10 Month Old Dropping Afternoon Nap?

Hi K.,

A 10 month old should get a total of 14 hours a sleep a day, including naps. I have worked with toddlers for about 17 years, and I have found over the years that children move to 1 nap between 12 & 15 months old, normally moving the morning nap to about 11 am and sleeping about 2 hours. By 2 year old the nap is at 1 pm and still is about 2 hours.

I suggest trying to lay your baby down for an afternoon nap 15-20 minutes earlier, but keep trying that afternoon nap. He should keep 2 naps a day for a few more months, but as he ages, you will need to adjust the time.

During a normal, your child should lay down easliy with maybe a little fussing, but fall asleep soon. If you see fussing for a while, as I mentioned, lay him down early until you find the best time. Your child's sleep schedule will change often in the next year or so. I recommend to parents to watch for the over tired signs you're seeing now and alter the schedule.

Good Luck

R. Magby

1 mom found this helpful

My son dropped his 2nd nap at around this age. He dropped naps entirely by 17 months. I was really worried that he was too young, but he's completely happy and healthy. Every kid is different. If your son doesn't seem overly tired, fussy, etc without the 2nd nap, then it's probably no big deal to drop it.

My son did this also. Eventually, his morning nap became much longer (without any intervention) and a few months later I started moving it to a little later in the morning so it became an afternoon nap.

well babies need about 14 hours of sleep a day/night..so if he's already reaching 14 hours then it should be fine..try this one ..take him out to the park and let him play..then when its time for his nap..put him in the stroller and go for a walk..you have to do this at his usual nap time..he will probably doze off for about 30 minutes..then u can get him back on track with that nap the next day..
i used to push my son back and forth on the porch in his stroller for the afternoon nap..faced him towards a boring wall and gave him a bottle of breast milk..he'd drink the milk..then sometimes it would take 30 minutes of pushing but he'd doze off..then i'd wheel him into his bedroom and he'd nap for 1.5 hours..the swing never worked with him..

good luck don't give up ..could just need some help falling asleep

D.

My daughter did it at 9 months old. She was fine - she just flat out didn't need that much sleep. She wasn't waking up at night then either though. I gradually moved her morning nap to afternoon, by pushing it 10-20 later each day. In a few weeks she would go down after lunch from 1pm-3pm.

My baby dropped her second nap around 10 months too. I was NOT ready for it, but ... I guess she was! She sleeps from about 8 till 7 and then goes to naps from 1 till 3. She will sometimes nap in the morning, but then it is a much shorter nap for only an hour or so. And then she'll want another nap around 4pm. But if she takes THAT nap, she can't get to sleep till midnight and is not a happy bear. So I just accept the new routine :)

My eldest did the same thing. I fought it a lot more with her and tried to insist on second nap. With a second baby though, just don't have that much time on my hands. I can't be spending hours plotting and planning naps with a resistant toddler while my preschooler takes the house apart... so I'm much more zen about allowing the baby to just nap whenever works best for her.

Hello K.,
I get mamapedia to reach out to Moms like you to let you know that there is professional help out there. Most children are not ready to drop the afternoon nap until they are closer to 12 months old (2 months is a long time in a child's life - think about other developmental milestones such as rolling and crawling for example). Most show signs at 15 months and others as late as 18 months. It sounds to me like he might be overtired and that's why he is resisting the second nap. Sounds crazy - doesn't it? When children get overtired - they do the opposite to us. They get "wound up" rather than wanting to crash on the couch like we do.
He could also be sleeping through the night - if you and your husband are ready for that. By getting 10 to 12 hours consolidated sleep at night, you will have an even happier and content little person to enjoy.
I look forward to hearing from you!
P.
www.sleepsense.net/kelowna
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My daughter tried that and i didn't let her! We stuck with the routine and she went back to normal fairly quickly. You have to just remain with your routine. 10 months old is too young to go without 2 naps during the day. You could very well end up losing that precious night routine if you get an over-tired baby who is wound up. Sleep begets you sleep.

Our older daughter was 10 or 11 months old when she went down to one nap. I didn't think she was ready, and I *know* I wasn't, haha... but the reality was that she was fine. Instead of going down at 9:00 and 1:00, her new nap time became 12:00, and the nap was lasting 2.5-3 hours. She's about 30 months old now and seems to be shortening her one nap to about two hours.

Sometimes it's just a phase and if you keep to the routine you'll realize that he actually still needs the nap. we went through that with my daughter and then we dropped her nap at 12 months, which worked out great. What I'm wondering is - at this age he shouldn't be waking up at night to nurse. i'd be worried that he's not getting enough sound sleep.

yes my son is 9 months old and he droped his nap like a dime u would think that they would want that nap so they can be powered back up but no they have more energy with out a nap

All kids are different. You son sounds like he's done with that nap. My son was done with all naps by 2 1/2... If he's tired he'll sleep but don't force it. Instead of nap time do quiet time where you read to him or watch a Disney video - something where he can rest without sleeping.

Good luck!