I am no expert in sleeping but I do know that when Judah gets very grumpy and very whiny, the best remedy is some time spent in bed. Even if he does not fall asleep, at least being in bed gives him some down time to chill out away from others in a quiet environment. If it is not his normal nap time in the afternoon, I usually give him a book. I would say nine times out of ten, this does the trick and he returns collected with a smile.
I read in passing not to long ago from a parenting magazine (cannot find it now because we tore it up for craft projects) that recent studies in kids sleeping habits show a direct correlation between Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) and the lack of sleep. The article reveals that the less sleep a child gets, the more likely they are to have problems with ADHD and too often the solution is medicine.
I find some truth in this with my own kid. If Judah stays up late the night before from activity, he actually gets up earlier instead of sleeping in like you had hoped. Likewise, if Judah gets a scheduled nap during the day, I have noticed he sleeps better at night.
Which brings me to the subject of discussion, naps. I am bothered lately by the number of people I run into and hear who mention their own toddlers/preschoolers do not nap anymore. My question remains, "do they not nap or do you not enforce the nap?" I have not reached that point in time yet with Judah, so mostly I pose this question out of curiosity.
I do have to wonder though about kids on medicine for hyperactivity. Families today are so busy with activity that nap time becomes sacrificed and kids stay up late. Our society teaches business and neglects the importance rest has on health and development, especially to young kids.
I guess I find that since rest solves a number of problems with Judah, should I not advocate for naps or at least some daily quiet time until he is older? What do you think?
I still have Logan lay down for a nap but now we call it rest time or quiet time. He will be 4 in August but I do find that he sleeps better at night when he has had a nap during the day. Occasionally we will have days where he is in his bed for quiet time but does not fall asleep, so on those days he is allowed to get up after his 30 minutes of quiet time are done unless he is crabby.
ReplyDeleteMy kids both dropped their regular naps fairly early (before they turned 3). After that they might fall asleep in the afternoon under unusual circumstances, like if we were taking a long drive in the car, but they didn't need a nap anymore. I need less sleep than the average person (6-7 hours a night is fine), and my father also needed relatively little sleep. I think some kids are "wired" to do ok on less sleep, and enforcing naps they don't need creates an unnecessary power struggle.
ReplyDeleteOn the other hand, many kids are getting less sleep than they need. I absolutely believe in no tvs, videos or video games in children's bedrooms. Relaxing music or a recorded story at bedtime is ok, but nothing overly stimulating.
Talia napped every single day until about 3 weeks ago (she just turned four). Now I have her take quiet time upstairs in my bed. I put a movie on and she watches it and/or plays in bed quietly. I am a huge proponent of naps. I think almost all children should nap until they are at least three if not four. It makes their lives easier, which in turn makes my life easier. In my house, no one messes with nap time. I wouldn't have it any other way.
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