Default Style Register
Daycare.com Forum
Daycare Center and Family Home Forum>Scared of Naptime?!
dave4him 10:48 AM 09-20-2012

My niece is terrified of nap time! Soon as i take the mat out and get ready for her nap she gets all teary eyed and says, i dont want to go night night. She is two and a half now and always sleeps with her mommy when she goes to bed, so i know its hard for her. Most of the time i dont push it, if she doesnt want to sleep i just tell her to be really quiet. What else could i do? Suggestions

YOu would think i was telling her to get into a dark box to be mailed to Spain or something with the way she cries about it.
Reply
rhymia1 11:07 AM 09-20-2012
With one I might see if she would nap better in a pack and play or even a cot. Does she have any loveys that might help? Maybe if you rephrase it and tell her it's quiet mat play time? Maybe with some books/cuddle toys?
Ugh, I do feel your pain though. The three boys that I am letting go are the same way - huge aniexty about nap time (even though the youngest still need it) If I tried to get them to lay/stay on mats there were tears and tantrums. It got to the point where I can't even have them in the same room as the napping kids. Once I put on the tv, the little ones conked out and the oldest would (for the most part) sit and watch. It turns out they all have tv's in their room so they will sleep...
Reply
momofsix 11:10 AM 09-20-2012
I have one that just started this too. She is worried that I'm going to leave when she's sleeping
Instead of having her sleep in the room with all of the other kids, she lays outside the door in the hallway. That way she can see me as I'm doing dishes, cleaning up etc. She can't see me the whole nap time, but it's enough for her. I tell her she doesn't have to slee[ but she needs to lie down and be quiet.
It works for her!
Reply
NiNi.R. 11:46 AM 09-20-2012
I have a 2 year old and she also cries about nap. She HATES sleeping in the same room as the other kids and normally sleeps in my daughter's room.

One day we were having our basement worked on. This is normally where my husband sleeps during the day since he works nights but instead had to sleep in my daughter's room.

I lay dcg in the toy room and she screams cries and is completely terrified. She was keeping everyone up so I finally moved her into the hallway. She quit right away and fell asleep.

No idea why she is like this..guess some kids just are
Reply
Sunchimes 11:54 AM 09-20-2012
I had one develop this terror at about 22 months or so. She acted like she was afraid to sleep. Even when she slept, she had night terrors during the nap about once a week. Mom said she was having them at home during the night too. Then, one day, I heard her scream during nap, and she was in the corner trying to hide. It was the saddest thing to see. I gave it some serious thought and decided she really was afraid to sleep and maybe it was the dark. Since then, I leave the curtains open and the light on when she sleeps. She is the only one sleeping in that room at the moment. There have been no more daytime night terrors since. Now, she asks for the light off but wants the curtains (over big windows, so lots of light) open.

She has started resisting her afternoon nap the past week, but I think it's because she is trying to give up 2 naps a day, and at 25 mo, I hate to see it, but it's inevitable I suppose.
Reply
cheerfuldom 12:29 PM 09-20-2012
I have a co-sleeping kiddo here too. They are transitioning her to her own bed at home but naps have not been easy for her at all. I finally put a cot right in the living room and that is the only place she will lay for awhile. She will not stay in a room on her own or with any other kids. The living space is open and I am up and about, cleaning and whatnot, but this is the only solution I can come up with for now. As long as she is laying quietly, I dont have a huge issue with it. She's 3.5
Reply
daycare 04:07 PM 09-20-2012
sorry...lol you are so cute...she has you wrapped around her little finger so it sounds...

My son used to do that to me and I just said I am so sorry you are sad, but you will feel so much better once you get some sleep. It took efforts on my part to get him to even lay down, but it worked every time. I never gave in...
Reply
Reply Up