Help! My 6 Month Old Refueses to Nap!!

My first did the same thing at that age, and it was so frustrating! Your little one must be more sensitive to the noises and other stimuli around him like mine was: the light, computer keyboard, papers rattling, phone calls....

I don't know that I have as much advice as encouragement! Yes, this, too, shall pass! For me, it took a while! I just kept everything the same in her environment and kept nap the same time, and eventually, she started taking her naps again! And I did have to make sure that I didn't respond to her until after naptime, so she knew I wasn't available for her...no looks, no talking...and she did eventually fall asleep!

Someone mentioned the "bird cage" with the blanket...perfect! I especially do that on trips and my little ones sleep better in a different environment because there's nothing to draw their attention and it gives them an enclosed/safe feeling.

Good luck!

I don't have a fix for the nap situation. but I wanted to let you know that I understand what you are going through. My daughter was kicked out of daycare at 6mo old because she did not nap and was messing up the other childrens schedule. She is now 2 and naps maybe 3 out of 7 days a week. I believe some kids just don't need as much sleep and I have given up the fight becuase it was making us both miserable...

Good Luck!

Lucky you about the all night sleeping, but as for the naps, sounds like he may get to much stimulas or distraction at work to go to sleep, or needs a play pen to roll around in to (exercise) and then a quite place with no distractions. Maybe you could try playing a soft lullaby cassette tape early afternoon.

If he is in a quiet place free of distractions, light and noises, not napping may be just "the way he rolls" right now. When we had a similar issue we simply continued the routine, and although it seemed pointless in the moment, I see clearly the wisdom of having done so. Eventually our daughter got the idea that it really didn't matter if she actually slept but that she was going to be in a quiet, restful, dark place everyday at the same time. My research encouraged me to make sure there was as little light as possible and that her feet were warm even if she didn't want covers. Best of luck and let me encourage you to sleep every time your child does.

Different children do different things. He's probably overly stimulated by everyone at work. have you tried putting in a DVD or quiet music at a certain time ie nap time?

One thing that worked when napping away from home in the pack and play was to cover it with a sheet(like you would a bird cage :) . That way they can't see what all is going on around them. It could work until he is able to pull up. Best wishes.

L.

first of all *WHERE DO YOU WORK??* What a blessing that you can take him! My daughter naps only at home. It may be because they are so curious and it's not home so they want to stay awake. is there a place you can put a pack and play and let him wine it out? It was the hardest thing for me to do but my fiance would come home while I was on maternity leave and I'd be so frazzled, he said I had to let her scream it out. As parents we know when our child is cranky and tired (or if they are just being little toots!) Once she got used to this she just lays down when I put her in the pack and play or her bed. If I'm in the room she WILL NOT SLEEP but if I leave, within 15 minutes she's out.

Hey M..... Have you tried letting him cry to sleep and going in at intervals to assure him he's okay? We had to do that with our son at 5 months old because he was not sleeping unless someone was there with him and he's a home care. It took a few days and now he goes right down.. YOu have to make sure that he is not hungry, wet/dirty, or doesn't need anything, when you do it. This may be hard at work since he might be crying a little...It's hard a first, but then it becomes easy. At thought.... YOu might also try some sort of swing or something at work...

hope it goes well...blessings.
M., blessed mom of 6 month old angel boy

Get the book "On Becoming Babywise". Basically it says that you put the baby on a schedule where the child eats, plays, naps, eats, plays, naps, etc. and it helps them get their biological clocks in order. Helped me a lot with my triplets!

Yes he's still tired. A child that age needs 14 - 16 hours of sleep a day. In fact what might be happening is you're trying to put it into one nap when a 6 month old should be taking 2 or 3 naps a day. Check the chart in the book for an AVERAGE sleep schedule for a child that age for SUGGESTED nap times. Remember each child is different. Note also that if the environment is different at home (less stimulating) than when at work you might have to move the pack-n-play to a site where he doesn't get so much outside influence. At this age thy try to fight sleep because they are recognizing all th new stuff to see and hear. We used Dr. Weissbluth's plan and really found it to work well. Just check the pages that apply to the age of your child.

My 15-month old went through a similar phase. I was lucky if I could get 45 minutes out of her. Thankfully it was just a phase . . . she now naps for about 2 hours. Routine and consistency is usually the most important factor, as well as having a quiet, darkened area for sleeping. When you take him to work, does he have such a quiet place? And a soothing routine before he naps will help as well.

My daughter is 6 months old, and was napping fine until financial troubles forced me to do childcare in my home. I keep 2 1year olds, and she's WAY too stimulated for a nap sometimes! I'll try to nurse her, but she'll just scream. Sometimes, I just lay her down to cry it out and if she's tired enough, she'll usually only cry for a minute. So, it may just be a phase, but I agree that he's probably overstimulated. They are WAY too interested in things now to just settle down on their own.

Unfortunately, there's likely too much stimulation in your work environment for him to want to sleep. Do you have a private office such that you can turn off an overhead lite and just work with a task lite and put on some soothing music? It could also be that 11 hours of sleep is enough for him. My oldest did not nap much at all, nor was he a great sleeper like your son (until he hit the early teen years). Each baby is different, so you may have reached the threshold of being able to work with him around. I worked from home part-time with my second son and he did great until about 7 months (2 naps/day) So, I put him into daycare part-time as I just couldn't get my work done. I continued to work part-time to allow him to adjust for a couple of months. And, also continued to visit him everyday at lunch until he was over two. My husband and I also worked our schedules such that I went to work very early and he much later, so that we kept the daycare hours to a minimum.