To anyone out there whose relative or friend is babysitting as a favor - just pay them. I don’t think OP would be asking if it’s ok to nap if they were being paid.

1. you should do your homework while with her
2. you're not the parent, so don't sleep unless the child sleeps

30 min nap while 5yo watches tv probably ok

I'm going to give this post the benefit of the doubt that it's a genuine question not a troll. I was the main caretaker for 3 much younger siblings starting from around the age of 15 and can relate to OP's feelings of exhaustion.

Can you nap for around 30 minutes while watching a 5 year old? Ideally not, something is reasonably likely to go wrong enough that you will regret it. If you absolutely must, there are ways to make it a 'less terrible' idea. But, first I would recommend several alternatives.

Rearrange your schedule so you do 30 minutes of your homework while watching the child, and then you will have enough time freed up for the extra nap while you are not providing childcare. This can be accomplished by getting the 5 year old to do quiet activities at the table next to you - drawing, puzzles, those little art kits for kids, etc. If the kid is the type to want to copy "big kids" like you, get some kindergarten workbooks and you can both "do homework".

If that will not work because the child is too distracting for you to be able to study, knock out 30 minutes of your chores or anything else that takes up your time while watching the kid, then nap when you otherwise would have been cooking/cleaning/etc.

If you absolutely cannot adjust your schedule - trade favors with a close friend to come babysit while you get an hour of sleep, or find someone you trust with a young relative themselves who can set up a play date (the supervising teens gets to take turns being "on duty" for the kids each time, getting you a nap 50% of those days).

If all else fails and you are completely exhausted so realistically you realize you are going to end up falling asleep no matter your efforts, then the child needs to be in the room with you the entire time, the room needs to be child-safe, and the child needs to have a specific engaging task likely to keep them busy. It's not a good idea, but if life happens you need to make it happen as safely as possible.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We leave our 5 year old alone in a different room in our house if we need to put the baby to sleep and there’s only one adult around. That can take 20 mins sometimes. My nanny even does this during the day if the 5yo is home from school. I don’t think that’s so different from taking a 20 min nap as long as you can hear her. If you could close the door to the bedroom and have her play something in the room while you take a quick nap and ask her not to leave the room unless she wakes you, would she listen? Mine is pretty good about listening and doesn’t get into things for the most part.

Disagree, I think it’s totally different. I’m a light sleeper but it’s not the same. You can’t count on waking up. Especially because unexpected silence is as problematic as unexpected noise.

This. Plus this isn’t the mother. It’s a 14 yr old. It doesn’t matter how well you think the 5 yr listens, you don’t sleep if you are there to supervise. If the child listens well enough for OP to even be considering just going sleep, she listens well enough that she can occupy herself while OP gets some homework done. Whether or not OP should be babysitting this kid at all is entirely separate from why OP is getting 5 hrs of sleep at night. I’m not seeing any reason why OP can’t get her homework done and get to bed earlier.

Anonymous wrote:We leave our 5 year old alone in a different room in our house if we need to put the baby to sleep and there’s only one adult around. That can take 20 mins sometimes. My nanny even does this during the day if the 5yo is home from school. I don’t think that’s so different from taking a 20 min nap as long as you can hear her. If you could close the door to the bedroom and have her play something in the room while you take a quick nap and ask her not to leave the room unless she wakes you, would she listen? Mine is pretty good about listening and doesn’t get into things for the most part.

Disagree, I think it’s totally different. I’m a light sleeper but it’s not the same. You can’t count on waking up. Especially because unexpected silence is as problematic as unexpected noise.

I’m not big on screen time, but I’ve done screentime in bed with me when I really need to lie down. Sometimes parents are sick, and you do what you have to to keep everyone safe.

We leave our 5 year old alone in a different room in our house if we need to put the baby to sleep and there’s only one adult around. That can take 20 mins sometimes. My nanny even does this during the day if the 5yo is home from school. I don’t think that’s so different from taking a 20 min nap as long as you can hear her. If you could close the door to the bedroom and have her play something in the room while you take a quick nap and ask her not to leave the room unless she wakes you, would she listen? Mine is pretty good about listening and doesn’t get into things for the most part.