Just a phase or do I need to change his naps?

[Littlebagoflaughter]

Ds is 14.5months old, he has been happily self-settling for naps and bedtime for ages now and been sleeping through, he has a morning nap 8.30ish for 1-2hrs and afternoon nap from 12.30ish 1-2hrs, bedtime is 6pm. I've always followed his lead on sleep timing. This week he has been all over the place, he's randomly refused to go to sleep for some naps, other days has napped for up to 4.5hrs in total, some nights he has woken up and the only way to stop him crying is let him get up and run around but he then usually happily self-settles later on. The past two evenings he has screamed when I've put him down and again we've ended up getting him up for a bit, tonight he finally went to sleep at 8.30. I'm as sure as I can be it's not the heat. So I'm just wondering if this is a phase we can ride out or whether he needs to move to just one nap a day?

[Littlebagoflaughter]

Just bumping this in case anyone has any insights? I didn't put him down for his morning nap but he was then so tired he wouldn't eat lunch at 11.30 so I put him down for a nap, he self-settled but then woke up just after 1pm screaming, I assume because he is hungry. He still won't eat his lunch and is yawning so all I have achieved is a tired and hungry toddler! Dh has got him to eat some oat bar and they are playing outside. The other day he refused to go to sleep for his morning nap but we didn't have a problem with lunch etc...I just have no idea what to do as whatever I do he ends up not getting enough sleep.

[plummyjam]

By 12 months my DD was having one nap per day of about 2 hours. Now 18 months our usual routine is wake up at 6 then early lunch at about 11 - 11.30 then nap for 2 hours usually from 12 - 2. Goes to bed at 8.

I didn't instigate dropping to one nap, it was our childminder's, DD simply had to fit in with her routine.

[Littlebagoflaughter]

Thanks, I think I'm just going to have to keep experimenting until I figure it out!

[Rumandcokeplease]

I think you need to bite the bullet an led aim for one lunchtime nap - the transition is really hard work tho-they either end up having a nap about 10.30-12.30 then it's a long afternoon until bedtime or they're really grumpy til their nap of you hold on until after lunch! My dd used to get really grumpy about 10.30 but if I have her a decent snack it recharged her batteries enough to get over the mid morning hump and then she'd have lunch and sleep 12.30-3 and be in bed by 7, up again 7ish.

[Remembermyname]

My dd is 14.5 months and still naps twice (10.30am for an hour and 4pm for an hour - 8.30 bedtime) she can't self settle but is definitely tired do can't go without them.

But the naps are getting shorter/lighter - she still sleeps deeply for the first 30mins of her morning nap, but wakes v easily after that, so I figure she's heading towards dropping it.

She did go though a phase of being impossible to settle at night so I asked the HV who thought her naps seemed reasonable and that it was a phase (gave me a lecture about the late bedtime though!)

[tryingtocatchthewind]

Yep that first nap is very early. Give her ten minutes in a pram for the first couple of days to see her through till after lunch and then aim for a good two hour nap then. My son is 2.7 and still having his two hr lunch nap and has been since just before his first birthday.

It'll just take a little bit of time to change

[Littlebagoflaughter]

Thanks everyone, that's really helpful. He settled fine at bedtime last night as he was knackered so I think it is the naps which are the issue rather than it just being a tricky phase. Guess I'll have to bite the bullet like you say Rumandcoke but yesterday was such a rubbish day with him so grumpy!

[Rumandcokeplease]

Nap transitions are horrible and it'll probably be hot and miss for a week or so but it's great when they reliably have 2 hours after lunch!!