Afternoon siesta | Autism PDD

She does not protest and I can do my stuff with her playing around... the thing is I think she NEEDS to nap - bec when she skips her nap, she ends up all cranky and tired all evening....but when she is quiet in her crib when awake, it disturbs MY mind bec I feel like she is zoning out!

Rita, I can SO relate!!!

My dd really needs much downtime, to play alone ... but post-dx I do try to check in with her frequently ... say something now and then ...

I leave my daughter in her crib after lunch so that she can take a nap.. sometimes she will stay in the crib for 2 hrs staright but not sleep!!!Like today - she is awake babbling to herself... Is this a waste of time?? Please advise - I dont want to induce any more alone-time - she is already aloof!If you need the break, I would think it was ok. You need time to recooperate, and as long as you engage her the time when she is 'up', I would give yourself a break! Maybe cut it to an hour. Just my opinion.MiMom339260.4359027778

I agree with MiMom.

It is not a waste of time so much as you need to keep her engaged and involved when you can afford to.

BUT, I do think the kids benefit from some quiet time, too. If seh started showing stress over too much interaction, bakc it down a bit.

Maybe she needs the rest but not actual sleep. As long as she is not protesting you both can take some time to recharge your "batteries".

Adam did this alot when he was little, I never had to engage him to keep him quiet. Now I guess I know that was a sign that something was wrong.

I would leave her as long as you feel comfortable and then try and engage her.

I think I know what you mean by she needing the sleep, and I just thought of something. My son has a hard time calming his body down, so I put him to sleep. It gives him the pressure he needs to calm his body down, and he likes me to rub his arm. Ideally, I would love to just say go to bed!, but that would be hard for him. It usually only takes 15 min, and it is well worth it.[QUOTE=Adamsmom]

Adam did this alot when he was little, I never had to engage him to keep him quiet. Now I guess I know that was a sign that something was wrong.

I would leave her as long as you feel comfortable and then try and engage her.

[/QUOTE]

Yes ... it never occured to me it was a SYMPTOM, before dx. I was the same way and still need much alone-time to recharge!

[QUOTE=rita07]I leave my daughter in her crib after lunch so that she can take a nap.. sometimes she will stay in the crib for 2 hrs staright but not sleep!!!Like today - she is awake babbling to herself... Is this a waste of time?? Please advise - I dont want to induce any more alone-time - she is already aloof![/QUOTE]

It's never a waste of time. Our son Timothy (4 yrs) takes his Siesta or afternoon nap, every day - from 1 to 2 hrs. (taking regular naps helps you child to grow bigger and taller). My son's height is over the average height of children of his age.

To me, anything that can help improve my son's way of life is never a waste of time. There's no regrets for the stress attributed by caring for special needs child. He is the most precious gift from heaven. Normal or abnormal.

my son could never be in the crib or a playpen, he never even used them to nap by himself. he always needed his bouncer. but his signs didnt show up until he was 2. but if your child is awake, i would engage in activity ,i understand you are tired but that way she will fall asleep afterwards.I try to give my son a nap everyday. If he doesn't fall asleep in an hour, I let him get up and I figure at least we both had a break :)I also think that it is good for the both of you. My son would stay in his crib like that, too, (before dx), and I can remember feeling guilty about it. However, I spent quality time with him at other times, and it allowed me some time to get things done, where he would be safe. If he stayed awake, I would pop in and check on him, and give him a kiss and say a few words.

I bet pretty soon that she won't want to stay in her crib, and you will miss those 2 hours

.

take care
I can relate. My dd's nap schedule is so wacky--some days she'll sleep 1-3
hours, some day NO nap. Anyway, I felt SO guilty if I ever put her in the crib
& she stayed awake, but I so needed some ME time. Then I spoke to
one of dd's EI therapists, who has 2 autistic (grown) sons. She said she
always had them go in their rooms for "quiet time" for about 30 mins or so
each day. She said her sanity was a bigger benefit than anything else, and
also, they needed some down time. Since then, I've let go of that guilt. If
she's not napping I go get her after 30-45 mins (after some zen momma
time!!