nap help

SarahBBowers

Hello!  I haven't posted here forever but could use some advice or words of encouragement.  DD is 25 months.  3 weeks ago, we transitioned to a toddler bed because she kept climbing out of the crib and I was afraid she was going to hurt herself.  For the first couple nights, naps and bedtime were fine and I was shocked!  Then the trouble started.  Now for bedtime she actually does pretty well as long as I lay her down very sleepy.  She occasionally will get up once but then go back to bed and stay in bed.

Naps are another story.  She is refusing her nap every other day, and its with different people.  She is watched by MIL 2 days a week, my mom 1 day a week, I have 1 day off a week, and so does my husband.  Me and hubby tag team on the weekends.

We have good luck if we can rock her to sleep and then lay her down, but some days she just fights it so hard!!  Then shes up and down and it takes us sometimes an hour and a half of back and forth and rocking to get her to nap.

If she doesn't nap then she falls asleep eating dinner and bedtime is a nightmare.

We start bedtime routine at a little after 8pm (we work later) and she is usually asleep by 9. She gets up between 7:30 and 8.  Before we switched her she was napping 1.5-2 hours between 1 and 3.

I am pregnant with #2 and very exhausted and emotional, and I am getting so frustrated with her that I end up yelling, and then I feel shitty afterwards.  I am at my witt's end.  Is this the end of naps now?  Everything I read says she still needs a nap!  any advice?

thanks, 

Sarah

Bigboobsmcgee

That sounds frustrating

DS is 3 and most definitely still needs a nap. Are you sure you're putting her down for a nap at the "right" time? When she's showing tired signs?

I'm not at all opposed to rocking a kid - hell, I wish DS would still let me - but it sounds like that might be hindering things with your LO.

Does she understand when you tell her it's nap time, you HAVE to stay in your bed? Is she just getting out of her bed a lot? Laying there and not sleeping? I feel like I need more details!

Also, this could just be a phase and perhaps it will pass before you even figure out a solution .

SarahBBowers

Hi!  thanks for the response.  I feel like I am putting her down at the right time but maybe not.  We usually try for nap right after lunch.  That's when she usually gets sleepy. 

I try to tell her she has to stay in her bed, but shes 2 so I'm sure it doesn't mean much to her.  She just keeps getting up out of her bed and opening her door and coming out of her room.  We have a baby gate at the top of the steps so she can't come downstairs, but unless I rock her to sleep and lay  her down asleep, she just gets up out of her bed, just refuses to stay in there and nap!  Then she sometimes becomes hysterical (probably because shes overly tired) and nothing seems to calm her down.  Then I usually just give up on the nap, but then shes a zombie by dinner.

Its so annoying!!!  I don't know what to do.  Its been like this for 3 weeks and I'm so over it. 

Bigboobsmcgee

Well my LO is 3 so it's a little different but we've always given him tons of warnings that it's almost nap time, so he's prepared and goes more willingly.

When she continuously gets out of bed, do you keep putting her back? This sounds silly but that's what Supernanny does for night time sleep. You wait outside the room and just keep putting the kid back in bed, over and over again, saying very little ("it's nap time, back in bed") and bringing very little attention to the situation. If you are consistent with this it just might work.

Or put a child proof thing on her door handle so she can't get out.

I'm sorry, that's all I can think of.

dufferoo

Shoot i thought I had replied to this before, but now it is not showing up. But anyways, the things that we had to do to get our son to nap after a similar regression were: 1) removing all the toys and distractions from his bedroom, 2) putting a doorknob cover over the door, 3) removing the lightbulbs from his overhead light so he couldn't climb up and switch them on, and finally 4) actually laying down with him in the toddler to bed with our eyes closed until he was dead asleep before sneaking out. We did those things one at a time over the course of a few months, and he's finally napping pretty well again. Good luck to you!

SarahBBowers

Thank you guys soooo much for the suggestions!!!!!!