You have undoubtedly already realized that getting your child to sleep through the night is just half the fight, regardless of whether you have conquered it or are still working on it with your child. If you can’t get them to nap during the day, it doesn’t matter how well they sleep at night. Furthermore, it is not as if the two are unrelated. If your child isn’t napping properly, it’s likely that their nighttime sleep may begin to suffer.
We surveyed our Slumber Squad sleep specialists to provide you with the infant sleep assistance you require. They discussed five typical sleep mistakes that can prevent your child from taking naps.
1. Forming Instagram-Worthy Cribs
No matter how adorable they may seem, you shouldn’t decorate your child’s crib with gauzy canopies, crib bumpers, or cuddly blankets. You may also make your baby’s bedroom overstimulating for them to sleep in. As kids become older and more aware, the decor can become highly distracting.
2. Keeping Your Little One Awake To Sleep Extra
To guarantee that sleep pressure is built up to result in healthy naps and even better nocturnal sleep, adhere to age-appropriate waking windows. For instance, babies can usually only stay up for brief periods of 30 to 60 minutes before becoming too exhausted to go asleep. An 11 to 14-month-old can endure awake periods of three to four hours, while a three to four-month-old can withstand awake periods of 75 to 120 minutes.
3. Aiming to Train Flexible Sleepers
You could attempt to get your youngster used to napping on the go or in noisy environments, especially if you have other kids. It’s true that your baby’s first sleep may need to be cut short if you have to drop them off at school at that time. If they do happen to fall asleep during the trip, you can extend it if you have time so they can sleep more.
4. Missing a Pre-Sleep Routine
Children thrive on routines even more than most adults do. Knowing what to anticipate at specific times of the day helps them make sense of the environment and feel safer because they have little influence over their day. By creating a bedtime ritual, you may help your children anticipate sleep and tell their brains to get ready.
5. Using Yourself or Alternative Sleep Support
The average length of your baby’s sleep cycle is 45 minutes. Around the 45-minute point, if you are using a prop to help them fall asleep, they will enter their light sleep phase and notice that the item is gone, jarring them awake. By the time they are three months old, they will start to rely on these calming techniques to put them back to sleep.
Keep in mind to maintain flexibility and ease, especially if your child is under five months old. When they are young, taking longer naps more frequently is developmentally acceptable. If you are persistent, you will eventually start to see the fruits of your labor. Avoiding these blunders may not always seem like the simple route, but if you are persistent, you will set yourself and your child up for long-term success in getting a good night’s sleep.
source: https://tinytransitions.com/baby-sleep-consultants-share-5-common-napping-mistakes/
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