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Sleep advice

Sleep advice Archives

Brigitte Langevin is a sleep specialist. She is a speaker and author whose goal is to improve the quality of sleep and understand dreams. She is the author of several books on the subject. Helping my child sleep provides a great deal of information for parents. She is a dynamic person who is much sought-after for her humour and ability to make theoretical and scientific concepts accessible to all. Nights are more satisfying so performances during the day are improved thanks to her help!

Twelve month old wakes up crying

Question:

I run a home daycare. I have a problem with a 12 month old during naptime. The problem occurs during both morning and afternoon naps. He cries when I put him down for a nap but falls asleep fairly rapidly. The problem lies in the fact that he wakes up once or twice during a one hour nap. This requires a lot of my time and I have no idea what to do to help him sleep well. At home, he does not sleep through the night. He wakes up one or several times each night. Because he wakes up so frequently, his parents have him sleep on a mattress in their room. This was acceptable for them at first but they would like him to sleep in his own room. Is it possible that the poor quality of his naps at daycare affect his night-time sleep? He never sleeps longer than 2 hours total during the day while at daycare and his naps are always interrupted. He wakes up crying. Thank you in advance for your precious help.

Answer:

First of all, thank you for taking your role as a caregiver so seriously and trying to find solutions to solve this baby's sleep problems. It is very difficult to say if his naps are affecting his night-time sleep or if his night-time sleep is affecting his naps. There is one thing which is certain. This child is unable to sleep for long periods of time. One important piece of information which most people ignore is that sleep, whether it is during a nap or during the night, is divided into several cycles. Brief cycles of wakening occur between each cycle. These brief cycles of wakening are normal. Adults and children both experience them. Some children use these brief cycles of wakening to wake up completely and request (with their cries) the presence of their parents or caregiver. Obviously, sleeping in his parents' room can reinforce the baby's desire to wake up. He enjoys his parents' presence. At this age, a healthy child should sleep 11 to 12 straight hours during the night. He should also have a one hour nap in the morning between 8:30 AM and 10:00 AM and an afternoon nap between 12:30 PM and 3:00 PM. The afternoon nap should last at least two hours. This being said, the first step in his sleep learning process should be to successfully sleep through the night. Naps will automatically become easier to manage. Parents' collaboration is essential. There are several techniques which help sleep rehabilitation. They are described in detail in Helping my Child Sleep. This book is available on educatall's online store. It supports parents throughout the process of learning good sleep habits. It also contains important rules parents must be aware of before initiating a strategy. Furthermore, the book comes with a coupon for one free telephone consultation with the author. Parents are sure to find answers to their problems. The entire family's sleep will benefit from this book and naps will last longer.

Brigitte Langevin, author
Speaker and teacher

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