Gifted Issues Discussion homepage Forums Parenting and Advocacy young kids: age drop last nap?

At the end of the day, you can't force a kid to sleep. Trust me, I tried. A lot.

I was able to _make_ him take a nap, at great cost, but he just stayed up at night. He slept less hours total, when he took the nap. Now, when he sleeps early or more, it's generally a sign that he is extremely stressed and we are about to start seeing major symptoms.

We have often desperately tried to get him to sleep more, because we've been concerned he wasn't sleeping enough. I go back and forth on this. But at the end of the day, I gotta say, there's a limit to how much you can "protect" sleep, even if it's crucial.

I understand I napped or had quiet time for an hour after lunch through 4. During teen years, I slept 12-14 hours on Friday nights because I had 3 (!!) sports practices those days totalling ~4-5 hours. I would crash at 8pm, no joke. As an adult, I have high sleep needs (~9 hours).

I may have something wrong with me LOL, but while I didn't sleep much as a baby, I slept for 12 hours from the age of five until a teen; and in adulthood I need at least 12. If given the opportunity, I could sleep for 14 hours!

While the need for sleep may be related to giftedness, it could also be related to genetics. My DD3, who I believe is gifted, needs 12 hours a day (she got it from me since I need at least 10 or I lose it). She still takes a 3 hour nap and 9 hours at night everyday. My cousin, who is PG, and pursuing his PhD, always slept for 12+hours a day. I remember it because the adults in his life were always unhappy about how much he slept but boy, did he accomplish more than anyone else during the time he was awake