Gearing up for your next nap transition? Then this blog is for you!
What are signs that I should drop a nap?
First off is age. Transitions work best when they happen at the following ages:
4 to 3 naps at 4 months
3 to 2 naps between 7 and 9 months
2 to 1 naps between 15 and 18 months
1 to 0 naps between 3 and 5 years
Secondly, here are some signs once you're within the recommended age range:
- Unusual night wakings
- Earlier morning wake ups than usual
- Inability to fall asleep for some or all naps
- Waking up happy from short naps
- Struggling to offer enough awake time between sleeps while also keeping bedtime before 8pm
Now, we like to see a pattern with these 5 signs rather than just a random weird night here or there. If things are going well for the most part, then there’s no reason to drop a nap ASAP!
How do I drop a nap?
4 naps to 3 naps (At 4 months)
This is probably the easiest transition you’ll go through! It will involve moving bedtime quite a bit earlier to account for the lost nap and this can be hard, especially if you’re dealing with short naps (be sure to check out my free guide for short naps!)
Things to know for this transition:
✩Start by stretching your wake windows.
✩Once you’ve maxed out your wake windows at roughly 1.75-2 hours, then it’s time to make the switch and drop nap 4.
✩Bedtime may be after 8pm before the transition and as early as 6pm after the transition, this is okay!
3 naps to 2 naps (At 7-9 months)
This transition isn’t quite as easy as 4 to 3 but it’s still fairly straight forward. It can get a bit messier because I find that nap 3 can be pretty elusive as you get closer to this transition. If you find yourself in a pattern of consistently missing nap 3, it might be time!
Things to know for this transition:
✩Start by stretching your wake windows.
✩Once you’ve maxed out your wake windows at roughly 2.5-2.75 hours, then it’s time to make the switch and drop nap 3.
✩There may be some flip-flopping between 2 and 3 nap days and that’s okay. But if it persists past 7-10 days, then I’d commit to 2 nap days and push through
✩Again, bedtime will be on the later end right before the transition and then jump to early right after the transition. This gives them the chance to make up for the lost nap and to recover from the longer wake windows
2 naps to 1 nap (At 15-18 months)
This one is the BIG one! Such a big transition for your little one and this transition will take time. Buckle up for 2-4 weeks of transitioning and rougher than usual sleep. The goal with this transition is to be prepared and do it slowly.
Things to know for this transition:
✩Hitting 15 months does not mean that you HAVE to transition. If sleep is going fine, then don’t rush it.
✩You’ll start by pushing nap 1 later and later.
✩Once nap 1 is ending late enough, that’s when you’ll cut out the second nap completely.
✩Again, bedtime will be on the later end right before the transition and then jump to early right after the transition. This gives them the chance to make up for the lost nap and to recover from the longer wake windows
1 nap to no nap (At 3-5 years)
This is the transition that I find happens more naturally. We REALLY want to keep that nap until at least 3 years of age, so if you find yourself with a 2 year old who is trying to drop their nap, it’s probably more related to limit testing than them being physically ready to drop it. Be sure to check out my blog about Toddler Sleep And Why It Sucks if this is you!
Things to know for this transition:
✩For a while you may flip flop between nap days and no nap days, this is totally okay! Go with it!
✩On no nap days, don’t be afraid to pull bedtime earlier to make up for the lack of a nap.
✩On nap days, it’s okay to wake them from their nap in order to make bedtime easier. Ideally we’d want their nap ending by 3pm but you can cut it off earlier if you need to!
✩Even once the nap is gone, you still want to keep a daily quiet time in place. See this post for a more detailed overview of how to introduce quiet time for your preschooler.
Hope this was helpful and don’t forget, for children who are independent sleepers already, I offer nap transition calls so that you don’t have to go through this alone!