help!

[snezhok3]

My 11 month old daughter does not want to fall asleep. I have been training her to fall asleep at night by herself, which worked out just fine, she does great, i feed her put her down and leave. But nap time is a whole different animal. i make the room dim, feed her, turn the music on but all she does is get up and just throw everything on the floor and just talks to herself. i tried leaving her but she just talks and talks, i tried rubbing her back which doesnt really work since she starts to play with me, i even tried rocking her but even that may take a while,,,i am all out of idea....help.

[ewoods]

Nap time should be fundamentally no different than bed time. You can't decide when she goes to sleep, but you can decide when she goes to bed. It sounds like you have a good routine set up. You just need to pick a duration, maybe one hour? Go through that whole routine, put her down to bed, and then leave the room for whatever duration you decide on. Don't go back in for any reason, unless you think she's somehow in danger. Maybe she'll get up (is she in a bed or a crib?), maybe she'll talk to herself, maybe she'll throw things on the floor, but it's nap time and she doesn't get to skip it just because she's not sleepy.

I generally think of nap time as more of a quiet time. My son is allowed to nap whenever he's tired, but he knows that there's always a scheduled nap time where he's going to have to be in his crib. He generally spends the first 10-20 minutes talking to himself or singing. He always goes to sleep eventually, but if he decides not to, that's his choice. If he decides later that he's tired, I'm not going to stop him from going to sleep (unless it would interfere with his bed time). The message you want to send is that it's nap time and she's going to be there whether or not she sleeps, so she might as well sleep.

Good luck!

[Newmom!]

We too sometimes have nap difficulties - and we do have a good routine. I think my baby wants to keep on playing and doesn't want to lay down (he will cry and yell to get out of the crib). If your baby is happy in the crib, I'd keep her down for some quiet time.

However, also look at total amount of sleep, and look to see if your baby is even tired. She might not need the nap. Or she might need it a little later (my baby began to go 3-4 hours between naps, instead of just 3 - but after a few weeks of inconsistencies it settled again).

If she is crying a lot when she goes down, it's your call as to what to do. I will usually go in at least one time, right away. Lay him back down (several times if needed), and pat his back a bit, then leave. He will usually fall asleep, after a bit more crying. Other times I after trying for a while (I use his cries and actions to judge if he is really tired or not) I will get him back up and try again in 30-60 min.

[Roxy377]

I would suggest you books which helped me a lot to settle my son's sleeping routine and I recieved full nights sleep. Read them, sure it will help you to find right method for your little one.

http://www.presiousbabyshop.com/index.php?c=books&n=1000&i=0071381392&a=buy&m=New&p=1&x=The_No_Cry_Sleep_Solution_Gentle_Ways_to_Help_Yo ur_Baby_Sleep_Through_the_Night

http://www.presiousbabyshop.com/index.php?c=books&n=1000&i=007159695X&x=The_No_Cry_Nap_Solution_Guaranteed_Gentle_Ways_t o_Solve_All_Your_Naptime_Problems_Pantley