I am a believer of having regular routines for my child. It's not that I have followed it all my life or that my parents were big fans of keeping any form of routine. However, ever since I had my daughter, I make sure I do her things on time and at regular intervals. As such, I have a regular routine for her sleeps as well. I ensure that she goes to bed an hour after lunch for her nap. I also make sure that she is settled for bed at night by 9.30 pm.
Recently, I read somewhere that it is necessary to let the kids choose their own timings and we as parents should not tell them when to sleep.
I have always found that my daughter gets upset when the sleeping routine changes drastically (when we travel) and she gets cranky when she does not get her afternoon naps. Otherwise, she is quite happy with the routine and is generally supportive as well. I mean supportive in the sense that she does not argue with me when I say it's nap time and I do not have to coax her or bribe her to go to sleep.
I spoke with a few parents and it seems that they are not particularly enforcing when it comes to sleeping patterns as well. They let their kids choose if they want to take the nap or not. This makes me wonder if I am "controlling" my child too much.
The main reason I set her sleeping timings is because I find this to be working for my daughter. Also, the initial intention was for her to get rested well before she goes off for her evening activities in the park. The nap makes her more active and she is generally well behaved when she is rested than otherwise, as I have noticed. Also, she wakes up refreshed in the mornings for school. Even on weekends, she follows the same routine such that it does not affect her weekday schedules.
Will it be better if I let her choose her own timings?
Recently, I read somewhere that it is necessary to let the kids choose their own timings and we as parents should not tell them when to sleep.
I have always found that my daughter gets upset when the sleeping routine changes drastically (when we travel) and she gets cranky when she does not get her afternoon naps. Otherwise, she is quite happy with the routine and is generally supportive as well. I mean supportive in the sense that she does not argue with me when I say it's nap time and I do not have to coax her or bribe her to go to sleep.
I spoke with a few parents and it seems that they are not particularly enforcing when it comes to sleeping patterns as well. They let their kids choose if they want to take the nap or not. This makes me wonder if I am "controlling" my child too much.
The main reason I set her sleeping timings is because I find this to be working for my daughter. Also, the initial intention was for her to get rested well before she goes off for her evening activities in the park. The nap makes her more active and she is generally well behaved when she is rested than otherwise, as I have noticed. Also, she wakes up refreshed in the mornings for school. Even on weekends, she follows the same routine such that it does not affect her weekday schedules.
Will it be better if I let her choose her own timings?
