18 Month Old Not Napping - Oakland Gardens,NY

That stinks. Seriously! You must be pooped. I would make his bedtime an hour earlier, and I would still put him down for a nap at 1:00 or 2:00 every day. Put a few toys and books in his crib too. Tell him this is "quiet time" and that he can read, play, or sleep. He obviously won't completely understand you, but if you consistently tell him this- eventually he will!

Down time is important, too. So either he'll nap or he won't, but he'll still get time to himself. He may fuss, but I'd leave him to it. A good 45 minutes in his crib will do you both good! :)

Once again I agree with what Diane S said. :) My 1st two kids gave up their naps around 18 months, unfortunately, but like Diane said, I just put them to bed at 7:00.

One thing that I required of them both was that they have some good quiet time each day. They went in their rooms around 2:00 and played quietly by themselves for at least an hour. Not every day was perfect and it took some effort to get it to really work but it does help significantly. Good luck!

This does happen so rather then fight it I would do an earlier bedtime so he can make up for the sleep he is missing. Also, you can still put him in his crib with some books, put on some music, or toys, and let him have a rest time, and give you a break as well. I would put him in at 7 instead of eight because waking up at 7 and going till 8 is a long day for both of you. Good luck!!!

Hi Andrea,
He has a good sleep schedule, so I wouldn't play around with that. If he is not napping right now at his age, it isn't alarming at all. Children go through growth spurts, it sounds like he isn't going through one right now, but as soon as he does, he'll nap and eat alot. There were times my daughter wouldn't take a nap, now at 28mths., she's down for 2-3 hrs. and she's grown almost 4 inches since her birthday. I have a couple of friends whose kids, under 2, don't nap.
Some kids are easily excited and do not want to miss a minute of the day. I would put him in his room, close the blinds,(that way he can't see outside and he isn't being disturbed) and give him some quiet time. During this time, he can read some board books, play with blocks, puzzles, or anything else he enjoys doing that is not physically stimulating. Hope this helps.

I just want to say I agree with most that I read. My son will be 2 this month and his naps have been *unpredictable* or *absent* for quite a while. I do have quiet time and or let him watch tv with his brother in the afternoon. Sometimes he will nap. My older son did that too. So hopefully some days your child will nap.

Dear Andrea, it seems that your son is finished with napping! I know this sounds a little bit early, but my younger daughter also surprised me like that at the same age as your son is now. So… try to find some routine where he will have some quiet time, possibly in bed, but don’t expect him to sleep. I was giving my daughter books in bed “to read” and she was happy with herself for some time, sometimes for a full hour. That gave ME the time to rest a little bit (from running after her all day!) But overall, I remember that time as very exhausting!
Wish you the best,
S.

Hi,
My son is 19 months but sleeps only 8-9 hours at night and needs the 2 hour nap in the afternoon, for a total of 10- 11 hours of shut eye a day.

Sleep is very important to a child's well-being. When adults are tired, they can either be grumpy or have low energy, but kids can become hyper, disagreeable, and have extremes in behavior.

If your son is behaving ok and he's sleeping about 11 hours at night straight, it seems to me he's perfectly healthy.

Like other moms suggest, some quiet downtime instead to recup energy. I think your son is fine...

my daughter 23 months has gone thru this a couple of times in the last couple of months. Giving up the nap is not an option right now because I am pregnant and super tired and need the break and if she doesn't get the nap a couple of days in a row it shows. When she is not into napping I still put her in her crib for atleast 30 min (usual nap is 2 hrs). I make sure its dark and that her sound machine is on and tell her to just rest. She will sometimes just talk and play with her animals, she never cries, so I don't know what I would do in that situation. Anyways she always falls back into a pattern of a 1-2 hr nap.
I think one of the times she wasn't napping was because of molars coming in (I didn't notice cause it is so hard to get a good look that far in her mouth without risking a finger:-). I also think since it is cold outside and we are indoors not using a lot of physical energy she isn't as worn out as she'll be when the weather gets nicer and we are outside playing.
When she naps, total sleep is 13-14hrs. Hope it's just a phase:-)

What happens when you put him down for his nap? Does he scream and cry? or does he just stay awake talking or playing? My daughter has gone through stretches of not napping, but in her crib she is happy talking to her bear. So I put her down for an hour no matter what. If she is awake for the whole hour, fine... I still get my break and give her the opportunity to sleep if she gets tired. As long as he is not upset, I say keep up the routine of putting him down every day and maybe he will start falling asleep in there. My daughter is 21 months now and she is back to her 2-hour naps every day.

That does stink!!! I'm going through this with my 3 year old, and I don't like it. Sometimes I do make him take a nap, even if it's later in the afternoon, like 4. This really messes up the bedtime though, and I only do it on weekends and if we have to be up late. We are dealing with this right now; since the school is closed today and I had to work from home, I really needed the time to catch up, not to mention I am exhusted. So, after calling me 3 or 4 times from his bedroom, I told him that he doesn't have to go to sleep, but he does have to stay in bed, and he can get some books to look thorugh. He really loved the idea, and I can hear him in there now, pretending to read. I don't know how an 18 month old would get this idea, but I would still insist on the quiet time. Good luck!

When you say he is going to bed at 8:00 is he asleep at that timeorjust going up to bed? If he is just going up to bed at that time he may not be getting enough sleep. At 18 months they need 11-11.5 hours sleep. If that is the case, stry bringing him up to bed earlier so that he is asleep by 8:00. If he isn't getting enough sleep at night then he may be overtired during the day which is leading to trouble sleeping during his nap time. A great book to read if yo uare truly stuck is Good Night Sleep Tight by Kim West. It has helped me with my twins more than I can even tell you. Good luck...hope your little guy gets some rest!

As it's only been 4 days I'd take a wait and see approach. It sounds like he is fine and normal in every other way so his sleep from 8:00pm to 7:00am might now be all that he requires to set him up for the day.

I know many moms who have just pushed thru and kept the same "nap" time even if they choose not to sleep. You most likely need a break and he too needs down time even if not asleep.Keep the same hour everyday for quirt time. He may start sleeping again but if not at least you both get a break.

Expert Dr. Marc Weissbluth offers advice:
http://billiediscoverytoys.blogspot.com/2008/09/sleep-beg...

I've heard that it is not terrible if your child stops napping sooner that you think he should. He might just not need the nap anymore. If he's not showing signs of overtiredness (cranky when waking, rubbing eyes, circles), then I would worry about it. Talk to your doctor too and see what he/ she thinks.

My daughter was 18 months old when she stopped napping completely. If he sleeps good at night he may not need it. It was harder on me not having "nap time" as my time but she didn't need it (except when sick!). A.

Hi Andrea! I just wanted to say that some kids unfortunately do not nap after that age. It'd rare, but it happens. According to my mother I did not nap after 18 months, as I have heard more than once since she was very pregnant at the time! :)

Hi Andrea,
It is possible that he's just ready to give up the nap! My son (20 mos) is close to giving his up also. I'd still put him in his crib/bed for 30 min a day just for some "down time" even if he doesn't sleep. It's important for the both of you to take a break! Either that, or just do your best to wear him out in the a.m. I'm anxious for spring so that we can play outside in the mornings. The fresh air always knocks my son right out!!
Lynsey

I think kids really need a break in the day, and so do moms!! Try really wearing him out in the morning... bring him outside, even in the cold. Bundle him up and let him play... also might try buying a trampoline or letting him dance to some fun music, make a parade etc. Some kids this age need a lot of physical activity and don't get worn out enough to fully relax at nap time! Atleast make him have the same routine everyday... quiet time in his crib. If he doesn't fall asleep after 30 minutes, he probably doesn't need the sleep, but keep up the quiet time routine... I always say 1-2 hours in the crib as long as the child isn't screaming!!

Good Luck

Hi Andrea
None of my four children were napping at 18 mo. They are adults now but I remember distinctly saying that when the last one stopped napping then. So did some stop sooner probably. I always wondered how people got their children to nap at 5. When they told me my oldest had to go to PM K because he was young in class and would need a nap by PM I remember laughing so hard.
If you need some down time --- read stories, play playdough, or puzzles. Eventually they learn to entertain themselves so you can get the housework done.
Getting house work done while kids are growing is trying to shovel snow while it's still snowing.
God bless you
Since I am old enough to be your mom if you can talk to her she may have some great stories to tell. Perhaps you MIL.
K. -- SAHM married 38 years -- adult children 37, coach; 33, lawyer; and twins 18 in college .