How to know when nap is over?

[Lena]

How can you tell when your LO is done napping or whether you should try and put them down to sleep again because they woke too early? I dont want to feel like Im always telling him to nap, but I also dont want to overstimulate him by putting him on the playmat when he's still tired. I've done both these things many times (tried to get him to nap when he wasnt tired and put him on his playmat when he was really sleepy).

 

[LorettaClaire]

i start talking and playing with her on my knee and if she is tired she will start to wimper. If i put her on her play mat she will automatically start to play but then just become overtired with that crazy stare lol

 

[aliss]

I go by the clock. If it's only been about 30 min (he's 12 weeks), then I try and put him back down. If it's been 1 1/2-3 hours, I let him wake. I'm sure it varies with age.

The exception to this is growth spurts, he will only do 30 min naps during that time

 

[RJsMum]

An infant's sleep cycle is about 50-60 minutes. Basically if they sleep less than one hour, then they may seem rested, but are more likely to become tired and fractious much sooner.

If DS sleeps less than 1 hour, I try to put him back down by rocking or rubbing his back. If he goes back down and wakes again, then I just bring him back downstairs. If he stays asleep then I assume he was honestly tired. But I do find that if it is only 20-30 min or so, he will start to get fussy if I don't "make" him go back down.

But make sure when you put them down to nap to begin with that it either has been 2 hours or so since they last woke up from any sleep and/or they are showing signs they are actually tired. (e.g. yawning, rubbing eyes/face, pulling ears, whinging, avoiding eye contact, etc.)

 

[RainbowDrop_x]

I normally just ignore Olivia when she first wakes up instead of rushing straight to her the minute her eyes open. If she's still tired she'll nod back off and if she's ready to get up she let's me know! Just follow her lead, I found that following what Olivia wanted was so much easier than trying to structure everything