When families come to me sleep deprived and ready for help, they are almost always more concerned with nighttime sleep than daytime naps. While naps are likely hard on Mom or Dad, it’s the repeated nighttime waking that can really affect an entire family’s health and well-being. However, the big irony is that nighttime sleep isn’t usually that hard to address. Kids may protest the sleep training process initially. But there is so much melatonin in their body at bedtime and throughout the night. Melatonin generally helps kids figure out how to fall asleep, and stay asleep, overnight fairly quickly. So it’s really naps that can be way more challenging, and just as integral for healthy overnight sleep. So how do we improve naps? And is cry it out for naps the answer?
Photo Credit: Brandon Day
If your child is younger than 16 weeks of age, I would encourage you to check out my other resources for newborn sleep. If your child is 16 weeks of age or older, know that there are lots of ways to help your child nap well during the day without endless periods of cry it out.
Sleep Train for Night and Naps Together
Sleep training at night is fairly straightforward. Depending on the sleep training program you are using, you generally start the sleep training process at bedtime. Overnight sleep for most infants lasts for about 12 hours. As your child protests the process of learning to fall asleep on their own, know that you should continue the process until the morning. But what about during the day?
First off, let me state that I never advocate for doing nighttime and daytime sleep training separately. Children need to learn to fall asleep independently at bedtime. But they also need to have the skill of falling asleep at other times (like naps) in order for them to be able to put themselves back to sleep overnight. Babies often struggle severely (read: CRY WAY MORE) during nighttime training if they are still assisted to sleep for naps.
The Basics of Nap Training
So, back to daytime nap training. Let’s say you get your baby out of their crib at 7 am, and feed them to start their day. Perhaps their first nap is scheduled for 8:30 or 9 am. You put them down. Now what? Many parents wonder if they should leave their child to cry indefinitely until they fall asleep. Or, if they should get them up after only 15-20 minutes of protesting. Assuming you have…
1) a clear sleep training plan,
2) and that your pediatrician has given you the full okay to sleep train at night, and for naps following said plan.
Then, I would suggest limiting the amount of time you allow your child to try to fall asleep for a nap to about 1 hour. You could do less time, but many, many, many babies need quite a while (especially at first) to learn how to fall asleep for naps. There is a lot less melatonin in the body during the day than there is at night. This means many babies do not feel as relaxed or drowsy, which are the main effects of melatonin on the body. Also, it can get harder for babies to fall asleep for naps as the day goes on. Usually, one hour is enough to result in a child figuring out how to fall asleep on their own.
I would not do any sort of nap or night training without following full safe sleep guidelines. And know that in-person checks can often make it harder, not easier, for baby to fall asleep for naps. It is imperative to check in if you think something might possibly be wrong. But generally speaking, the more hands on parents are during naps, the harder it is for baby to get to sleep for naps. Using a video monitor mounted to a wall, or a piece of furniture other than the crib, at all times is the only truly safe and advisable way to sleep train for naps and nighttime sleep.
What About Short Naps?
If your child falls asleep easily, but takes short naps, cry it out may be effective to lengthen their naps. If your child sleeps less than 45 minutes for a nap, you can elect to leave them in their crib for another 10-15 minutes to see if they may fall back to sleep. Some families choose to wait up to a full 30 minutes to see if their child falls back to sleep. In my experience, many babies do not usually fall back to sleep when given extra time to cry after a short nap. But, believe it or not, remaining in a dark room with white noise (even if crying), can be much more restful than being up with a caretaker. Thus making it easier for a child to remain awake happily until their next scheduled nap time.
I hope these tips have been helpful in figuring out how to implement cry it out properly during naps. If you’d like more information and tips tailored to your baby, sign up for my newsletter!
What do I do if it’s been 2 hours and he does not sleep? We are doing the cry it out method.
Thanks for the tips! If my baby cries for an hour and then refuses to sleep… do I get her out of bed and go about our day as if she’s taken a nap?
Thank you! If it’s before 3 or 4 pm, try feeding (while keeping baby alert), and then attempt a nap again about 20-30 mins later.
Does this rule for what to do if a baby cries for an hour at nap time apply to older babies as well? My baby is about a year old and we just started sleep training.
Yep!
I have your book. My baby is 17 weeks and 18 pounds 3 oz(19 weeks counting from due date) we are dropping the 4th nap and following the 7 pm to 7 am. 830 nap 1130 nap and 3 pm nap no nap at 4 pm. He seems to get really fussy about 30 mins before the scheduled nap time and will actually start falling asleep in my arms or on his play mat. We are only a few days in, but he just seems do tired before his actual nap time. It’s very hard keeping him up. He still only naps for maybe 45 minutes, even with leaving him to see if he will fall back asleep.Before doing the sleep Trainer method he would nap about every 2 hours and wake every 45 mins at night. He is now only waking at 1 am, 4 am and fuss starting after 6 am and I try and leave him (even if he is still fussing) and will get him up around 645 am I am still nursing at night I have cut back to 2 times a night. Not sure what else I can do for him to keep him going during wake time.
This can often just be part of training at first. I’d stick with it!! I would try to do a bath anytime he seems really tired. I bet by the end of the 2nd week if you really focus on it, he’ll learn to stay awake longer periods. If you’re still struggling, enroll in my BST+Support program so I can help you directly identify what is wrong and how to fix it <3
My baby is 16 weeks almost 17 weeks and we just started letting him cry it out yesterday. He has taken short 30 to 45 minute naps 4 to 5 times a day for weeks. It seems like he should be taking longer naps 3 to 4 times a day by now but he refuses to sleep longer. Should I let him stay in his crib for another 15 minutes? Should I feed him and put him back down? At what point do we give up on the nap and get him up until his next nap?
Hi Ashley!!
I’d suggest checking out my online course, as then I’ll be able to guide you through your particular situation.
https://www.babysleeptrainer.com/purchase/
Hi Natalie! I was just curious, if I let my baby try to go back to sleep after a short nap for 10 mins but she couldnt should I help her go back to sleep? My baby is 3mo and taking between 20-40min nap and shes cranky afterwards. She used to take 2 hr naps but i think shes going thru the 4 month sleep regression.
Hope youre able to answer! Thank you!
Hello Anne,
As long as your baby is not sleep trained, it’s just fine to do that.
Natalie
I’ve read your book and we have been night time and nap time sleep training for 3 days now and my baby seems to wake up from naps after only 15 to 20 minutes. She falls asleep within about 5 minutes of crying prior to these naps, but even when left longer in the crib she usually doesn’t fall back asleep and if she does it’s only for another 10 minutes. She is 21 weeks old and her room is dark and we use white noise. She has such a hard time staying up between naps but we’ve been sticking to the schedule in your book. She’s pretty miserable during the day. Any suggestions?
This is so common!! Naps will get longer with time, usually closer to 6/7 months, and I wouldn’t be surprised if in a week or two, you were seeing longer naps as well. Truly just keep at it and within 10-14 days I think you may see some improvement.
Hi Natalie,
I have a 4.5 month old who is a great nighttime sleeper but naps have always been a struggle with getting him to put himself to sleep independently. Prior to 4 months he had to be rocked/nurses to sleep. We needed a solution and quick! So We’ve been following your CIO for naps method for 3 days now. First 2 days he did great and picked up on things really quick but on day 3 he’s been crying for over an hour for the past 3 naps without intervention. My question is, should I stop attempting CIO after a certain number of attempts per day? Is there Such thing as too much crying It out? I know he needs to sleep but I don’t want to ruin his progress. I would greatly appreciate your advice! Thanks!
Hi Andrea! Thanks for reaching out. It’s tough to say what’s going on without delving in a bit deeper :/ Take a peek at my BST+Support package so we can work together to resolve these issues.
https://www.babysleeptrainer.com/purchase/
My LO is 6 months and demands to be rocked to sleep. But once in motion, demands to stay up. Once i get him to sleep he will only sleep for 10-20 minutes and doesn’t go back to sleep if left in his crib for extra10 minutes. I co-sleep also and he has good nights! But what should I do about nap time? I’ve tried crying it out/self soothjng but I just feel cruel, plus I live in an apartment building so I feel like people are going to complain as well..
Yes, it does feel as if they’re demanding things of us <3 as mom and dad. The important thing to remember is they can't force us to do anything. We're always choosing how to approach sleep with our little ones. I think you might find this blog post helpful:
https://www.babysleeptrainer.com/why-sleep-train-my-baby/
CIO is generally only ineffective if approached improperly. This blog post should also help:
https://www.babysleeptrainer.com/how-does-baby-sleep-training-work/
And I’d just give your neighbors a heads up that you’ll be sleep training your baby. When you consistently follow the Baby Sleep Trainer method, there’s often much less crying than you think there will be.
Our daughter is almost 13 months old, has her own room since she was 8 months. So far, we always cuddled her to sleep and then put her on the bed once she is asleep on our chests.
She sleeps through the night (20:30 til 06:30) and she used have have 2 good naps 1.5 hours each, so we kept using cuddle method instead of teaching her self-sooth to sleep.
We came back from a 3-weeks holiday last week (+5 hours time difference) and our daughters nap routine has changed dramatically. She managed to resume her night routine after a couple of days, but she couldn’t do the same for her naps. She can still fall asleep easily on our chests during the day, but wakes up very easily crying when we try to put her on the bed. Even if we manage to put her on the bed without waking her up, she sleeps max 30-40 mins and wakes up crying again.
It has been 10 days and still same routine every day. She ends up on our chests for the naps.
Shall we try CIO method for the naps in this case? Would it be better to isolate it from the night routine as we dont have problems over there?
Hey! This happens a lot <3 When kids are assisted to sleep, generally some event puts them over the edge and then they need to be sleep trained. You'll want to sleep train not just for naps, but also for bedtime and overnight sleep as well. Check out my online programs if you'd like any support through the process. https://www.babysleeptrainer.com/purchase/
Hello!
We started sleep-training about 10 days ago using your book. Everything has been going great up until Daylight Savings. Our 6 1/2 month old has started fighting his 3rd nap, crying for the whole hour. I know he is tired, but he really doesn’t want to fall asleep. I’m not sure if it is due to the time change, or if this is normal for the start of sleep training. He was doing fine with the 3rd nap up until Day 8. After following your guidelines – getting up, feeding, and doing a second attempt – he still doesn’t fall asleep.
Should we continue to let him cry for the WHOLE hour? We are having a really hard time with this. It hurts worse than nighttime for some reason 🙁 I know we need to stay consistent, but after about 40 mins it seems obvious he isn’t going to fall asleep. Could this just be part of the process? Is there a necessity for the whole 60 minutes?
Please advise.
Thank you!
Check out my blog on the 3 to 2 nap transition. It sounds like baby may be ready! <3
Ok. I did read that but am not sure if he is ready yet. Should we keep trying a 3rd nap and see if it resolves, or try to go to two?
If baby continues to skip nap 3, then he is ready.
I just want to make sure I am understanding this correctly. My 4 month old is doing great at night and CIO worked well for her, she sleeps well with no props now. But her 2nd and 3rd (last) nap of the day are tricky, especially the 3rd. They are short naps and afterwards she can’t seem to fall back asleep. So I should wait a bit, then if she keeps crying, get her up, (into the light and all?) and feed her, (just a little?) then put her straight back down to see if she’ll finish the nap? I am only three days into training so idk if that makes a difference in how I should react or if I should keep to a stricter CIO for a bit longer before doing this.
Hello, we have an 18 month old who we sleep trained at 5 months (cry it out). So he sleeps well through the night mostly. However, he requires a pacifier for nap time sleep. He naps 2+ hours with it. The problem is he requires it put back in, in the middle of naps and interrupts his sisters nap or whatever i happen to be working on. I attempted to take it a month ago and he only slept 40 min. That won’t work for us obviously. Should I just leave him in there to cry for a certain length of time after his short nap? Will he eventually start taking longer naps? And in the meantime should I let him go back to multiple naps a day to get enough daytime sleep? Thanks in advance!
I would just deal with short naps for a while – they’ll last probably less than a month, and no do not do more than one nap in the interim.
Hi Natalie,
I have your book and been using your method for over some time now. My 22 month old has been taking only 1 hr naps for the last two weeks. We have tried CIO for 7 days and she still only napping 1hr. She usually sleeps 11hours at night. We are not sure on what do?
Just wait it out, mama. It can take about 30 days, or slightly longer, to get that nap to lengthen out.
Hi Natalie, we are desperately ready to start sleep training We have a chronically overtired baby (hence the need to sleep train!). Is it possible to sleep train (specifically extinction cio) for night and daytime simultaneously if baba is starting out overtired?
As always, thanks so much for your help!
Most babies are really, really tired when they start sleep training – as long as baby is 100% healthy you are good to start training!!
Hello, currently 2 days and 3 nights into sleep train our 6 month old. He is doing well at night (as you said most babies will because of melatonin). My question is, if he’s crying for an hour and then falls asleep for 20 minutes and wakes back up crying, what should I do?
Hi Denise, I’m not exactly sure how to help because I’d need a bit more info about your situation in order to guide you properly. Please check out the Baby Sleep Trainer + Support course if you’d like to work together through the sleep training process <3
http://www.babysleeptrainer.com/purchase/
Thanks for the tips! I was wondering if I should be putting him down right at naptime or a few minutes before naptime to get him to settle and go to sleep on time?
Hi Ashley,
Right at nap time is just fine.
My baby is chronically overtired! She’s 14 months and the type to do whatever she can to keep herself awake so it’s like her brain and body are against each other. What did y’all do to improve y’all’s situation? I know it’s been a year and a half, but if you remember that’d be great.
Hi Stella,
This is quite common and without knowing more, it may be hard for me to help. I’d suggest you check out my online course + Support so I can work with you through what’s happening and come to a resolution.
http://www.babysleeptrainer.com/purchase/
Hi Natalie,
These blog posts are such a life saver for us! Thank you so so much!
Once the baby has fallen asleep using CIO, how long would you let them sleep before waking them up? My 6.5 month old daughter sometimes sleeps more than 2 hours so I’ve been waking her up at 2 hours, but if she sleeps like that for all 3 naps, I know it’s too much daytime sleep. Would you advise 1.5 hours, 1.5 hours and then a cat nap if the first nap goes past 1 hour or should I always wait till 2 hours?
For kids taking more than one nap, no single nap should exceed two hours in length. I would limit daytime sleep to babies to somewhere around 3 hrs, plus or minus 30 minutes depending on the child.
Hello,
I need major help.
Last week i tried the cry in out method with my almost 10 month old and he literally did NOT nap for three days…nights are easy if he wakes up he barely cried for 5 mins than back to sleep. Naps are terrible and he will cry for hours and not sleep…no matter how tired he is. I am at my wits end here and need help. Side note: I decided to give him a break from it but need to try again. Please help
Hi <3
Our baby was sleep trained almost right from the start, good night sleep and good naps, falling asleep by herself (thumb sucking though)
Then at around 10-11 months she started standing up in the crib and she couldn’t figure it out how to go back to lying position. So, I had to go back and put her down again and again again and she kept standing up again and again and again… then we fought her how to get down but she still kept standing up and crying. So, we should just let her cry but then she completely misses her naps. She stands in her crib, cries then starts playing and making funny noises but doesn’t go to sleep. I don’t want her to miss her naps because I want her to get enough sleep so now I just lay with her in our bed for about 10 min holding her so that she doesn’t get up 🙂 then she falls asleep and then I put her in her crib.
I want her to fall asleep by herself again but now at the point that I don’t know what to do. If I leave her in the crib she just won’t sleep, she really doesn’t mind not taking naps during the day but then at 4-5 pm is is really exhausted. I would really appreciate any advice on this, thank you! Our daughter turned 1 last week.
Hi there!! This happens a lot <3 Once the assisting to sleep started, the sleep training likely unraveled. Thankfully all you need to do is train her again - you can both do this!!
I sleep trained using total extinction at 11ish months and that was waaaaay easier than nap training! I’m nap training at 19 months with this method because I have a 2nd due in a couple of months. I have a pretty high tolerance for CIO, but naptime CIO tugs at my heartstrings a bit. Oh well!
Ah! Yes naps can be much tougher. Don’t give up! It can take up to two weeks, as long as you’re not doing rescue/emergency naps where you eventually help the child sleep.
Hi,
Do you have any thoughts on using a pacifier only for naps? My 10 month old self settles for bedtime and was sleeping through 7-6am, but we hit early wakings about 3/4 weeks ago. We have shortened the morning nap about 1.5 weeks ago and am waiting to see if that helps. We have had a few 6am wakes but its mainly 5.40am. I gave him the dummy for all naps about 2 weeks ago. He was half self settling at nap time, when he didn’t, I would go in and give dummy after about 30 mins. I switched to giving it at the start of nap time as it was all just taking too long. I am now concerned that the dummy use at naptime is having an effect with the early wakings. he now does 30 mins in morning and 2 hours at lunchtime. There isn’t a situation with the dummy falling out at naptime, he can sleep through the whole 2 hours. We sleep trained at 6.5 months.
Any thoughts would be much appreciated! The early wakes started before dummy was fully sanctioned for naps.
Thanks!
Generally speaking if the pediatrician approves, sleeping without a pacifier is preferred.
Hello!
My baby boy is 4.5m. We just managed to teach him not to sleep in a boob/co-sleeping and sleep in his bedside cot doing really well in falling asleep by himself, but still after bf..
He only has three-four 30min naps per day and Ive tried everything to extend it. Is it possible that he is just needs less sleep? He is big for his age as well.
His bedtime is 9.30pm-7.30am with three feeds/nappy changes at night.
Thanks,
Ola
He reaches the milestone of falling asleep on his own once he does not relying on breastfeeding to sleep. The short naps are normal, and will likely continue until he is about 7 months of age.
I had few queries about sleep training of my 10 month old daughter.
We have started sleep training, its been seven days now. She is sleeping well through out the night, but before we put her in crib she starts crying. She cries almost 5-10 min, before she gets to sleep. Is it okey?
She start crying in bedtime routine only which might be out of fear of sleeping alone. And we were co-sleeping before for almost 3 months.
Through out the day when she is awake she is very happy. But now before bedtime she starts crying out of fear, which is very sad to us. What should we do ?
She was sleeping for almost 2-3 hrs in day time naps. But now its reduced to 1 – 1.5 hr. as she is not getting back to sleep once she wake up in middle. She fails to fall sleep in between cycle. What should we do?
Most babies cry at least a few minutes before falling asleep. As long as you are certain she is totally healthy and safe, I’d give her space to fall asleep on her own. The naps will also lengthen over time.
I totally sympathize with you because the same thing is happening to me as I am sleep training my baby. When we start the bedtime routine he shakes and cries. Something that helped us reading stories with him and singing (he is almost 11 months).
It’s so bad that even when he goes in for a diaper change he cries and waves at the crib saying bye.
HI Jackie,
This is so common <3 The great news is, with time kids get used to crib and generally aren't as upset about going to sleep.
Hello,
I have a baby son almost 11 month. We started sleep training few days back. He is doing great at night. But I am concerned over his naps. He used to sleep more than 3 hours total in 2 naps ( 2 in first nap and 1 hr in second). But now he is not sleeping more than 1 hr each nap. So he is almost down to 1.5 hrs a day. What should I do?
Should I continue the same or I should introduce one more nap in between?
Please suggest.
Hi, I have a 8 month old who takes really short naps till now (1hour). Thank you.
Not sure why my post got truncated. My 8mo takes really short naps each time (<30mins) and can’t fall asleep back on her own. We will extend her nap time by carrying her to sleep. Recently started the cry it out method but she would wake up after 15mins and cannot fall back asleep again. We will check on her every 7-10mins but she still cannot fall back asleep after an hour and kept crying. Appreciate ur advise.
I would make sure she’s only on two naps and work on teaching her to fall asleep 100% on her own for naps and bedtime.
We are following your method for both night and day sleep training. Naps are proving very difficult. You say if they sleep less than 45 mins leave them for 10-15 mins to see if they fall back asleep. Our baby (6 months) tends to sleep about 20-30 mins then wake and cry for this entire 10-15m period. so if we pick him up at the end of it as suggested, we are picking him up while crying – doesn’t that send mixed messages and teach him to cry in order to be picked up? But if we don’t pick him up we are going past the recommended 10-15 mins. So we are pretty confused as to how to handle this situation.
Hi Lisa! Babies cry for all sorts of reasons. Picking them up during a period of crying is quite normal and doesn’t encourage them to cry more. Assisting them to sleep after lengthy periods of crying can, though. As long as baby is healthy and your pediatrician approves, simply keep following the guidelines in the book .
We have a 15 month old who previously was great at putting himself to sleep both for both naptime and bedtime with little to no wake-ups . He even seemed excited when it was sleep time! Now he fights it so hard! It all went downhill when we traveled for a wedding in February and had to hold him to sleep while we were away from home and now he expects it every time. We just started sleep training him 2 nights ago but I have a question about nap sleep. Yesterday for naptime he never slept he either just played in his crib or cried. Is that ok for now until bedtime sleep is sorted out or should I be doing something else? Thanks!
Yes, anytime you assist to sleep this can happen <3 it will probably take him up to 14-16 days to start napping again. Keep trying! I'd do a nap attempt of up to an hour (if he's safe and you're comfortable with that), then if he doesn't sleep give him a 30 min break, then try again.
So we sleep trained our baby at 4 months old (with ped permission). He’s now 7 months old and for the past 3-4 weeks he started screaming when we put him down. He’s always been wide awake when we put him down, there might have been whimpering, but not full blown crying. He takes good naps (1.5-2 hours and sometimes I have to wake him), so I think we’re getting awake time right. We’re going in after 5-10 min and doing a “reset” and sometimes that works. But I’m sick of the screaming. It seems unnecessarily stressful for everyone when he knows what to do. Help?
Hi Jessi,
I think the resets are making the issue worse I’d try to avoid those for a week (as long as you know he’s safe) and see if it gets better. Also, if he’s not yet down to two naps, I’d make the transition. https://www.babysleeptrainer.com/nap-transitioning-made-easy-part-one-3-naps-to-2/
Hi
My baby is 9 months old and his lunch nap is always 30 mins…he will CIO for 15mins and I’ve tried for 4 weeks. Should I now let him CIO for an hr straight to see if it works or is that too long? Do I need to go in at set intervals to soothe him using my voice during that 1hr or should I just let him cry out ?
Many thanks!
Hi Jo,
Sure! If you feel comfortable waiting up to an hour, and you’re certain he’s safe,, go for it. Checks might make things a bit tougher, but I’d also suggest you make sure you have a full sleep training plan before embarking on any type of CIO https://www.babysleeptrainer.com/how-does-baby-sleep-training-work/
Hello I am doing CIO method on my 7th month old and I struggle with day naps. She is a short napper(25-35min). Before training she was on 2-3 naps every 3hr depending how well I managed to extend the naps to an hour time. Can I keep going changing between 2 or 3 naps during the sleep training if she does short naps or should I be consistent and stick to 2 naps?
I would stick to just two naps. https://www.babysleeptrainer.com/nap-transitioning-made-easy-part-one-3-naps-to-2/
My baby always starts sweating when she is crying But she is in the right clothing.. i don’t know what to do.
Hi Jessie!! I’m not sure which program/course/method you’re doing, but I’d often that level of excessive crying might mean it’s time to make adjustments to the method you’re using. This might be a helpful article to read: https://www.babysleeptrainer.com/sleep-training-methods-best-for-baby-or-toddler/
I have read this article soooo many times because we’ve been sleep training my (almost 11 month) baby using the cry it out method, and he has been improving at night time tremendously. But naps are a nightmare, he just doesn’t stop crying, sometimes it’s even an hour and no nap. Then when he doesn’t cry for an hour he ends up sleeping for 39 minutes only. He of course wakes up and is cranky and sleepy. Its just like a bad cycle all day long 🙁
Hi Jackie,
I want to learn more so I can help! It’s likely that something is off with his nap training. Please check out my online courses. The BST+Support course will enable us to email back and forth so I can identify what the issue is and help you resolve it.
Hi Natalie,
I’ve been doing sleep training And I think is going good but my baby (almost 8 months old) just take a short nap (30min) I tried to let her cry for 15 min to see if she can go back to sleep but she gets more and more upset when I take her out of her crib and feed her (breastfeeding) she falls asleep .. any advice ?
Hi Anais,
It’s important you keep her alert however you can during feeds. Then, keep her alert until her next scheduled nap or bedtime. It will take time for naps to lengthen, but sleep will not improve if she keeps falling asleep during feedings.
Dear Natalie,
We just started your method, and my baby is 6 months and three weeks now. We started last night, and it was fine. She cried 8 minutes to sleep, woke up after 45 minutes, cried another 20 minutes, and then back to sleep until morning
We continued training this morning for her first nap. She cried for 45 minutes until she finally fell asleep, She was so devastated that she spit up a lot to the point that there is nothing left to vomit. She continuing retching for quite some time. I am wondering if there is anything we could do about the vomiting? Many thanks.
Best regards,
Emma Wang
Hi Emma!
I’m so sorry to hear this happened. Are you enrolled in one of the online courses? Typically spitting up is an indicator that some part of training might not be being implemented in the proper way, and is thus causing her additional distress. Regardless, spitting up isn’t unheard of during training. I have so many questions I would love to ask to help figure out what’s going on and get this situation resolved. Please explore the Baby Sleep Trainer + Support course and consider enrolling in it. That’s way I can figure out exactly what we need to modify. For now, I would discuss what’s happening with your pediatrician and only continue with training if they approve, despite her spitting up.
Hello. My baby is almost 11 months. Her night time sleep is good and independent. She used to nap independently, but she starting teething when the quarantine started and was also going through a developmental leap so just wouldn’t nap on her own, but would on us. . Now that the leap is done and those first teeth are out, do you rece returning to sleep training for naps?
Yep! As long as you’re certain she’s 100% healthy, you can restart training anytime you’re ready.
Hi Natalie,
I’ve got your book and worked like a charm for my daughter in her baby stages.
She’s 2.5 yr old now, she’s always slept in her own room however for naps it’s a real struggle.
She will sit or stand in her crib for 15mins to sometimes long as an hr to nap (if lucky) sometimes she won’t nap at all and to make things worse she’s going through a crying phase calling mommy and daddy.
Not sure how long we should wait outside and if we should try to settle her (barely works) usually she would jus go without her nap for the whole day.
This happens once to twice a week.
Hi Vivian,
This is super normal for this age group. I wouldn’t try to settle her. Just give her an hour to try to sleep, then call the nap and keep her up til bedtime if she doesn’t nap. On days she doesn’t nap, avoid the car in the afternoon so she doesn’t get into the habit of napping in the car on the go. As long as she’s totally healthy and completely safe in her crib, giving her the space to try to fall asleep on her own is a good path to take.
Hi Natalie,
I am just starting your method of sleep training for my 6 and a half month son. He falls asleep independently, dark room, white noise on, room kept cool, appropriate awake windows. My little guy will cry for about 5 minutes when he is put in the crib, but then consistently naps for only 20 min. I leave him in there for another 15 minutes when he wakes just so he has a chance to resettle (he rarely does). However, with these 20 minute naps during the day, he gets pretty irritable and seems he is needing a 4th nap which I don’t want to go there! He is still waking frequently at night so I know he is definitely overtired. How can I help my little guy during the day when he is overtired and difficult to keep awake despite my best attempts? Do I offer him the 4th nap? He only need 3 naps if I settle him in the crib for his second nap, wakes up after 20 minutes, then resettle him on me via breastfeeding and cuddling ( he will sleep for 1 1/2 hours) which gets him through. I appreciate your advice and help!
Hi Laura!!
Waking overnight isn’t related to being overtiredness. In fact, overtiredness is sort of a myth 😉 I would love to help with this situation and I have LOTS of questions I want to ask to get more clarity on what’s happening.
I’d check out the BST+Support program as I think that will provide all the info you need to be successful, plus will enable me to answer all your questions <3
https://www.babysleeptrainer.com/purchase/
Hi there! We’ve been sleep training my 15 month old for 7 days now. He’s sleeping 7:30/8pm-7am and putting himself down within 30 minutes. Naps are a different story. We are using a program where he is supposed to nap or be in his crib trying to nap from 9-11 and 1-3. He’ll put himself down with a fight about an hour into the first nap but will not sleep the second nap, he screams the entire time. I’ve even tried tweaking the nap time frames a bit because he used to go down at 2 before we started the program. He used to nap 1.5 hours each nap when we would rock him to sleep. I can tell he’s desperate for these naps but he just screams. It’s so hard especially since we are not seeing progress. Any advice? Will things just take more time? Thanks!
We are attempting CIO for nap training with our 5 month old. If we allow her to cry for an hour, then go get her, feed her, and attempt another nap in 20-30 minutes, should we continue this cycle if she still does not sleep?
Hi Natalie,
My son is 9 months old & I just started sleep training exactly 1 week ago with a wake time of 8 AM, nap time at 10 AM, second nap at 2 PM, & bedtime at 8 PM. Nighttime training was a success. After the 3rd night, he started to whine for not even a minute & then go to sleep and stay asleep for 12 hrs. However, his naps have been so challenging. Sometimes he cry’s for an entire hr when I put him done. At which point, I will pick him up & try again in another hr. Other times, he’ll cry for 30-35 mins & then nap for only 30-45 mins. Today is day 7 of nap time training, so I decided to put him down for his first nap a half hr later at 10:30 AM, thinking that maybe he just hasn’t been tired enough at 10 AM. 43 mins later, and he is STILL crying as I leave this comment. I don’t understand what I’m doing wrong. 🙁
HI Mary,
I’m not sure either :/ I’d need to ask a few more questions before I can figure things out. Feel free to check out my BST+Support course if you’re interested in working with me to resolve this issue,
https://www.babysleeptrainer.com/purchase/
Hi Natalie,
My son is 9 months old & I just started sleep training exactly 1 week ago with a wake time of 8 AM, nap time at 10 AM, second nap at 2 PM, & bedtime at 8 PM. Nighttime training was a success. After the 3rd night, he started to whine for not even a minute & then go to sleep and stay asleep for 12 hrs. However, his naps have been so challenging. Sometimes he cry’s for an entire hr when I put him done. At which point, I will pick him up & try again in another hr. Other times, he’ll cry for 30-35 mins & then nap for only 30-45 mins. Today is day 7 of nap time training, so I decided to put him down for his first nap a half hr later at 10:30 AM, thinking that maybe he just hasn’t been tired enough at 10 AM. 48 mins later, and he is STILL crying. I don’t understand what I am doing wrong. 🙁
Hi! We started CIO yesterday. She was okay at night (fell asleep after 27 minutes of screaming). In the first nap of the day, its been much longer but she eventually fell asleep after 30 minutes.
However she woke up crying again after just 20 minutes.
Are we supposed to leave her to sleep again or just get her up until the next nap?
Hi there!!
If you’re certain she’s totally safe you can give her a few minutes to see if she falls back to sleep.
Hi Natalie! I recently started sleep training with CIO for my 5 month old. She did wonderfully for night time sleep and got it right away. Naps have been more difficult. We do a short nap time routine and put her down awake to self-soothe. The first 2 naps of the day she is usually asleep within 5-10 mins, but last nap of the day can sometimes be 30 mins of crying. We follow the “at least 1 hour in th bed” rule and she has only cried for the entire hour once. We’ve been doing this for 2 weeks.
Overall, my question is how long does sleep training for naps usually take? At what point should I think about changing my method? Thanks!
Hi Emily,
Naps are almost always harder than nighttime sleep, and nap training can take about 2 weeks to come together. If she hasn’t improved by the end of week two, I’d look into changing what you’re doing.
I am just starting the CIO method for my 7 month old daughter. She is refusing to fall asleep for naps. I let her cry for one hour, go get her turn lights on take her out and play/feed and then start nap time routine again 30mins later and again she cries for a full hour. How many times do I do this? I’m at my wits end? Yesterday she was need up not napping at all. I need to take my dog out for his hike but I don’t want to put her in carrier or stroller because I know she will instantly fall asleep and this is not recommended. Please advise.
Hi Sheena,
Yes, CIO for naps can be tough if you’r’e not using a formal training program. I’d love help and just need to know a bit more about what’s going with her in order to be able to do so. Feel free to check out the BST+Support course as that will enable me to work directly with you to guide you through this process.
https://www.babysleeptrainer.com/purchase/
If baby cries when waking from naps, should I pick him up then or wait until he’s calmed down (self soothed) and then pick him up?
If I pick him up while crying when waking, doesn’t that send mixed signals?
Babies cry for all sorts of reasons, and it’s not really realistic or practical to never pick them up when they’re crying. Plus, often they’re crying when they wake up from a nap because they’re alerting you to come get them.
Hello,
My son is 18 months His night time sleep is good. His naps have always been bad. He’s always had to sleep in my arms. I’ve been trying to get him to sleep in his crib recently. He falls alseep but will only sleep for 20 mins. He is exhausted for the rest of the day (still on two naps) my mother takes him for one day a week and he sleeps for naps (min 1 hr each). I’ve been doing the napping in the crib at our house for over a week. We’ve always used CIO. How can I get him to take the 1 hr nap?
Hi Jackie!!
It’s really important that no one assists him to sleep, including grandma. I’d also give him about two weeks to work through learning how to fall asleep on his own. It may also soon be time for just one nap.
https://www.babysleeptrainer.com/nap-transitioning-made-easy-part-two-2-naps-to-1/
Thanks Natalie,
It’s been almost 2.5 weeks now. My mother in law doesn’t assist him to nap-when she has him and he willing takes 2 great naps at her house. other then her house he has not slept during the day at all anymore. He now cries for 1 hr twice a day at nap time. He is exhausted. He is the type of kid that when he is over tired he just runs around more. I know he wants to sleep. His night time sleeps are now disrupted as well. He often cries in the middle of the night and now wakes up early. We tried putting him to bed early but it’s not helping. The violent crying is also taking a toll on me. My stress levels go through the roof. And the thought of putting him down him and having him cry are hard in me. I’m also pregnant and emotional and all alone most is the day. If I check in on him he cries harder (so we don’t) and I don’t want to stay in the room as it’s just “assisting” him. I’ don’t know if I should just give up
And go back to holding him for a few weeks and try again or if I should tough it out.
Hi Jackie!!
I’m so sorry to hear all this. At this point I think I need to have a more detailed sense of what’s happening in order for me to be able to help. Please consider joining the Baby Sleep Trainer + Support program so we can communicate directly and I can help you through what’s going on. https://www.babysleeptrainer.com/purchase/
Hi Natalie,
I have an almost 9 month old who is sleep training as we speak. He goes down perfectly for the night… no wakings. His first nap he does not bad (only sleeps 1 hour 15 min tops tops cant seem to get him to do more than that) but the second just isn’t consolidating.
He usually wakes up at around 6:40am and goes down for his first nap 2.5 hrs later, eats lunch plays and goes down for his second nap again 2.5 hours later. But he is constantly waking up at the 25/28/30 minute mark hysterical. We don´t know what to do anymore. Almost already 2 weeks into sleep training.
All the correct sleep factors are in play:
-Dark room
-Sound machine
-full belly
good playtime
I am at my whits end … any thoughts?
He goes down for bed at around 6pm due to the bad naps.
Hi Estela,
I believe I replied to a comment you made on another post. I would check out my BST+Support program if you’re looking for any more guidance <3
https://www.babysleeptrainer.com/purchase/
Hi Natalie,
I have a 17month old, and we sleep trained around 6 months and nighttime has been no problem. But for naps, he has always required motion…and now it requires a ride in the stroller or car to get him to fall asleep and then we transfer to crib. He wakes up at 5:30-6am so nap begins around 10-11am and he’ll sleep either 1-2hrs. My fear is that I’ll have 4 yr old that will still require a stroller ride in order to nap if I don’t change this habit!!
Am I too late for a recourse on naps? Any insight would be so appreciated. Many thanks!
Hi Tess,
You are correct that he will eventually need to learn to fall asleep 100% on his own or he will end up being an older toddler that still requires assistance to sleep. You are not too late to sleep train him, as long as he’s unable to climb out of his crib <3 I'd check out the Baby Sleep Trainer online programs if you're looking for help with the sleep training process.
https://www.babysleeptrainer.com/purchase/
Hi! I love your posts! My 8 month old sleeps great at night and falls asleep by him self but at night time he won’t fall asleep by him self. If he is still crying in his crib after an hour for nap time should I let him keep crying? I know he’s tired and he just ate so he’s not hungry. I was hoping his naps would get easier since he’s sleep good at night.
Hi Alex,
Thank you!! If you are ever helping him fall asleep during the day, he may just be holding out for that assistance to sleep. I don’t think you need to leave him longer than an hour for a nap attempt, but perhaps just try a nap again about 3o minutes later and make sure not to let him become sleepy or drowsy in between nap attempts, including during feeds.
Your book says 3 naps for 4-7 month old. There’s no way i can get my 4 month old to only take 3 naps. He need 4-5 naps because he can only stay away at most 1.5 hours or else he is overtired. Some days he need 6 naps. He sleep through the night with only 1 feeding though. Do I just try to keep him awake longer or is it ok to keep doing 4-5 naps? How would that schedule look like?
Hi Natalie! It’s been about 5 weeks since I started your baby sleep trainer program for my almost 6 month old and we’ve made a lot of progress at night!
Naps are still a struggle, however, as my baby girl rarely gets above 30 minutes. She also cries a lot when we put her down for naps and when she wakes up. I know the shorts naps are normal, but is the crying normal this far into sleep training? Same question for the 4:00-6:30am no check in window — is it normal for a baby to cry, sometimes up to 45 min, after almost 5 weeks of training? She’s usually up at 5:30am and it’s painful to let her CIO before we go in at 6:30am. Thanks for your guidance!!
Hello Sejal,
Without know a lot of detail about what’s going on (for example, how much she’s crying before falling asleep for each nap), I’d say yes, it’s normal. Most babies cry at least a little bit before falling asleep for naps and bedtime, as well as when waking up to alert you to the fact that they’re awake. And yes, I’d say early morning waking is very very common <3 If you haven't had a chance to read this article it talks more about emw in detail:
https://www.babysleeptrainer.com/toddler-baby-waking-up-too-early
Natalie
I started sleep training with my 18 month old daughter about a 2 weeks ago. Nights are a breeze now, she went down last night without a single cry. Day/nap training has been a struggle from day 1. She’ll cry for 30 minutes to an hour but will only sleep 30 to 40 minutes. For a few days now, she’s been waking up at 5/530 am in the morning. Today it was 415am, but she went back to sleep for another 45 minutes then I went in her room to get her out of bed at 6am (which is still early) because she went to bed at 9pm. Normally I put her down at 8/830, but yesterday I ran behind time so she went later. I knows she’s overtired because she’s been getting up early and not napping longer than 40 minutes during her nap. What should I do with an overtired toddler? Earlier bedtime, multiple naps, etc. Please help!
Kendra,
Overtiredness isn’t really a thing <3 If she were really tired, she'd sleep more, not less. It's normal for naps to be very short for the first 30 days of sleep training (when kids are down to one nap). I'd stick with bedtime around 7:30 or 8 at the latest, and stick with what you're doing as long as you are certain she's totally healthy and safe.
I am in the same exact situation as Kendra above. 18 months old baby boy. Started sleep training 2 weeks ago. He goes to sleep at night now with little to no cry in less than 10 minutes. He has a couple of wake ups between 4:30-6am and goes back to sleep. The issue is he won’t nap during the day. We have tried 1 nap for 2 weeks now, 2 naps before that. And he just won’t go to sleep, rocked, carried, anything. We tried to let him cry it out for nap 1 and 2 (left him there for 60min each time) and he didn’t sleep naps for 2 days now. Should I continue to let him cry it out until he sleeps naps or should we try something else to help him nap during the day. Thank you!
Hi!! It’s tough for me to say exactly what you should without knowing a lot more about what’s going on. Check out the BST+Support course if you’d like my help in tackling the napping issue.
Hang in there!!
Natalie
http://www.babysleeptrainer.com/purchase/
Help. Was successfully with the cru it out for nighttime sleep but baby still refuses naps in cot. She’s cry now foe over an hour!!!!!! I’ve been going in 5 mins, 10, 15 and now up 20 with no let up. What do I do!
Hi Natalie,
I need your help. My 18 month old daughter won’t nap independently for more than 30 minutes. She will nap for an hour in a stroller or car or if nursing, but in her crib only 30 min. We’ve been trying crib hour for 2 months now and her naps haven’t lengthened. Night sleep is fine – 11 hrs, goes down independently (trained with extinction). Have tried adjusting wake windows also without and improvement. I thought after 2 months of crib hour that she would learn to connect her sleep cycles, but it hasn’t happened. She will cry for 10-20 minutes then sleep for 30. Then I let her cry for an additional 30 min or so but she doesn’t put herself back to sleep. I’m at my wit’s end. Please help!
Hi Zeina,
It may simply be that she doesn’t need more than those 30 minutes each day. Sleeping on the go isn’t as deep or high quality, which may be why it lasts longer. If you’d like, you can continue to be hyper consistent in making sure she doesn’t nap on the go for 30 straight days at all whatsoever.
Natalie
Thank you, Natalie.
Hi Natalie,
I bought your book and started following it to a T with my 10 month old. We are on day 2 and he didn’t nap at ALL yesterday and we are currently on the second “hour”/attempt of naps today. At some point, could it be he is just overtired to learn a new skill? I keep holding onto your advice and hope it’ll get better, but I never thought a few days later I would be allowing my son to cry it out unassisted, no checks, for 2 hours a day for naps. (He also cried over 2 hours for both nights around midnight – 2am-ish.) At some point, are we supposed to reset? He’s so exhausted he falls over when we take him out between attempts. I was previously nursing, co-sleeping with him through the night and I’m FAR more exhausted now. Thanks.
Hi Mary,
Thank you for reaching out. What you’re describing isn’t all together unheard of in the first 48 hours of training, but without knowing more detail it’s hard for me to give you an assessment of what’s happening. I will say it’s vital to keep him alert in between nap attempts. If he’s getting sleepy or drowsy or closes his eyes between attempts for any reason, that will count as his nap and would be the reason he’s not falling asleep during nap attempts. Also, if you have elected to do checks during nap, I would consider omitting those (as long as you are certain he’s 100% healthy and totally safe) and see if that results in naps. Finally, please check out my Baby Sleep Trainer + Support course, as then I can work with you directly to resolve these nap struggles.
https://www.babysleeptrainer.com/purchase/
Natalie
My baby and I travel an hour to work (I’m a nanny) and an hour home so she sleeps in the car during these times. This happens 4 days a week. At work she sleeps in a pack n play and at home a crib. Will the car naps and different environments prevent her from being able to nap train?
Hi Natalie,
I used to nurse my baby to sleep and co-sleep with her, we finally sleep trained her and put her in the cot when she was 11 months. Night time sleep is excellent, she was doing much better since night 3 and has been sleeping through ever since. She is now 15 months. However, nap training has not been successful at all. I tried letting her cry for an hour, take a break and try for another hour. Everytime I try this, she would cry for so long until she is exhausted and she would only sleep for 17mins and then she will wake up crying and not go back to sleep again. She was visibly very distressed, and started to refuse eating everytime we attempted nap training (we have tried at least 3-4 times, attempting to do it at least 1-2 weeks at a time, and taking a few weeks of break in between when I realised it wasn’t working. I ended up doing cheats for her nap now (taking her out in the stroller). She is 15 months and down to only 1 nap a day. I haven’t tried nap training again since she has gone down to 1 nap. Might try it again soon and use your method of 1 hour attempt (no checks), break and another hour of attempt. Do you have any suggestions about what to do if she consistently only did 17min nap after training for 1-2 weeks? Do I let her a second nap in the day if she only did a 17-min nap? Thanks so much!! Patricia
Hi Patricia,
As crazy as it sounds, as long as ***you are certain she is totally healthy and completely safe***, I’d give her more than 1-2 weeks to get over the short naps. Give her at least 30 days. Also, do NOT assist her to sleep or do cheat naps, if all she wants is 17 minutes, that’s fine, keep her alert til bedtime and try again the next day. Don’t do a second nap.
I have a 3 month old who wakes only once at night. But his naps are 30 minutes long. Every couple of days he will sleep a long 3 he nap. I leave him to cry for 15 minutes and maybe maybe once a day he will sleep longer (usually the second nap). I am trying to feed every 3 hours.
How can I elongate his nap? Is there something I should try? Would letting him fall asleep completely on his own be better than a pacifier? (He sometimes needs a pacifier- he doesn’t use a pacifier in the middle of the night)
Hi Kim,
Short naps are the norm for babies under 7 months. As he gets older, closer to 7 months, you’ll likely see his naps start to lengthen. Yes, it is very possible that once he learns the skill of truly independent sleep that his naps may get longer, but it’s not a guarantee as short naps are just biologically normally at this age. Don’t stop using the pacifier for sleep without express approval from your pediatrician.
Hi Natalie,
My baby girl is 5 months old and I’ve been letting her to self sooth (CIO) during nap time since around 3 months and since then she would always cry 10-15 min sometimes longer. Is that ok? I’ve been following the wake windows and I have a consistent schedule but I’m not sure what I’m doing wrong here. She hates to be rocked to sleep and refuses to use a pacifier.
Do babies stop crying at nap time during a certain age?
Please help
Hi Ola,
Without knowing more detail about your particular situation, I can tell you that many babies cry for 10-15 mins before falling asleep. They will often do this through their first or second year of life.
Natalie
Hi! Thank you for this! My baby is 4 months old (18 weeks) and his naps are still 30 minutes long. With leaving him in fussing/crying for an extra 15-20 minutes, should I still keep him on a 3 nap schedule right now or try to give him 4 naps? Falling asleep for the naps isn’t the issue – he usually falls asleep in under 5 minutes!
Hi Nina,
That’s totally up to you. If you’d like to try just three naps, go for it!
Hi Natalie, I’ve read your book and I’m planning to start sleep training my 4months old. However I’m a bit confused and hope you can explain a bit more on the following. if we down at 8:30am if she didn’t sleep for an hour, get her up at 9:30am feed her and attempt another hour at 10am. However if we follow your schedule her next nap should he 11:30am, if she sleeps at 10am do we still put her down to nap again at 11:30? If she doesn’t sleep meaning she stays awake till 11 do I feed her again then attempt to put her sleep at 11:30am? Also do I give her a full feed everytime even if it’s only 1.5hr apart from 9:30am to 11am? Thanks
Hello Queenie,
So if baby misses first nap, you’ll attempt another nap in 30 mins, on and on til baby sleeps. If/when baby sleeps, start next nap no sooner than 90 mins after they wake from that nap. Also, remember that ideally all naps would be over no later than 4, so depending on how that next nap goes (the one after the 10 am attempt) you can time the next nap so that it ends no later than 4.
Yep, full feeds or as much as she’ll take, after each nap attempt.
Natalie
Hi Natalie, thank you for these blog posts. I have a 19 month old who for the last two-three weeks has been taking 30 min naps and waking inconsolable. I previously sleep trained at 7 months and re settling techniques aren’t working to help lengthen his nap. I’ve let him cio for the past few days but that doesn’t get him back to sleep either. He now wakes at 5am and its very hard to get through the day. Bedtime has moved up to 6.30pm to compensate and im not sure what else to try, im afraid it may be becoming a habit. Appreciate any advice thank you x
Hi VIcky!
I’d make sure no matter how early baby wakes, nap time doesn’t take place before 12:30/1 pm. If it’s lasts 30 mins, that’s fine, get them up and keep them at home until bedtime (so there is zero risk of falling asleep in the car). Then, do not do bedtime earlier than 7 pm. With time, nap will lengthen out again but only if baby is going down alert and on their own and falling asleep without help for all naps and overnight sleep.
Natalie
What do I do if my baby fell asleep 7 minutes into sleep training but slept for 20 minutes and wouldn’t fall back asleep. Let him try for 30 minutes. Do I stick with his scheduled nap or move it up based on the end of his wake up?