9 Month Old NOT NAPPING!

Have you tried to lay down with her? I know when my daughter (she is now 2 yrs old) started fighting nap time - I found that just entering her room, she would start to throw a fit. So I started taking her into our bedroom and laying down with her. I would read her a couple of stories and then lay down with her. She seems to be comforted by this and now she falls asleep within 5-10mins after laying down with her. Depending on how deeply she is sleeping, I will move her into her crib. Otherwise, I just allow her to nap in our room. Since your daughter is only 9 months, you would obviously have to put up some sort of safety gates to prevent her from falling. Hope that helps!

I'm having the same problem that you are except my daughter is only three months old. Starting around 2 months old my daughter stopped taking naps during the day. She will take a short "cat nap" (about 30-45 minutes) in the morning and then again in the afternoon but that's it. She will sleep for 12 hours at night straight through which is nice but the not napping during the day is difficult for me (although I am getting used to it). She basically comes everywhere with me whether I'm trying to eat or take a shower. I've tried different ways to get her nap like you did but nothing seemed to work for me either. I wish I had some good advice for you on what worked for me but I can definitely sympathize with you!

How was she napping before you tried putting her in her crib? I know for me, from day one, I tried to keep it consistent in terms of how I put my daughter down. Do you have a routine that you use to put your daughter down at night? If so, I would suggest doing the same for the nap. If not, perhaps you could start to implement a routine. My daugher is 22 months now and overall, naptime and bedtime are no problem for her because I keep the way I put her down very consistent. Don't get me wrong and think that it was always smooth sailing, but generally, after the routine (diaper change, milk & cuddling), letting her cry for 5 minutes, go in sooth her, put her back down, let her go another 10 minutes, do the same thing, she finally learned to sooth herself and is doing great. Do you have a "lovey" or "blankie" that she can use as a comfort tool? If not, getting one for her may help, too. Good luck!

J., maybe she is just going to grow out of naps sooner than other children. They all are very different. My suggestion is to listen to what she is "telling" you, and just don't try to force her to take a nap. If she is sleeping long hours at night, then maybe she is getting all her sleep then and doesn't need a nap anymore. What doctors use as guidelines sometimes don't apply to all children, your daughter may just fall outside the usual characteristics. So, let her stay up and see if she takes a little "down time" quiet time on her own to recharge her batteries. She may just not need the nap and will extend her night sleeping. But trying to force a nap when her body is not ready for one is only teaching her that sleeping in the day is an unpleasant experience, and may only make matters worse. Try letting her stay up and see what it does to her. If you get a smiling happy child out of it, what's the harm in that, lol?

Usually at 9 months, children are still taking 2 naps (am and pm). You haven't stated if it's one or both. You also haven't said whether or not you are checking on her when you "let her cry it out". If you are and your daughter knows you are, then you are helping to extend her crying time with your attention.

It's puzzling that she won't nap because I have never known a 9 month old baby to not need any nap time (and I've known a LOT of babies). Some babies may only nap 45 minutes a couple of times a day, some 1 to 2 hours once a day, and most, an hour in the morning and 2-3 hrs in the afternoon. My children were not big nappers, either, but they did nap.

It's also puzzling that at 9 months she is still getting a middle of the night feeding, because that should have been done with when she was 3 months old. She should be on solids (at least baby food) and shouldn't need anything more until morning. Maybe I am misinterpreting "getting up at least once".

As others have said, make sure you are providing a lot of good stimulation. Don't let her cat nap, either. I would forgo the morning nap and focus on an afternoon nap (about 30 minutes after lunch should be good since her belly will be full, and she's spent the morning wearing herself out). If she fusses, let her fuss - no checking until AFTER she has gone to sleep. I would be shocked if she cried more than 20 minutes (which I'll credit to your daughter's resistance to napping). Hopefully she'll sleep at least a couple of hours.

Watch the night time, too. She should be sleeping through till morning. Which time depends on when you put her down and what you and your husband deem acceptable for a waking time. She may be that child that doesn't sleep in (gets up before 7), but you don't have to get her just because she's awake (likewise for the nap, if you think she hasn't slept long enough). She can learn to occupy herself till you are ready for her to be up and give her breakfast. I'm not saying ignore her, but as in establishing a sleep routine, you also need to establish a waking routine. By her learning to occupy herself, it may also help for those days when she isn't ready to nap at her usual time, and knowing the routine, will figure out how to occupy herself until she does fall asleep.

Hope this helps.

My son is 13 months and he has never taken a nap in his crib. To him, the crib is for sleeping, not napping. To rememdy that I put him to sleep on the couch. He takes his nap on the couch - after I make sure to wear him out with play- and I have a few hours where I can do things of my own.

Also, try waiting until she's hungry and put her down while feeding.

I know I lot of people may disagree with me on this one; but try this. Give her a very warm bath (not the luke warm water - a little hotter so that it's relaxing) After her bath lay her down in her crib with a warm bottle. Check on her after a few minutes and see if she is asleep. Swop the bottle for a passy so she won't know that it's gone. The combination should work and after a while you should be able to get her to sleep without the bottle so that the milk doesn't mess up her teeth.

Hope this helps.
P.

is she getting enough active time when awake so that she's tired by the time naptime comes.
that was a big turn point for us when theyd ropped the first nap at 9 months. up until then they were getting two catnaps. i realized they weren't getting enough outside time. i changed that and worked like a charm
good luck
vlora

where did your daughter nap before? My daughter used to sleep in her infant carseat. I had the hardest time breaking that I finally took & put her carseat in her crib to get her used to being in the crib. It took her awhile to finally sleep in her crib. I definetly think she should be taking a nap though.
As for the waking during the night one of the other mothers said she should not be waking during the night every child is different. You know your daughter best & know whether she is playing you or truly needs something. My daughter is now 22 months old & sometimes she will wake up in the middle of the night & want a drink. I don't know about you but sometimes I get up & get a drink in the middle of the night too so don't worry about the other mother who said she should be sleeping through the night.

Hi J.,
all children are different... have you tried waking her up earlier in the morning or putting her to bed later so she needs the sleep more during the day instead of the 12 hours over night. It's just a thought

good luck and God bless

S.

Have you tried making sure she gets lots of exercise to tire her out? I always make sure my son does something to get physical exercise everyday (just like we all need). I guess at nine months tummy time, sitting, crawling pulling herself up to standing or reaching for toys would be good.

Another thing, can you drape blankets (temporarily) over her windows to make her room darker? Maybe its too light?

Dont talk to her if you go to check on her while she's crying and youre trying to get her to nap. The only thing you say, if anything, is "naptime", and say it once, thats it!

Good luck and remember, no matter how frustrating it is, it wont last forever :)