Is It Time to Wean to One Nap?

Hi D.,
That sounds like my daughter's sleep schedule at that age. She never took long naps either, and still doesn't, but sleeps for such a long time at night that when I looked on the internet to see sleep requirements, she was getting the right amount of sleep per day. She's coming up on 2 years old now, and we still sometimes have 2 naps/day, but often only 1. For me, it seems more important that she have "downtime"---time by herself to relax---than it is that she sleep a certain amount of time in her nap. Also, I try to gauge by her behavior if she needs to go to have some "naptime"---so if she's really doing fine, just have an early betdtime or something like that.

I did let me child determine the amount of napping he needed, having been forced to take naps as a child, I was determined not to do this to my own kid. I don't recall at what age he went to no naps, but it was in the toddler stage. He was at pre-school where every one else was taking naps, so he would lie down and have quiet time, but wouldn't sleep.

Hope this is helpful,
Sarah

Hi D.,

I think you find many have different views on this. I always just gaged my baby. I knew his signs as to when they needed to nap and when they did not. My friend ran a daycare and had some parents want feedings and naps to happen on a schedule and not to be altered. These poor girls would have to try to keep a cranky baby awake because the parents would get upset if the baby went down too early or slept too long. I felt it did not give the baby the extra sleep they needed when going through a growth spurt or anything.

You could try putting him down a bit later like a half hour or so and see how he does. I think he will tell you if he is ready to go to one nap or not. 2 of my 3 boys were horrible nappers. 45 minutes was about right for them. My 3rd was a dream at naps and sleeping through the night.

Hi, I would say he probably would be o.k. with just one nap. My daughter is only 8 months and has been down to one nap for awhile. I bet if you put him down for one nap at @ 11:30 or so he would probably sleep for a good 2 hrs, then see how he reacts throughout the rest of the day..I wish you luck and remember most of the time your own instinct is right! I should probably add that all my kids seem to be on an excellerated pace when it came to naps, my older boys completely cut out naps all together by 2, ugh! It just depends on the kid and whether or not they need the extra sleep, you will be able to tell pretty quickly if he needs more down time!

K.

Sounds a little early to move to one nap a day. I think we waited until some time in the 2nd year to move to one nap a day. It sounds like maybe you are trying to get the morning nap in too early. Also, I have found that giving them one nap a day does not necessarily mean they will sleep longer. You have to really watch your child's cues to see when they are sleepy, and follow those cues. An overly tired child has a harder time settling into sleep and getting a restful sleep. Which means they are more likely to wake often, or early, and still be crabby.

So the question to ask yourself is how is he responding to his nap schedule? Does he seem cranky or overtired? Is he easy going and happy all day? I would say keep him napping how he is- when he starts refusing that morning nap is when you can play with skipping it. My daughter will be 1 this week and she wason that same nap schedule at 9 months- a few times we would skip her am nap, and it seemed fine, but then 2- 3 days later we would have a cranky kid.

I have read soooo many sleep books, and even hired a sleep expert in CA (My oldest is NOT a sleeper) and everyone seems to agree that most kids need 2 naps (even if one is a cat nap) until after 1 year. However, my indicator is how the child responds. My daughter will now once or twice a week fight off the am nap, but that does not always mean a longer afternoon nap. Some days it is fine, but often it leads to a cranky afternoon/ evening time.

Good luck,
S.

I let my kids let me know when they needed naps at that age. I found that their need for naps changed around their growth spurts and development. He may not need two naps in a day... maybe just an early afternoon nap. I know it seems early in his development to be weening himself from day sleep, but some kids do it. If, in the future, he needs two naps again, he will let you know. I think it's just fine. Let nature take it's course. Enjoy your little one!

Each baby is different. If he is growing well and happy and active between naps, I'd say, let him be the driver of his development. (Especially since he's being so nice about the nights!)

Whatever choice you make, watch for the consequences ... if you wean him to one, longer nap, watch how much time (if any) he is crankier, and remember to weigh the damage that might cause your relationship with the inconvenience of the two short naps.

Be aware that the quiet-house/fan combo might set you up for problems if/when you travel (or if you have another child) ... weaning off of that might be enough to kick him into only sleeping if he's really tired, and not related to a particularly soothing environment?

Mine all set themselves to one nap around 12 months ... ish. (My memory is a little vague .. but I know by two they were all only napping about every third or fourth day.)

Be sure to give him flexibility when he is in a growth spurt or doing a major developmental step (you'll know in each case because they eat more and often they do a little regressing as part of the process) ... they really need to have more sleep at those times, for healthy development, and you'll see lots of unhappiness and non-functionality if you are trying to hold them to a 'normal' schedule; they just can't do it.

Myself, I would be thrilled with two fairly predictable naps ;). A couple of my kids were predictable, a couple weren't :).

Try 3 hours after he wakes for the first nap and see how it goes...there's a school that says there's a 90 minute cycle of wakefulness, and if you attempt naps on those intervals (1 1/2, 3, 4 1/2 hours...) after waking, you may have better luck with sleep.

As for "weaning" to one nap....I think it depends on the kid and the day...sometimes it seemed my daughter was a one nap kid, but other days, growth spurts/teething/who knows.....definitely two full naps.

D.,

I have an almost 9 mo. old and I would recommend checking out "healthy sleep habits, happy Child" by: Marc Weissbluth M.D. It talks about babies need for sleep and solutions to bad napping. I really liked it. I think it might help out. My personal advice... Earlier bed time and do not take away from that second nap your baby needs that... Trust me get the book, I think you will like it.

My son was always a 30 min napper and sleeping great at night. From everything I read 30 min is considered a nap! Is he putting himself to sleep? I have a feeling that maybe if you take out that 5 am feeding he may take longer naps...
Best of luck!

I know you may want to take away a nap for many reasons but please don't. Kids and adults all need a certain amount of sleep. If you don't allow them to nap you are going to short change them of the natural sleep they need. They won't get that sleep back. If you think by taking that nap away that they will make it up at night they won't the sleep is lost.

I have a almost 6 yr old that from time to time still will take a nap. My husband and I will also take a nap sometimes depending on what has happened in our lives. I have done way to much reading and talking about sleep issues because my 5 mo. old has some issues with sleeping.

Healthy sleep habits, happy child is a great book and an easy read to help you understand sleep, naps, the brain and growth. You will understand more by reading this why naps and even naps at certain times of day are needed and even better for the brain and body than others. I hope this helps a bit. And I hope you will allow your kids and yourself to get the much needed rest when you can.

I wouldnt take away the naps. Believe it or not the amount of time your 9 month old is sleeping as really good. Your child will let you know when its time to stop certain nap times. Just follw his lead.

You have a lot of different advice here. I think the main thing is every baby and person is different, so there isn't one answer for everyone. Both of my children went to one nap by 9 months for roughly 3 hours, and slept 12 hours at night. With my first I really noticed she (and I) were much happier when she took one longer nap. Also I'm not a big sleeper. I'm fine with 5 to 6 hours a night on most nights. After an especially exhausting day I need 8. My husband is an 8 to 12 hour person. Maybe they got this one from me.

So good luck, and even when times are challenging remember to enjoy every moment they are only little once.

My son is almost 14 months old and he takes two naps a day. Morning nap averages about 1-1/2 hours and the afternoon nap is 2 hours plus he sleeps through the night finally. He didn't start sleeping through the night until September. All the books I have read is that babies naturally get rid of the morning nap and go down to one nap a day later on. Take it for what it is worth.

Hi, D.!

If your son is not sleeping very long during either nap, having him take one nap later in the day will probably help. My youngest son has been taking one long nap after lunch (around 11:30 or 12) since he was around that age.
Some will tell you that he's too little for that, but how would we know? He's YOUR son. Do what you think.

Every child is different. My oldest child decided at 21 months that he no longer needed naps. I tried and tried to get him to take them, but after 2 hours of struggling to get him to sleep . . . what was the point. He went to bed earlier without a nap anyway. Now at 3 years, he and I hang out during brother's naptime and watch a movie together.
My cousin's daughter is almost 3 and she HAS to have a nap everyday, no matter what and she still goes to bed at a decent hour.

So I saw ALL that :-) to tell you that you know best because you're his mom! If you think he only needs one nap, do it!
Good luck, mama!

Wow, seems to me that he is getting good naps - anything over 45 min is a good nap to me. I had a hard time with my daughter with naps as well. Her routine was very similar to yours 2 naps in am, 1-2 naps in pm, then bed. She gave up the last nap in the afternoon first and then the 1st morning nap second. I am thinking that it was around the same age. It was hard for her to give it up though, when we didn't go anywhere, she stayed awake, but if we went to the store in the morning, she always fell asleep. I started to give her naps when she seemed like she really needed it, I just watched her give me clues. Now she is 15 months old and has just one 2.5-3 hour nap in the afternoon. She is very active and I would think that she needs more but she goes to bed the same time every night and wakes up on her own the same time every morning. The doctor said that she is doing well.

Now, every child is different so yours might need more sleep or might not. You need to just watch the clues of your little one, they will tell you. I got really frustrated and upset over her lack of napping but for most kids, it has to come. I missed that extra time I got to spend with my older child but now, we spend it together. sure I am more exhausted at the end of the day but so are they.

Take direction from him and if he needs a nap, put him down. If he doesn't, play quietly or read to him. You can't force him to nap but you can work around it. As it is, I think he is doing well for his age and you are doing a good job.

Take care!

i say try to stretch the time between naps a bit and see how he fares. mine both did much the same as yours; sleep 12-13 hours, up 2, down 2, up 2-3 down 2, up 3-4 bed. they are now 3 and 16 mos and keep much the same schedule, give or take a bit from either. also, he may be teething. homeopathic chamomile might just what he needs to relax for the resting time. hope this helps you! good luck.

Hi D.,
I weaned my son to one nap around 10 or 11 months... He was a bad sleeper at night and wouldn't nap for very long either, so the one nap seemed to work for us. I would either try putting your son down for one nap around 3-4 hours after he wakes up or try spacing out the two naps a little more. For instance, put him down two or three hours after he gets up, but then wait at least 3 hours before you put him down again. I think babies at this age can be up nearly 4 hours before they need a nap, if I remember correctly. Anyway, just experiment for a little while and I'm sure you'll hit on something that works for everyone!

My kids took both naps and slept through the night until they were at least 1 1/2. I knew my daughter still needed them because we would be running errands in the morning and she would fall asleep in the car!

I 9 months is still too young for one nap. Just my opinion.

Your fine weaning to one nap at nine months, especially if that helps you and him. My daughter has been only taking one nap a day since around 9 months, she is now almost 14 months. I like my kids to take at least a two hour nap during the day, and for her to do that it has to be one nap. Your are the best judge of how much sleep your child needs, and they will fall asleep if they are tired.

My three year old stopped taking naps just after he turned 2. But I've noticed in the summer time, when he is a lot more active, he needs some quiet time or a little nap in the afternoon. So, just pay attention to his schedule and you'll figure out what works best for both of you.

Good Luck!

My dd took one nap around 9 months and it was so much better for us. She never slept more than 1 hour when she had two naps. When we switched she always slept for 2 hours at least. It just tried to keep her awake until at least 11:30am and then take a nap then or when she was ready to sleep. A lot of people thought it was early for one nap, but it was much better for us.

Most kids aren't ready to switch to one nap until they are 15-18 months. Maybe try keeping him up longer between waking hours to wear him out. Some kids just aren't long nappers either. My second child is in the transition now and has always just taken about a 45 minute nap in the morning and an hour and a half to 2 hours in the afternoon. Your son seems right on track.