Afternoon Naps: Guides for Baby Sleep

Whether your baby sleeps through the night or not yet, afternoon naps are key.

Afternoon naps are a critical part of any child's day. Our Babywise afternoon nap guide will help you with whatever afternoon nap questions and struggles you may have.

afternoon naps babywise 

Afternoon Naps

Why is it that when we're young we don't want to nap and when we're old, it's all we want to do?

Afternoon naps are key to the Babywise method. Even if your baby is sleeping through the night, the afternoon nap remains an important part of baby's sleep schedule.

Whether your baby won't go down for their afternoon nap or keeps waking up early, we're here to help!

When to Drop an Afternoon Nap

One of the most frequent questions we get asked is, "When should baby drop an afternoon nap?". One of the biggest factors depends on baby's age. 

There are other indicators too, such as:

  • Baby waking up in the middle of the night after they've been sleeping through the night
  • Your baby wakes up VERY early in the morning
  • Baby routinely wakes early from their naps

For more insights, check out other ways to navigate this transition in the article below:

Read more

Apr 15, 2017
Baby Sleep Transitions: When to Drop a Nap

by Babywise.life

3 common signs to knowing when your baby is ready to drop his late afternoon nap

Baby Sleep Transitions: When to Drop a Nap

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Waking Early from Afternoon Naps

One of the common nap problems we mentioned above was waking early from the afternoon nap. Many reasons exist for why this could be happening, so it's important to isolate the cause.

Thankfully, factoring in Baby’s age and primary food source (breastmilk, formula, and/or solid foods)can drastically reduce the number of possible causes. Parents will also want to consider the nature of the disturbance.

This article provides more guidance:

Read more

Feb 02, 2017
The Waking-Early Nap Challenge

by Babywise.life

How to fix the bewilderment of baby waking early out of a sound nap, contrary to his normal habit of sleep.

The Waking-Early Nap Challenge

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Afternoon Naps Across the Ages

If you're looking for an overview of nap times across the ages, Jess Wartinger has you covered.

As the mom of six kids, this Babywise mom has become an expert on nap transitions as babies grow into big kids. Read her advice:

Read more

Jan 17, 2017
Nap Time Across the Ages

by Jess Wartinger

What if nap time didn’t have to phase out as soon as your toddler or preschooler decided to stop sleeping?

Nap Time Across the Ages

Sample Baby Sleep Schedules

Want to know where your baby's schedule should fall based on their age and stage? We have a list of sample baby sleep schedules to help you!

Read more

More Babywise Sleep Questions

Still have more Babywise sleep questions? We're blessed to have a team of volunteer moms who are ready to help!

All you have to do is head over to our "Ask Us" page to see if they've already answered a question similar to yours. If not, feel free to submit your question via our contact form on the bottom of that page.


Sami Cone

Sami Cone

Best-Selling Author & Speaker

Sami Cone is the best-selling author of "Raising Uncommon Kids", is known as the "Frugal Mom" on Nashville's top-rated talk show "Talk of the Town" and educates over a million listeners every day on her nationally syndicated "Family Money Minute". She is proud to call Nashville home with her husband, Rick, and their two ‘tweenage' children.

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