Last week my son (2-1/2 yrs old) and I said goodbye to his pacifier for good. He understands that he is a big boy and no longer needs it. The problem is that since we threw them away he has not been able to soothe himself to sleep during nap time. I have been leaving him in his crib to "relax" but he then spends the rest of the afternoon in a bad mood and crying constantly. He really needs his nap but has not been able to fall asleep. By his bedtime at night he is so exhausted that he falls asleep quickly but then seems to wake up in the morning very tired. He has a special blanket and stuffed toy that he sleeps with, but they don't seem to help with his sleep. Any suggestions for my sleep deprived child?
We took the paci away when my son was the same age. He had the most horrible time trying to sleep during the day and night. We thought he was going thru withdrawls..which I truly believe he was. It took a good month or so before he could go to sleep on his own. But now his naps are much shorter. He also did not want his blankie very much also. Good luck. It will pass.
Give him the pacifier back until he's ready to give it up. He's obviously not ready to give up his comfort item. He agreed to give it up because you told him he had to. Let him have his comfort item. He won't graduate college with it.
Hi N.,
Are you trying to wind him down a little before nap time? When my youngest would go to day care she never needed a nap. The staff would rub her back a little when she would lay down with the rest of the kids. She was content to lie down for about 1/2 hour- not long, but something, and she didn't need more.
SInce your son does need his nap, I'd be sure to do a little ritual just like at night time- reading a story, etc (just not too long so he doesn't want to extend his time with you). If that still doesn't help, and if you're desperate for some quiet time- I would resort to the stand-by of going for a ride in the car.
this is EXACTLY what happened with my daughter at that age. I continued with "quiet time" (and still do...she's 4 now), I also had to adjust bed-time, moved it WAY UP (used to be 8pm, we ended up moving it little by little to find the right fit; now she goes to bed around 6:30pm (asleep around 7pm typically), still wakes up around 7am. We struggled for a long time before trying this. She simply was done with naps yet needed more sleep. We finally had to give up hoping for her to nap and adjust our schedule to get her the sleep she needed on a regular basis. Its a pain to have to have dinner at 5pm to be able to get the kids to bed at 6:30pm and never being able to take them to evening things, but the sleep factor is more important to us, she so much more pleasant ALL DAY LONG!
Although not related to not having a pacifier, we went through a no-nap period, too. I ended up putting him in his crib for quiet time and once in awhile would get a nap. We found putting him to bed an hour earlier on days he didn't nap helped keep him from getting sleep deprived and cranky. He would sleep until the same time in the morning or later.
Also, can you try finding another soothing object to replace the binky? A blankie he really likes? A toy he already loves? Good luck!
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Be well.
N.
I would say it will just take some time. He's got to get used to not having the pacifier. My son is 2 1/2 and if I put him to sleep for a nap too late he will not sleep. Just wondering if you've changed his nap time at all? If he wakes up tired as my son does sometimes, I know he's ready for a nap on the earlier side (12:30).
Good luck, it's probably just a new thing for him that he needs to get used to.
