NAP TIME – CALMING THEIR LITTLE FEARS.
This article is for all the brave parents, who have been drawing in recent weeks, from all their resources, to juggle between work and family life. It is really hard to manage everything at the same time and we would like to bring you some solutions and comfort. Here is a nap preparation routine, tested by our teams at home and which works for us! In this context of constant uncertainty and change, our little ones are more anxious, they have little fears – sometimes expressed, sometimes not – and this routine can help them.
In these times when we all work from home, we are very much looking forward to nap time. Being in confinement in our home with our children gives us little time to concentrate and we plan a series of calls, right after lunch.
As a result we are in a hurry, we ask the kids to sleep quickly and we pray not to have to delay our important 1:30 pm call. The children sense it and very often decide not to fall asleep right away… Yet, they need it very much, and so do we. Here are our ideas to help them relax and prepare them for this long-awaited nap:
→ create a daily routine, with a few options of activities to choose from. In a time when there is less structure, a routine helps the child to have a better idea of how the day will go and the different moments that it will be composed of.
→ before napping, make sure to tidy up the room together: a calm visual environment helps them feel reassured and relax.
→ reduce the brightness of the room, 30 minutes before bedtime.
→ use the therapeutic bear as a routine partner: heat it for 30 seconds in the microwave (1000 watts).
→ read a story with a little bear in the child’s arms to bring calm and rest.
→ then place the bear on the child’s chest. By the weight of the bear, your child becomes aware of her/his breathing and automatically slows it down.
→ say the same sweet words, with each nap, a sort of routine song which tells the child that all is well and it is time to sleep.
→ avoid mentioning what will happen after the nap so as not to make him want to stay awake.
→ leave the room tiptoeing, victorious.
Good nap to all-
In cahoots!