When Did Your Child Stop Taking a Nap?

My son is 4 and still naps. He goes through phases where he doesn't nap, but clearly needs to. I don't fight it any more but would lay with him when he was younger (2-3) and usually he'd fall asleep.

My daughter napped until she started Kindergarten. Sometimes I had to work with her for quite a while to get her to go to sleep (long walk in stroller, car drive,etc.) or I would just take a nap with her. She was never, from the beginning, a kid that would take a nap easily, but she really needed them. Without a nap, the rest of the day/evening was not very pleasant.

Both of my girls stopped napping around 21 months. No sense in trying to force your children to take a nap. They are only going to if they are tired and really need it. Otherwise you just need to start the transition to no napping. If she is a mess by 5:00 then let the quiet time be then. No reason to insist on quiet time in the middle of the day when she is still full of energy. Make bedtime a little earlier as well. Getting rid of nap time is an adjustment for you and your daughter. It will take some time to find a new schedule that works well for both of you. Good luck!

ours almost never takes a nap anymore, and she's about the same age as yours. when she's really tired, she'll just lay down on her own and take one usually, so we don't push it anymore. if she's super tired before it's time for bed, we'll usually put her to bed a little early, and that seems to work just fine for us. good luck!

My daughter stopped napping at 23 months. If she gets enough sleep at night, there is no reason to be concerned. I agree that moving bedtime earlier might help things out. Also, after about 3-4 weeks of not napping, my daughter started sleeping in about an hour longer in the mornings. It takes a little while for them to adjust. But my pediatrician had no problem with her, under 2, not napping. And she also told me that you should absolutely not try to force naps because that will create all sorts of bad sleep associations. Good luck!

all children are different. Does she do anything that wears her out? When my son was that age we always played outside ( weather permitting) then had lunch, then nap time. A good routine helps...Maybe reading books with her beforehand, or playing quiet soothing music. I know that I have baby sat a lot of kids who thought they were too old for naps and i said ok, then you don't have to sleep, but you do have to lay down and rest, and before long they would fall asleep with no pressure from me. If she needs one ( and my son is 3 and I know he is a wreck when he doesn't get his) make sure she is laying down even if you have to put her back to bed several times.'
Lots of luck!
B.
Is her room very bright? Maybe you could hang a towel or blanket over her window to make it darker?

Updated

all children are different. Does she do anything that wears her out? When my son was that age we always played outside ( weather permitting) then had lunch, then nap time. A good routine helps...Maybe reading books with her beforehand, or playing quiet soothing music. I know that I have baby sat a lot of kids who thought they were too old for naps and i said ok, then you don't have to sleep, but you do have to lay down and rest, and before long they would fall asleep with no pressure from me. If she needs one ( and my son is 3 and I know he is a wreck when he doesn't get his) make sure she is laying down even if you have to put her back to bed several times.'
Lots of luck!
B.
Is her room very bright? Maybe you could hang a towel or blanket over her window to make it darker?

Have you changed anything in her routine, or in yours?
Do you put her to bed sooner when she is not napping?
Have you tried the old, sleep on a full stomach routine?

Can you work i reverse...do something outside the house (fresh air) to encourage the sleep mode?

It is a nap.
It is not life threatening from the information you sent.

How long has she not napped?

mine is 3 1/2 and still naps. It's harder if we've just been hanging out than if we go out and get some exercise, like play outside or take a walk or whatever first.

Our daughter was in daycare and they had a rest time all the way till she left to start kinder. They ate lunch at 11:30, started getting ready for quiet time at 12:00 and a story was read and then quiet music was played till 1:30.. Sometimes, our daughter slept and sometimes, she laid there quietly looking at books..

Even in Kinder in public school after lunch they sit in a darkened room while the teacher reads a chapter book to them for about 20 - 30 minutes..

Ha ha, I was thinking of posting something similar - my 2 year 8 month old daughter decided this weekend to not take a nap. We did everything as usual but she would not fall asleep so instead she had "quiet" time and I moved her bedtime up about 30 minutes. I figure as long as she gets 11 hours a sleep then she's still doing good. She was very active all weekend and I was completely surprised that she didn't need/want a nap and she didn't have a meltdown either - just tired a little earlier than usual and she woke up her normal time. Something must be in the air =)

does she act up? my daughter is 7 and since she was 3 i didn't make her take a nap unless she shows me she needs one....
if you want her to take a nap try making her play her heart out so that she's exhausted....that worked for me

try sitting there and gently rubbing her back or hum to her while she lays on her tummy facing the wall....that way there's nothing distracting her.

My daughter was about 16 months when she stopped napping. She was more irritable toward evening so we changed her bedtime to be a bit earlier and that seemed to help. Her total sleep time was bout 8 hours a night and she did well on that and still does. I think most parents think their kids need more sleep than they actually do, when in reality they need more activities, outdoor time, and constructive play to help keep them busy and use the extra energy they have.

My son is the same age (30 months) and is doing the same thing.

I'm hoping it's just a stage and eventually he'll go back to napping "most" days.

I have found that the days we're more active he's more likely to take a nap. And the days I try to really force the issue, he rarely actually naps.

And I can't convince him of more than 1/2 hour of "quiet" time without the TV involved.

Good luck!

Most things I've read say the average child that age needs 12-13 hours of sleep per day. I know that can be variable, but since you said she's having trouble by 5:00ish, it sounds like she still needs a nap. If you haven't, you might total up her sleep hours and see if adjusting bedtime or wake-up time will help nap go more smoothly. Does she get more than 10-11 hours of nighttime sleep?

My guess is that it's a phase. You may be able to tweek things, but if she needs acts like she need a nap still, she probably does (I think naps to at least three or four are pretty common). Keep doing the nap routine, encourage quiet time, and try not to go crazy. My one year old is currently refusing his afternoon nap today, and I know it's not easy (at least the older one is cooperating!). Good luck:)

my first stopped at about a year, my second still takes one shes almost 2, but i think she is stopping

C.,
I can relate. My second child (a girl) stopped napping all together just after she turned two. I tried everything. But, like you said, you can't make her sleep. One thing you didn't address is if she seems overtired without a nap and/or if bedtime has become more difficult since the nap stopped. That might change things. My dear daughter actually didn't seem to need the sleep. She wasn't overtired without the nap and her 8:00 bedtime went very smoothly. She was ready by then and went to bed willingly. (She would still often fall asleep in the car in the afternoon if we were out and about.) If your daughter seems fine without the nap, then just keep doing what you are doing - after all, you still need a break. Every day at "quiet time" have your daughter go into her room and play or look at books by herself for whatever length of time you determine. I could actually pull out most of an hour. Play soft music and lean her door toward closed. Stick to it. The quite time is good for you both - and it teaches her the indepence to entertain herself. If she's tired, she may still fall asleep.

My daughter stopped at 18 months, and then started back up again around 26. She is now 29 months and sleeps for 45 minutes every afternoon. It's all about TOTAL sleep time, so I put her to bed a little later and don't let her nap more than 45 minutes. She needs the down time.

I'd change it to "quiet time" and just keep putting her in there.

I have a two and half year old son and periodically he refuses to nap. I agree it is too early to stop naps completed. One suggestion that was given to me that has helped is during the days she refuses to nap, insist on "quiet time" where she must lay in her bed or on the couch and quietly play or read a book or similar activity. This way they keep nap/quiet time in their schedule.

Good luck! It is difficult at first when starting "quiet time" but my son soon grasped the concept.

Well I have 3 kids. My oldest stopped napping when he was 3 1/2yrs. My middle child stopped a week before kindergarten started. He was 51/2yrs. My yougest is 4 yrs 4 mo. and she will continue to nap until the end of August. Then I will be completely done with naps..hooray!!
My youngest now gets 12 hrs of sleep a night plus about 2 hrs of napping. She naps about 4-5 days a week.

I stopped fighting naps with my daughter when she was about 1.5. I would struggle for about an hour just to get 15 minutes or 30 minutes. My daughter also slept at least 12 hours at night, so I decided that if she needed the sleep, she'd either take the nap or be miserable. Over a year later, it's clear she could still use the nap, however, we're both happier now that the nap struggle is over. Good luck!

at this young age, a child needs to be coaxed to sleep/nap.
If just left in a room by themselves and just told "go to sleep" they won't. They don't have the literal at-will ability to then go in the bed, tuck themselves in, stay still, not get distracted, and fall asleep, on cue. Not like an adult. The are not yet, at this age, self-reliant or self-directed.

SO, you need to be, probably IN her room, sit in a chair, and coax her and verbally cue her... to stop playing "in 5 minutes... then nap and go in bed..." kind of thing. Supervise her.
Or a child, this young, will NOT do that, on their own. They don't have full impulse-control, yet, for these things.

My son is now 4, and he still naps everyday, And has since he was an infant. He gets tired. He will not last all day without a nap.
My daughter is 7, and she will nap when tired.

For both of them, I have a daily routine for naps. Same as for night time.
They know it like auto-pilot.

If my kids do not nap, they are over-tired fussy monsters.

All the best,
Susan

Mine stopped napping too soon! She was probably around 3 1/2 or maybe a little after. I had to fight to keep it that long, but one day I just knew it wasn't worth that battle anymore. She still has a really difficult time in the afternoons or evenings. I just moved her bed time up to 7 and she watches a movie while my son sleeps. At least your daughter plays by herself in her room. I have to put a show on so my daughter will be quiet so my son can sleep.

I would suggest just moving her bedtime up and getting everything ready earlier (dinner, bath, book) so that she is ready to go down when she needs to.

Good luck...I'm dreading the day my other one stops napping! I like those nap times :-)