When they have a broken night, how long/late to let them nap?

[Harrisonsmummy]

A quick question, Harrison has woken up at 3am ish for the last couple of nights. He has gone for a nap today at 1pm, woke after 55 minutes (overtired) but gone back off and is still asleep at 3.35pm.

Do you set limits on naps after a broken night, and when they sleep late in the afternoon, when do you try and put them to bed?

Curious, as I often have this dilemma! (I hate waking him up!)

[ella&jack'smum]

I always have to wake Jack from his nap - since he was about 18 mos I've never let him sleep much after 2.30 unless something exceptional happened - waking at 3 wouldn't change that for me. But then Jack doesn't need as much sleep as many other kids his age (more's the pity!). Then I'd always put him down at 7.30, and he's asleep by 8.30pm

[imsmum]

Hi Justine--we just went through some horrible nights with Margot too when she was up for 4 hours in the night--hand foot and mouth disease, followed by a cold! 

With the hand foot and mouth  I put her down for a nap at 11 bed at 6 the first day then nap at 12 bed at 7 the next but I find she'll only do an early nap if she is feverish.  If I can do it the early naps seem best because then she'll go to bed earlier and the longer night sleep seems more restorative.  For run of the mill night waking though she won't do an early nap and we have to try to make the sleep up  during her regular nap. So on the nights she was awake from a cold I put her down as soon as she would go for her nap which was only .5 hours early and would let her sleep for 45 minutes (1 sleep cycle) past her normal wakeup.  She would normally go to sleep that night around her usual time, maybe 15 minutes later. She then seems to go back to having her normal 2 hour nap and we just try to get her down to sleep early for the night on the following night which seems to be the clincher.

Hope that's not too convoluted.  Hope Harrison starts sleeping better soon.

Caroline

[Florencia]

Hi Justine,

I usually try to compensate for the lost sleep, say if he was up in the middle of the night for 30 mins, i make him go back 15 mins earlier for nap (he goes down for nap somewhere between 5 and 6 hours awake time, to match a set bedtime, so i play with the timings, how tired he acts and if he's having fun playing or something, i let him be and delay nap for a while). If he was up in the middle of the night, he's usually crabby and cranky so early to nap he goes. If he's still napping past his regular time, i let him for another 15 mins and start waking him by opening curtains, etc.

I also hate waking him up, specially when he's had a bad night... but letting him sleep later than his usual end of nap means trouble at night so i always end up paying in some way...

HTH and good luck! i hope H is ok and not catching a cold!!!!!