28/07/2022
3 to 2 NAPS (from 8 months)
When your baby is showing signs they are ready to drop to 2 naps, it is time to drop their late afternoon nap. Holding on to the 3rd nap for too long or if it is too long in duration, can result in early morning waking and can push bedtime too late.
You can actually be proactive about dropping this nap by reducing it over time:
4 months - 45 minutes
5 months - 30 minutes
6 months - 15-20 minutes
Otherwise, just reduce it by around 15 minutes for at least 3 days to see if it resolves the later bedtime or early waking. If not, reduce it by another 15 minutes until nights are working again.
2 to 1 NAPS (from 15months)
With this nap drop, I always recommend reducing the duration first until it is just a catnap, before trying to drop it completely.
When your child is showing signs, it might be time to drop their morning nap. Start by offering them a morning nap every second day. On the days they do not nap in the morning you will need to bring the lunchtime nap forward by about 30minutes and bring bedtime forward by 30-60 minutes.
1 to 0 NAPS (from 2.5 years)
When your child is showing the above signs, you can start to to reduce their nap by 15 minutes every 3-5 days and see if the night sleep improves. If it doesn’t then drop another 15 minutes, every few days until you notice an improvement. Your child may just need a 15-30 minute nap each day for a little while, before they are ready to completely drop it.
When it is time to drop the nap completely, they still may need a nap every couple of days, but I recommend offering them some quiet time in the middle of the day to replace it. We all need a rest during the day!
If this is helpful for you, please drop me a comment, like, save or share.
Bridget x
