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Why won't your toddler go down to sleep during the day?

Dr Pamela Douglas17th of Sep 202323rd of May 2024

mother plays with toddler in cot during daytime

Here are the reasons why your toddler won't go down to sleep during the day.

  1. His sleep pressure isn’t high enough yet.

  2. He is dialled up and needs to be dialled down, either with

    • Milk, depending on his age and whether or not you're breastfeeding, or with

    • A change of sensory motor experience.

Women or primary carers find the days are easiest when they experiment with taking off the sleep lens, and putting on the sensory motor nourishment lens. Rich and diverse sensory motor experience, most easily achieved outside the low sensory interior of the home, keeps your toddler dialled down until the sleep pressure is high and sleep happens without effort on your part.

Many parents find cots no longer work for toddlers. You can find out more here.

You're toddler isn't having trouble taking a daytime nap because he

  • Is resisting sleep. Little people have a powerful biological hunger for rich sensory motor nourishment, and low sensory interior environments make them dial up - which also makes sleep much harder than it needs to be. You can find out more here.

  • Has gut pain. You can find out more here.

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Next up in FAQs

Is it best to sleep your toddler in a cot during the day?

toddler awake in cot

If your toddler is happy to go down for a nap in a cot during the day, then we don't need to make any changes! But many or even most families find their toddler doesn't like the cot.

Because your toddler has a powerful biological drive for rich and diverse sensory motor exploration, she will often dial up in response to the restraints imposed by a cot. This is not a sign that she is overtired or overstimulated, though you might hear that said. You can find out more here.

Many parents have heard that their small child needs to sleep in the cot to develop good sleep habits, which isn't true. They may have been told to put him in the cot drowsy but awake. These recommendations come out of sleep training approaches. You can find out more

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    Will 'capping' naps help with sleep problems when you have a toddler?
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