22mths and still rocking to sleep for naps?

Anyone else still rocking their LO's to sleep at nap time?? Yes I know I'm crazy but I'm afraid to do CIO because I'm afraid they'll cry too long and won't end up sleeping at all.

We did CIO for night time at 8mths old and never looked back. I so wish I had done naps then as well. Now I'm paying for it.... Well at least for DS. DD is a piece of cake. 10mins and she's out. DS however takes a good 30mins of rocking and patting his back to get to sleep and 1-2 times a week no nap at all.

Am I crazy for still rocking them to sleep for naps? Should I just bite the bullet and do CIO now and get it over with? At nighttime we give them a bottle and rock for 5mins and then put them down awake and they go to sleep on their own no crying.

I let DS cry twice this week after not getting him down and he cried both times for both naps (the whole hour). I just don't know if I have it in me. Plus I feel so bad to do it to DD when she goes down for her nap so easy (10 mins total, bottle/rocking).

I know I have to get rid of the nap and night time bottle soon but they hate milk in sippies. I will tackle the bottle soon.I know it's crazy that they are still getting bottles and being rocked to sleep for naps but I'm just such a wimp!!

What should I do? Anyone else in my situation? Thanks :FIFblush:

 

I was in your situation with my oldest ds. Thankfully, I didn't have any other kids to worry about, and we used to snuggle for his naps for a LONG time. But, eventually, I had to stop, and we had to do CIO. It's not fun but you do need to stay firm and consistent with it. Each time you break down and stop it, those smart little cookies realize they can break you down, and will cry all the harder the next time. He's also old enough to know how to manipulate your emotions pretty good now. :hug:

For naps, you can try rocking for shorter and shorter times. Start a gradual transition. Eventually get it down to where you don't sit in the rocking chair at all, just hold him, snuggle him, rock him a couple times, maybe sing a lullaby, and then put him down. Do you have white noise going? Have you thought about using a lullaby cd? Both those really help all my kids to sleep better.

As for the bottles, I'm going to really recommend you think about ditching those soon. The older they get, the more attached they become to them, and they can become a "lovey" of sorts, which is going to make it even harder to get rid of. I would suggest cutting back the amount of milk in the bottles, or watering it down with water, until it's all water. Then I would switch to sippy cups. At 22 months they no longer need that bottle before bed and naps, offer milk with meals and snacks and that's plenty. The closer they get to the age of 2 and older, the more difficult it's going to be to break these kinds of habits

 

Well I don't think you're "crazy" or a "wimp"! You found something that worked and you stuck with it. ardon: But if you want to stop, then you may have to handle naps like you did night-time. If CIO did the trick at night, it might work fine during naps.

I just wanted to chime in and say that Nate needs less sleep than Jack and takes longer going down (we never did CIO, but he will fuss or bounce for a *long* time before falling asleep). It may be that your DS is like Nate and needs some time to wind down before falling asleep, unlike your DD. Give it some time and I'm sure he'll get the rest he needs.

Good luck!

 

I rocked my girls to sleep till they were 2 and went to daycare. I still rocked at night till 3. We never did CIO.

 

This is what I did. Then at night I cuddled with her until she was almost 6!!! And now, we talk I walk out of her room and she is out.

I did it very differently with the boys, because I couldn't have rocked two...or just did not want to.

Do whatever feels doable and right to you!