Everything You Need to Know About Nap Transitions

I am not sure about you, but I feel that everytime I reached a point when I felt confident in the current stage of motherhood then everything would change again and we’re back to square one…

…especially when it came to naps and schedules.

Before becoming a certified sleep consultant, and just when we achieved the perfect nap length, and the perfect schedule, my baby would start waking early in the morning or he would start refusing a nap.

Back to square one. Again.

I found myself in a constant reactive-mode, and of course, tired-mode as well!

Then all of a sudden we no longer had a baby at home, we had a toddler! If there is anything that is constant in early childhood, heck, in life, it’s that things are always changing!

It’s easier to accept the changes when you know they’re coming, so in this post I’m going to help you identify when nap transitions typically happen as well as what to look for to confirm that, yes, now is the time to drop a nap, and how to troubleshoot through the transition.

When to Expect a Nap Transition

During the first few months of life, the amount of naps your baby takes each day will vary, depending on how long the naps are and their awake time stamina. As your child grows and develops, so does their sleep. As this happens, you’ll need to slightly increase their awake times every few weeks, reducing the amount of daytime sleep, and consequently resulting in three key nap transitions throughout the early childhood years.

The 3 to 2 Nap Transition

This nap transition typically occurs between six and eight months, and for sure by nine months. As wake windows get stretched, bedtime gets pushed later and later. You may also see your baby taking a shorter nap or refusing to take a nap altogether, simply because they don’t need that much sleep during the day anymore.

This last nap is typically the most difficult one to achieve, as the sleep pressure decreases during the day, so it’s always easier to do this nap on the go, either the pram or the baby carrier. Continue to offer the third catnap for 2-3 weeks. If your little one doesn’t sleep, that’s okay. It’s just quiet time instead. You’ll want to bring bedtime about 30 minutes earlier to compensate for not taking that third nap. Over time, and as your little one gets settled on their new, two nap schedule (they’ll be taking 2 naps now, totaling about 3-3.5 hours of daytime sleep), you’ll be able to push bedtime later again.

The 2 to 1 Nap Transition

Anywhere between 15-18 months, your little one will again show signs of not needing as much sleep during the day. You may notice them taking longer to fall asleep for their morning nap or only napping for a short period of time. You may also see the next nap impacted, as your child simply isn’t tired enough to fall asleep. You may see the opposite too - where one nap is very short and the other starts to lengthen even more.

For this transition, you will want to continue to offer both naps to start, but reduce the duration of the first nap. You may start by capping it at an hour, then 30 minutes, or even 15 minutes to help your child get through the morning. You’ll bring the second nap a bit earlier, closer to 12 p.m., and over the course of a few weeks (maybe even 4-6 weeks), you’ll see this nap become one, big consolidated nap, falling right in the middle of your child’s day.

As with the previous nap transition, you can bring bedtime 30 minutes earlier during the transition, and gradually move it later as your child can tolerate that much time awake before bed.

The 1 to 0 Nap Transition

All children need to nap until they’re at least 3-4 years old. Your child may start refusing to nap around age two, but it’s important to continue offering the nap because they usually start taking it again after a few weeks of consistency.

If the regression seems to last more than a month, it’s time to consider the final (and gradual) nap transition.

Your child may still take a really good nap during the day. Or start taking it again. But when you start to have bedtime battles or it’s taking your child what seems like forever to fall asleep at night or suddenly start having night wakings again, or worse - split nights or early wakes - it’s time to end or shorter the nap.

We always want to prioritise night time sleep over daytime sleep because that is when sleep is most restorative. Naps are the bridge to bedtime. And night time sleep is when all the good stuff happens: our immune systems ramp up, memories from the day are stored or pruned, growth hormones are released, and a bunch of other good things!

If you’ve identified that it’s time for this final transition, you’ll gradually reduce the nap by 30-minutes every few days. You’ll also want to adjust bedtime depending on your child’s behavior. Once they completely drop the nap, you’ll want to offer quiet time.

This is simply some time by themself, in their room, for an hour or so. You can have special “quiet time only” toys for this time of day, such as puzzles or legos. You will also offer an earlier bedtime again, around 7/7:30 p.m.

While I’ve laid it all out for you here, remember it’s easier said than done. Some of these transitions take a lot of time, and you want to be certain it’s the right time to do it!

If you’d like some professional help and guidance with a nap transition, my Basic Package is the perfect option! It’s a 60-minute call where we can fully go over the transition and anything else related to your child’s sleep you’d like to chat about.