In Defence of Contact Naps: Why Lying Down with Your Baby Is Time Well Spent

Let’s talk about the contact nap.

Also known as:

✨ The laundry can wait

✨ The dishes are not your priority

✨ The reason you haven’t replied to that group chat in 5...15 days

If you’ve ever held your baby while they sleep and thought, “Shouldn’t I be doing something more productive?” - I’m here to gently (but firmly) tell you: nope. You’re already doing the most important thing.

Because the truth is, contact napping isn’t just sweet, cozy, and oh-so-Instagrammable - it’s developmentally and emotionally supportive for you and baby.

🧠 What Happens During a Contact Nap? (Short Answer: A Lot)

When your baby sleeps on your chest, magic is happening under the surface. Here’s a little peek at what science says:

1. Brain Development Is Occurring

Babies’ brains grow rapidly in the first year, especially during sleep. Being physically close to a caregiver during this time supports healthy neural wiring, helps regulate stress responses, and surely promotes the development of secure attachment - which, is related with better emotional regulation and resilience later in life.

• Skin-to-skin contact (even beyond the newborn stage) helps release oxytocin - the love hormone - in both you and baby.

• This hormonal boost supports bonding, emotional regulation, and yes, major milk production if you’re breastfeeding.

  
  

2. Better Sleep (for Everyone, Sometimes)

Studies have shown that infants who sleep in close proximity to their caregivers often experience more stable heart rates, temperatures, and breathing patterns - especially in the early months when regulation requires a caregiver to support them.

It’s called co-regulation, and it’s a fancy way of saying your body helps your baby’s body know what to do. Isn’t that wild? Just by being close, you’re teaching their system how to sleep better.

3. Supports Breastfeeding Success

Regular contact - including contact naps - encourages more instances of noticing your babe's early feeding cues, and provides more opportunities for frequent feeding. This in turn helps to establish and maintain your milk supply.

More proximity = more feeding opportunities = better supply. Simple as that.

😴 Okay, But How Do I Fit Contact Naps into My Day?

First, let’s acknowledge the obvious: You have other things to do. Kids. Pets. Jobs. Laundry that somehow regenerates every time you look away. Also, we don't have support. We don't have great prenatal education. We don't have a live-in chef.

You don’t have to contact nap all day unless you want to. But even 1–2 contact naps a day can be a powerful way to recharge both of you.

Try This:

• Pick a nap (usually the first or second of the day) and commit to it being a snuggly contact nap.

• Set yourself up: Water, snack, phone/book, maybe Netflix, and a safe, comfy place to lie or sit.

• Let it be enough. You are not lazy. You are not falling behind. You are literally growing your baby’s brain with your body.

💚 The Deeper Impact: Connection > Control

There’s this quiet, invisible pressure to train our babies to be independent from day one. But the research - and honestly, the instincts of many parents - say otherwise.

Babies thrive through connection, not early separation. They learn to feel safe in the world by first feeling safe with you. Contact naps are one of the most natural, biologically normal ways to offer that sense of security.

So if contact napping feels good, restful, or even just like the only way your baby will sleep - it’s not a bad habit. It’s a biologically appropriate choice. It’s connection. And connection is always best.

💛 One Last Word

If you're contact napping, feeding however works best for your family, and doing your best to survive the day, then you're absolutely doing it right. This is just one way that has downstream positive results and forces you to take a rest as well 😉

If you take one thing away from this, let it be this: you don’t need to earn rest, and you certainly don’t need to apologize for holding your baby while they sleep. It’s not spoiling.

So go ahead. Take the contact nap. The dishes will still be there - but this season won’t be.

Thanks for reading!

-Nicole

Disclaimer: The information provided in this blog is for general informational purposes only and is not intended as medical advice. Always consult with a qualified healthcare professional before making any health-related decisions.