asleep within 10 minutes of his head hitting the pillow!

Good luck! I, too, am desperate for some of that "me" time back!

My son stopped at just under 3 years old. At 2 1/2, he went a week straight w/ no nap. I tried, but didn't force it (b/c one cannot force a nap unless they let their child scream themselves to sleep). I just kept trying, and low and behold he started napping again, and kept doing so for another 6 months. So, keep napping him, maybe it's a little phase of having shorter naps.

my son stopped about that age. we have cranky days sometimes, he just turned 4 and the only time he naps is sometimes in the car

my two oldest napped through Kindergarten. Then my next two were one and two when they stopped naps. Now my baby, who's 5 months old, decided that he"d rather not take naps...There's just too much for a baby to do these days...lol Good luck!!

As a child, I napped until I was 6...I just needed it. I have 1 son who napped til he was 5, he also needed it (I personally think he could have used it a little longer, he was easily irritated later in the afternoon until almost 7). 1 son who napped til 4. 2 sons and 1 daughter who gave them up at 2 yrs old, with no problems. Every child is different!

I think naps are still important until they are about 3 1/2 or 4. Some kids just won't cooperate though! What I did when my kids didn't necessarily want to sleep was to institute "rest time". They went to their room and sat on their bed. No toys or tv (don't have them in their rooms) but they could look at books or play with one stuffed animal. About half they time they would end up falling asleep and I still got at least an hour of quite time.