One to two nap transition

amother

Olive

Thu, Sep 29 2016, 7:29 pm

Hi,
DS is 17 months and is a bundle of energy as expected with a toddler. The thing is that he is one who always needed his sleep and sleeps 2 naps that are an hour and a half each every day he is home with me (which is just Sunday and Shabbat). His daycare has two classes, one for babies and one for toddlers. In the baby class he was having trouble falling asleep with all the distraction and was also hitting the other kids there so they now moved him up to the toddler class. In the toddler class they only have one nap a day. He comes home every day exhausted and cranky kicking and crying. I just let it go for a few weeks and tried to help train him into the one nap a day schedule but it just isn't working. Today they complained to me that he hits other kids and he doesn't listen well or sit in circle time with everyone. I'm assuming he does all that because he is exausted.
Do I keep trying to change his schedule or do I try and find another daycare that will give him two naps?
I am so desperate to find something that works because he is so cranky in the evening that he stopped having supper and baths and now he has two bottles of milk in the middle of the night to make up for that.
What do I do?
Thanks in advanced!

pesek zman

Thu, Sep 29 2016, 8:37 pm

How much sleep is he getting overnight. It should be 11-12 hours. If that's what he's getting already, move his bedtime up a bit to give him more

Otherwise Keep him where he is. Most daycares transition to 1 nap at 12 months since its age appropriate so you may not find one anyway that does 2 naps for toddlers, and if you're otherwise happy with the care he's getting, I see no reason to switch things up

He will get used it to napping 1x a day. This is the age of transitions and they're all hard but he will get through it

pesek zman

Thu, Sep 29 2016, 8:39 pm

Oh no! I just saw that he's getting bottles in middle of the night!! No no no!

That should be the first thing you cut out.

Follow the daycare routine 7x a week with you napping him at the same time they do at school. Routine is key

And don't give him a bottle (or 2?!?) in middle of the night.

amother

Olive

Thu, Sep 29 2016, 8:55 pm

pesek zman wrote:

Thanks so much for responding! He gets about 12 hours a night, sometimes 11.5. He goes to bed 7ish and wakes up 7ish. The thing is that he never went without a bottle a night but usually that bottle is at around 4am. I sleep trained him numerous times and it always only lasted a few days till he relapsed. I spoke to his pediatrician about it a few weeks ago and he said that although he is a very big believer of getting rid of bottles at night, he thinks my son needs it because he is very very big for his age. I came to terms with that one bottle a night but now it became two! I'm sure if he would eat supper it would be one but I can't get a cranky baby to eat!

How do I defer his 10 o'clock nap to 12? I've tried but he ends up finding a blanket somewhere and falling asleep?
Thanks again!

pesek zman

Thu, Sep 29 2016, 10:35 pm

Oy!

I'm not a doctor but honestly, doctors aren't sleep experts.

In my opinion you need to sleep train your son. It can take more than a few days, but a relapse means that you give in and give him a bottle. He's not getting his own bottle in middle of the night. Consider learning about the different methods of sleep training and pick one that feels right to you. Sticking to it is the hardest and most important part. Consistency is key. Thing is that even though he may be getting 12 hours overnight, it's interrupted sleep.

At school he doesn't find a blanket and fall asleep at 10 because he's buys and occupied. So the challenge will be keeping him busy and engaged the entire morning. Plan activities. playgrounds, art, Lego, ball, whatever. Keep him entertained and try to keep nap at 12 (or whatever time it is in school)

If you can't do that, can you try putting him to bed a bit walker? 6/6:30 perhaps?

amother

Pearl

Fri, Sep 30 2016, 6:23 am

Although 18 months is the average age for when you can go from 2 naps to 1 nap, your specific child may not be ready yet. I always prioritize sleep over other things and have a super happy, independent, and confident child. Also, I second the opinion that your child needs to sleep straight through the night with no break - interrupted sleep is not enough. It's possible if your child gets 12 hours of uninterrupted sleep at night, that he wont need 2 naps, but he may need 2 naps anyway for a while longer. I personally would switch him.

Iymnok

Fri, Sep 30 2016, 6:47 am

What time does he come home? A 20 minute nap right then could help your afternoon without disturbing his bedtime.
What's the daycare nap system? They may have too distracting a setup. In which case your son isn't the only one with this issue.

amother

Olive

Fri, Sep 30 2016, 10:31 am

Pesek zman- thanks! I will try getting him to bed earlier and keeping him busy for the nap. Do you think I can sleep train cold turkey? The only methods I know about is pushing off an hour every day but I think that would make for a very stressful week!

Amother pearl- thanks! I'll try and switch him. I've been wanting to but just kinda let him have his bottle because he is such a hungry kid! He likes to eat all day long and spends way too much time in my kitchen asking me for food.

Lymnok- sometimes I pick him up at 4 and sometimes as late as 6, depends on what time I get out of school. Even when I do pick him up at 4 or 5 I always try putting him in for a nap. Last night he was so tired, he conked out at 5:30 and wouldn't wake up for supper. Then at 11 when I was ready for bed, he woke up for a yogurt and went back to sleep till a bottle at 4.