The No-Cry Nap Solution: Guaranteed, Gentle Ways to Solve All Your Naptime Problems

Great Book, A must read

Thanks to this book my daughter is on a great routine, and finally a great sleeper! Many people told me that I should let her cry it out or that naps didn't effect night time sleeping, this book teaches techniques to help with nap time and they work!
As a baby my daughter never slept well, maybe a 40 minute nap if I was lucky and hard to put to sleep at night and she would wake up screaming throughout the night. I read this book and as soon as I started putting her down for naps as recommended she started to sleep well, if she missed her late afternoon nap she was up in the night!
This book really changed my views on nap times and finally the whole household is getting the sleep they need.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

Napping Baby = Happy Mommy

This book has been a life-saver for my husband and me! My son is almost 3 months old and has been having so much difficulty napping. His nighttime sleeping hasn't been too bad, but trying to get him to nap was torture for all involved. We couldn't get him to sleep on his own and if we did it would only last 20 minutes. He was constantly overtired and had severe mood swings. Being the primary caregiver during the day, I was left feeling helpless, inadequate, and drained by the time my husband came home from work. My sister-in-law gave me her copy of Pantley's other book "The No-Cry Sleep Solution" and once I saw that the Nap Solution book was available, my husband bought it immediately. Since reading this book, our son's napping has improved greatly. He is now able to sleep up to 3 hours at a time during the day. While he is not consistently napping the recommended amount of time during the day, he continues to improve. I would, and have, recommend this book to anyone who wants to help their child nap without using the cry-it-out method.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

Must have book for all parents!

Buying this book was one of the best decisions I ever made! My baby woke up every hour or two at night and never napped for longer than 45 minutes during the day. I was so tired I could barely function and I needed help desperately and letting my baby cry it out was not an option! He is now sleeping a lot better at night and taking one and a half to two hour naps thanks to the tips in this book! Some of the other books I've read made me feel like it was my fault that my baby was not sleeping well and I actually felt like a bad mother after reading some of them. This book is different! The ideas will be helpful for every type of family and it's really easy to read. If you are a tired parent who want to get a good night's sleep (and if you're baby take good naps during the day he will sleep better at night) without being insensitive to your baby's needs you have to get this book! I will be suggesting this book to all my friends who are pregnant or planning on having a baby. I will be getting some of Elizabeth's other books, as I'm sure it will be just as helpful. Lindi Roux, South Africa

No-Cry Nap Solution is AWESOME!

I am a first-time mother to a daughter who is 5 months old. She is a wonderful night sleeper, but a terrible napper. She is not your typical easy-going baby either.... so she desperately needs her naps! She takes "power naps," or as Pantley calls them "Catnaps," just fine... and I thought. "well, I suppose that's all she needs." Even though deep down I just knew she was still tired and would really benefit from a longer nap. I had never been able to get her to nap longer than 25-30 minutes in her crib, and no more than 45-50 minutes in my arms. And even when she did take a nap in her crib, she would often cry for a long time before falling asleep - when I say cry - I mean CRY! It killed me:-( And I usually ended up taking her out and just holding her.


I was so tired of people (and authors) telling me to let her cry it out! I never felt good about that, and it never worked for us! For a baby to cry for more than 30 minutes... something is just not right. When I did some research and found Elizabeth Pantley's book/website, I thought, "FINALLY an author who writes about NOT crying!" After going all over town to various book stores... I finally found the "No Cry Nap Solution"... I read it all THAT NIGHT! Need less to say, my daughter soundly sleeps for two naps a day. Oh, and the naps are anywhere from 80 to over 90 minutes long EACH, which I never dreamed would happen. She naps in her car seat, which is in her stroller (and yes, I brought it in the house)... but it works! I feel like if I can get her body used to napping longer, then we'll work on the location LATER!


Ok, I need to get some non-baby things done around the house while she sleeps.. but I just wanted to quickly send a big THANK YOU from my home to yours:-)

Pantley offers pragmatic, creative, common-sense solutions

Are you the kind of parent who doesn't have the heart to let your baby cry it out? But also don't want your baby's needs to hold you hostage? Elizabeth Pantley's no-cry approach offers a much-needed third way. Her pragmatic, non-dogmatic common-sense approach allows parents to find compromise solutions that meet the needs of both parents and child.

Our baby used to take extremely short naps and wake up obviously tired. Following Ms. Pantley's suggestions we purchased a baby hammock and used the preemptive jiggling approach, and as a result our baby is now taking longer naps.

Thanks to Elizabeth Pantley's advice everybody is happy: baby is getting more sleep and parents have some much-needed downtime during the day.

A life saving book.

I recently recieved this book. I should have had this one and a half years ago.
My daugther, now 18 months old, has always been a sleeping beauty at night. Daytime was a completly different story. Short naps, often tired, no sleeping, or fighting to go to sleep, etc.
Elizabeth Pantley explains in this book a lot of facts about how babies sleep. Suddenly I understood why my daughter didn't want to take her naps. It was such a relief. After this, she gave a list of well discribed, practical solutions. I could just pick the ones that suited me and my daughter and make my own plan. Believe me: It works!!
The style of the book is great. It's just like reading a letter from a good friend. Without being intrusive she gives an explanation about the behaviour of babies, what they need and what you could do to make naps relaxing again. Because, we all know: A well rested and happy baby means a calm and happy mommy.
Elizabeth, thank you very much for this life-saving book.

Pantley is about practical, creative ideas

Elizabeth Pantley's No-Cry Nap Solution, like her original No-Cry Sleep Solution is packed full of ideas for worn out parents. Pantley is not one to give up on a problem and nor is she is one to go on endlessly about 'her philosophy' - Pantley is about practical, creative ideas which can be adapted to your own instincts as a mother. She is the reassuring maternal figure you're searching for as a bewildered new parent, the one who won't undermine your confidence and won't make you think your baby is some kind of failure. Pantley's books are as patient in their problem-solving as the sleepless night is long.

The No-Cry Nap Solution covers all the usual infant and toddler sleep pattern information and then moves on to tackling some thorny napping problems - catnaps, nap resistance, shifting schedules, changing from in-arms sleep to in-bed sleep, changing car naps to bed naps, making the transition from motion sleep to stationary sleep, and falling asleep without the nipple/bottle/dummy. The book has really hit the mark with its smorgasbord of nap problems and I'd be surprised if you're experiencing a nap problem that isn't covered here. Apart from raising four kids herself, all that research Pantley has done with parents around the world has paid off!

I read this book free of the fog of sleep deprivation, and there was a point I reached where I found myself thinking lighten up mothers, let it go, it all eventually turns out ok, you don't need to be so damn obsessive about your baby's sleep. And you know what, this thought could only ever be entertained by someone who is getting enough sleep in her life and you know what else? Pantley even has this covered - there is a section in her book with advice for those of you who decide to lighten up and let go with your motherhood routines.

But be warned, the book probably won't deliver miracles. There are no instant sleep miracles with babies. The truth is babies don't sleep or nap in a way that fits neatly into the modern parent's lifestyle. Unless you're exceptionally lucky there are going to be some problems (and they will involve a little crying). But the good news is they won't last forever. If you want to gently manoeuvre your way through them then the No-Cry series is the one for you. And just as The No-Cry Sleep Solution was desperately needed by sleep-deprived parents, I suspect The No-Cry Nap Solution will be just as desperately needed by energy-deprived parents. Because I still remember how precious nap time was - how your child's nap was the only time in a day where you got the opportunity to re-charge. It is something very much worth striving for. Go for it, buy the book.

Great book for any new parent

What did I like best about this book? Well, this quote from page 22 is probably it:

"Address only those problems that are true problems to you, and don't create or imagine problems because someone else thinks you have them, no matter if that person is family, friend, or expert."

It's a wonderful reminder that problems are only problems if you think they are and then it's up to you to decide what to do about them. Wow. What a relief! You don't often hear that...as a parent. Usually everyone is trying to tell you what's wrong with how you do things.

My big concern was that my baby was nursing and then falling asleep for her naps. I thought this was a HUGE problem I had to fix. The thing was that I didn't feel like it was a problem; I just kept hearing that from various "expert" sources. Then, in the chapter on nursing to nap, Elizabeth says this:

"If your baby falls asleep nursing, drinking a bottle, or sucking a pacifier and then you are able to put him into bed where he takes a nice, long nap, then nothing needs to change." (page 154)

Another big sigh for me, as my baby was doing naps from 1 hour to over 2 hours in her crib or in our bed. Sure, sometimes the naps were shorter, but that was the exception and not the norm. And there was usually a good reason (such as a noise or the fact that she had had a longer nap earlier in the day and wasn't as tired).

After a lot of great general information on sleeping, napping, etc. in the first part of the book, there are then sections for newborns and older babies, as well as the types of challenges you are facing. You will not need to read the whole book to find solutions; you only need to read what's pertinent to you and your baby. What a great thing for time-constrained people like us parents!

The logs are great, especially the point of doing them every month or two rather than every week or two. This gives a more reasonable time for change and to see improvement. I did a log and came to the realization that the napping was going much better than I had thought. So, while it sometimes will help you spot the bad, the logging can also bring pleasant surprise. :) Still, I am trying some things and will do logs in a month or two to see if things have gotten better.

Lastly, one of my favorite things is that Elizabeth gets you to think of the less obvious, like does my baby sleep better with socks on or off? I hadn't thought to that level and thinking about things like that makes sense (and helps!)

This book, combined with the No-Cry Sleep Solution, have to be must-reads for any new parent to succeed in their new job of raising a happy, well-rested baby.

A must read for any parent

Did you know that studies have proven healthy sleep habits for your child now can directly impact their health for the rest of their lives? Or that a child not wanting a nap and not needing a nap are not one in the same?

But let's get real: While our intentions may be great, real life doesn't always allow for step-by-step approaches to getting our kids the daytime rest they need (and the sorely needed breaks we get while they nap!). Crabby kids, relatives popping in unannounced right before nap time, teething, upset bellies, that doctor appointment you can't miss, that 15 minute car nap that ruined little Johnny's afternoon siesta that led to an even more difficult bed time fight because he was so overtired...we've all been there, done that, and were all ready to pull out hair out by the end of the day.

There's a lot of great information in this book for parents of newborns through toddlerhood, and I made plenty of notes while I read. And there was also plenty of information that did not apply to our situation, some of which I skipped entirely and some of which I just skimmed (because I do plan on having another baby eventually!). But that is what is so great about Pantley's book: it's not a one-size-fit-all solution. Whether you co-sleep, nurse-to-sleep, stick to a by-the-clock schedule, or fly by the seat of your pants (like I do), you and your nap-fighting child will benefit greatly from the little bit of time it will take to sit down and read!

A few very important lessons I learned while reading Pantley's book included:

* My daughter needs 12 hours of sleep a night and 1 to 2 hours of nap time per day for 13 to 14 hours of sleep total. Oops! I had been cutting her short by about 2 hours. We have been working on remedying that situation and I am already noticing improvements.

* Night time sleep can help make up for naps but naps cannot make up for night time sleep.

* No matter what ANYONE tells you, newborns cannot be spoiled. So baby-wear, cuddle, and hug to your hearts content.

* I am not the worst mother in the world.

* What works for us is fine. A parenting expert says so. So if my daughter and I are happy with our she-holds-my-hand-until-she -falls-asleep-for-every-nap-and-bedtime situation, then so be it. It doesn't mean I am spoiling her and it doesn' mean I did something wrong. It just means that this is what is right for us. (I'm not sure why I needed an expert to tell me this to make me feel better, but thank you, Elizabeth. You don't know how much better this makes me feel.

Another Great Title in the No Cry Series

Another great book in the "No Cry" series. I enjoyed the No Cry Sleep Solution, and was equally impressed with the Nap Solution book. Pantley offers family-friendly, common-sense, gentle approaches to solving nap time difficulties. This book offers solutions to solving nap problems newborn through toddlerhood. We have a "naptime nursling" and Pantley's strategies are helping us to get him to fall asleep happily on his own. I always look forward to reading Elizabeth Pantley's books. Her books are user-friendly, enjoyable reads, and she mirrors the attachment-type, child-centered parenting approach that we have chosen for our family.

A Great Resource for Parents

I am a big fan of Elizabeth Pantley's "No Cry" solution books. Not only is she a gifted author and instructor for parents, the whole no cry philosophy has always resonated with me as I am a BIG opponent of cry-it-out methods. I do not believe in letting my babies/children cry for extended periods of time in the hopes of teaching them some life lesson.

I started using some of the ideas in the book this week and while he hasn't napped every day, he has napped more. AND if he does need to sleep late in the day I have started letting him. In fact I find he still goes to bed at the same time usually and never more than an hour later so the naps really don't mess with his nighttime routine too much which was more a routine for ME than for him anyway.

I would recommend this book/approach to other parents in a heartbeat.

Excellent advice on a very wide range of napping issues

This is the 3rd "No-Cry" book by Elizabeth Pantley that I have read, and like the other two, I have gotten a lot of useful information out of it. I've read many books on baby and toddler sleeping , but I think this one explains the importance of naptime the very best, including the biological and behavioral benefits. It also explains the science of napping and the sleep cycles in detail, which is very important to understand.

The book offers numerous suggestions for a very wide range of nap issues that parents might face with their children. It gives great advice for a lot of very specific problems (such as babies who only nap by falling asleep while nursing) that many of the other sleep books just do not address. I now feel armed with a lot of tools and ideas that I can try the next time my daughter (or next child) has a napping problem. I really wish this book had been available when my daughter was a newborn - it would have really helped me a lot back then.

The book is written in Elizabeth Pantley's customary style: kind, gentle, patient and supportive. Her "No-Cry" approach has always resonated with me, and I think any parent with young children will find this book extremely useful and helpful.

Wonderful addition to the no-cry series!

Elizabeth Pantley continues to deliver fabulous parenting books! Her books are easy to read and relate to. They also offer practical solutions and methods. I love, love, love her books! And I have read all of them more than once :)

A Wonderful Addition To The No-Cry Series!

I was thrilled to hear Elizabeth had another book coming out in her landmark series... As a mother of four children all under the age of 8... I find her books refreshing and down to earth... This one is no exception... It is an excellent book for anyone who has ever wanted add a nap or improve nap time... All my children nap for a period of time then they go through a phase where they have trouble calming or relaxing enough to have an effective nap which in turn isn't to their benefit... The rest of their day is off leaving them moody and frustrated... Using the techniques in this book has brought back the much needed nap in my home... Thank you for this wonderful book Elizabeth...

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