NapMap — Plan your baby's day

Does NapMap follow a specific sleep training method?

No. NapMap doesn't follow any single method. The wake window and sleep pressure science it's built on is grounded in pediatric biology — the same foundation that Ferber, Sears, Taking Cara Babies, and others all draw from, even when they disagree about everything else. What NapMap does that books can't is adapt that science to your baby's actual pattern, day by day. You don't have to choose a philosophy. You just have to log what happens.

Where does the recommended schedule come from?

NapMap's wake window values are drawn from the published pediatric sleep literature — primarily the American Academy of Sleep Medicine consensus on infant sleep duration (Paruthi et al., 2016) and clinical references like Mindell & Owens' Pediatric Sleep. Most sources publish ranges (for example, 3–3.5 hours awake at 9–11 months); NapMap picks a specific value within that range as a starting anchor. Once you've logged a few days, the engine blends your baby's actual pattern into the recommendations, so they shift toward what works for your baby specifically.

How is this different from a sleep book?

Sleep books are good at giving you confidence and a framework. What they can't do is adjust when your baby has a rough night, gets sick, travels across time zones, or hits a growth spurt. NapMap does all of that automatically — the schedule you see today reflects what actually happened yesterday, not what a book predicted weeks ago. Think of it as the part every sleep book is missing.

How is this different from a sleep consultant?

Some parents pay for a sleep consultant on call — someone to text when a nap goes wrong and the whole day needs replanning. That's genuinely useful. But it depends on someone being available, on you finding the right words while you're exhausted, and on them knowing enough about your baby's recent pattern to give good advice.

NapMap sees what actually happened — the short nap, the early wake, the rough night — and adjusts the rest of the day automatically. No texting, no waiting, no explaining. It's not a replacement for human support when you need it. But for the daily replanning? It's already done.

Why is my recommended window different from what I read online?

Published wake windows are always ranges, not exact numbers. For 9–11 months, the consensus range is roughly 3–3.5 hours — but Huckleberry, Taking Cara Babies, and Precious Little Sleep all pick slightly different points within that range. NapMap picks one too. None of them are wrong; they're calibrated differently. After a few days of logging, NapMap blends your baby's real pattern into the recommendations, so what you see reflects your baby specifically rather than any single source's average.

What's the difference between "nap window" and "nap target"?

The nap window is when to try putting baby down — based on how long they've been awake. The nap target is how long that nap might last. Both are estimates. The window matters more than the target: getting the timing right is more valuable than chasing a specific duration.

Why did the schedule shift today?

The schedule is rebuilt from each real event — not from a fixed clock. If baby woke earlier or later than usual, or a nap ran long or short, everything adjusts forward from that point. This is intentional: a schedule built on what actually happened is more useful than one that ignores it.

Does the app account for my baby's age?

Yes. Wake windows, nap counts, and duration targets all change as your baby gets older. NapMap tracks your baby's age automatically from their birth date, so the schedule keeps pace on its own — no manual updates needed. (If you skipped the birth date at setup, you can add it anytime in Settings to switch from a generic schedule to age-accurate timing.)

My baby never hits the target nap length. Is something wrong?

Probably not. Nap targets are realistic midpoints — many babies routinely land below them, especially for nap 2 or during developmental leaps. A nap that's shorter than the target still counts. The app tracks the average over time and adjusts the schedule accordingly.

What counts as a "short" nap?

Under 30 minutes is short — the baby likely woke at the end of a light sleep cycle rather than completing a full one. Under 10 minutes is usually a failed attempt rather than a real nap. Neither is a crisis. The schedule adjusts the next window earlier when a nap runs short.

A nap ran really long. Should I wake baby?

Generally no, especially for nap 1. Let it finish naturally. A very long nap may push bedtime slightly later — that's the only adjustment needed. The app flags when a nap is running long so you can keep an eye on timing, but there's no need to intervene.

What is a wake window and why does it matter?

A wake window is the stretch of time a baby can comfortably stay awake between sleeps. Put baby down too early and they won't be tired enough to settle. Too late and they become overtired, which paradoxically makes it harder to fall and stay asleep. Hitting the window matters more than almost anything else in infant sleep.

What is sleep pressure and why does it matter?

Sleep pressure is the biological drive to sleep — it builds from the moment your baby wakes up and releases when they sleep. Think of it like hunger: the longer since the last meal (or nap), the stronger the drive. Catch it at the right moment and sleep comes easily. Wait too long and the body goes into overtired mode, which actually makes it harder to fall and stay asleep. That's why wake windows matter — not as arbitrary rules, but because they're tracking this underlying biology.

The sleep pressure bar — what does that show?

Sleep pressure is the natural biological signal that makes your baby tired. It builds from the moment they wake up — driven by a chemical called adenosine — and releases during sleep. It's not stress or a problem; it's the body's built-in timing system for sleep. The bar shows how far into that build-up your baby is. Green means pressure is still low. As it approaches orange, the nap window is opening — the body is ready for sleep. Red means the window has likely been missed and overtiredness is setting in. The bar resets to zero when a nap starts.

What do I do when everything goes wrong — travel, illness, bad day?

Log what actually happens and tag the day (there are Travel and Not well tags). The app adjusts guidance for disrupted days and won't hold them against the pattern. One off day doesn't reset weeks of rhythm. The most useful thing on a hard day is an early bedtime — that's true for almost any situation.

My baby is on a different schedule than the app suggests. Should I follow the app?

Follow your baby. The app's recommendations are starting points — if your baby is consistently happy, sleeping well, and settling easily on a different schedule, that schedule is working. Log it faithfully and the app will adapt its recommendations to match your baby's real pattern within a week or so.

How long until the schedule feels reliable?

A week of consistent logging gives the app enough data to personalise more confidently. The first few days use age-based defaults. By day 7 the wake windows start leaning toward your baby's own pattern rather than the age default. Logging keeps tightening the recommendations the longer you use it — no fixed "now it's accurate" moment, just more tailored over time.

Does my parenting style affect the recommendations?

Not the schedule itself — the wake windows, nap targets, and timing are based on your baby's age and pattern regardless of parenting style. What changes is how the app talks to you. A parent who prefers to respond quickly gets warmer, more permissive language. A parent who prefers a more structured approach gets precise timing and direct guidance. Every style is equally valid — this is purely about communication, not about one approach being better than another. You can adjust it anytime in Settings.

Baby took an extra nap — more than usual. Can I log it?

Yes. Just tap the button when the nap starts, same as any other nap. NapMap supports up to 6 naps in a day. The schedule will adjust around whatever actually happened — extra naps, short naps, late naps. Log what's real and the app adapts. The expected nap count for your baby's age is just a starting point, not a ceiling.

Do I need to log every single nap?

Ideally yes — each logged event improves the accuracy of what comes next. But an occasional missed log won't break the pattern. If you forget to log a nap, you can backfill it with the "Log another nap" button in the schedule, or tap Edit on any log row.

Will my data be lost if I close the app?

No. Everything is saved automatically to your device after every tap. Closing the browser, locking your phone, or losing connection doesn't affect it. The only way to lose data is to clear your browser's site data or use Reset all data in Settings — neither happens accidentally.

Can I use NapMap for twins or multiple babies?

Not as a built-in feature — NapMap currently tracks one baby per profile. If you have twins or multiple babies, the workaround is to use two separate browser profiles (one per baby). Each profile stores its own data independently. Multi-baby support is on the roadmap.

My baby was born premature — does NapMap account for that?

Yes. During setup, tap "Did your baby arrive early?" and enter how many weeks early. NapMap will use your baby's adjusted age for all wake window and schedule calculations. This makes a meaningful difference in the early months — a baby born 6 weeks early has the sleep patterns of a 6-week-younger baby, and the schedule reflects that.

Nap struggles are usually a timing problem.

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