Should I let my toddler sleep late when he is ill?
My two-year-old is a great sleeper. It can take him a while to get to sleep after we put him to bed (what with all the singing and bear conversations that go on after we've left the room), but he will often sleep until eight o'clock in the morning: eleven or twelve hours.
The only minor issue with letting him sleep is that it interferes with naps: come nap time, he's not tired, so we often just power through the day and have him fall sleep really quickly in the evening. We're at the point now where letting him sleep longer and skip his nap is fine for everyone.
But this week, he's sick with a cough and cold. It's ten o'clock in the morning, and he's been in bed for more than fourteen hours. I know they say to never wake a sleeping baby, and he is sick, so my inclination is to let him sleep as much as he wants — but is there any good reason to wake him up and not let him sleep the day away?
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Both of mine gave up naps at around 18 months old. This is earlier than most people I know, but that transition comes to them all eventually. You can resist it for a while, but not indefinitely. When it happens, they seem to extend their main sleep by an hour or two, and for the first couple of weeks they'll act a little ratty in the afternoon.
Certainly while he's sick, I'd be inclined to let him sleep as much as he likes. I'm sick; I'd bloody love a fourteen hour sleep; chance would be a fine thing!
It's usually best to go with the flow, rather than trying to be strategic to make what doesn't come natural when it comes to these things.
If I was in your shoes, I'd let him keep sleeping. If I was sick and you woke me up for no good reason, I wouldn't be particularly happy--would you?
I hope he feels better soon!
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