Community Questions - Toddler Naps

"Mums, can you share any tips for toddler naps? My son is just 2 and refusing his nap! Thanks"

Our son also started refusing his nap at 2 years old as well. When he started doing this, we started to give him the two hours every afternoon to have time to himself in his room to either play or sleep. What we found was he would play for a little bit and then he started falling to sleep after 30 minutes or so! From our experience, giving him this space to decide for himself whether he wanted to have a nap and if he wanted to play for a little first. We also noticed a huge developmental milestone at around 2 and this definitely affected his sleep for a few weeks!

Another tip that we found helpful during the nap refusal stage was staying consistent as often as we could - when we were home we would consistently put him in his room after lunch and he started to get familiar with the routine. We also found that his naps did continue when we were out and he was in the pram, although this wasn't always going to work if the weather was terrible and we were at home, but as the weather got brighter and warmer he did consistently nap when he was in the pram for the 2 hours and I was walking with him - also a great excuse to get your favourite podcast on and have a little 'you time'!

Every child is different though so definitely try different options and feel what works best for you. It might be that your little one has a nap every other day or every day, and it could also vary from week to week!