Mumsnet Talk

dd1 6- awful sleeper (asthma, reflux, sleepwalker, night terrors) 9th centile

dd2 5- good sleeper (apart from when her asthma and eczema play up) - 2nd centile

ds 2.3 - awful sleeper (sn, reflux) 0.2nd centile

so far they are the only short bad sleepers, or it could be because dh and I are shortarses from a long line of shortarses!

I have 2 mutant children -99th centile . Bad sleepers.
I have one average child- 50th centile. Good sleep.

Also other families I know this doesn't follow.

DD was a terrible sleeper. She didn't sleep through for the first time until she was 22 months old. She's 3 but as tall as most 5 year olds.
DS is a brilliant sleeper - slept through at 2 weeks - and is only slightly above average in height.

My brother didn't sleep through until he was 7 (!!) and is 6'3

And 3 wakings a night is normal at 6 months!

Thaleia DH apparently didn't go to sleep or stop crying until he was 2. He was a very chubby little baby.

He is now 6ft 2 and slim.

Don't worry, please. At 6m there's no way you'll know if your DS will be tall or short

Nope. My son barely slept for 2.5 years and he's always been on the 99th percentile for height.

How old is your baby op?
In the scheme of things, depending on age, I would say that waking three times a night is normal.
According to my gp, children have to be unsettled most of the night with very poor quality sleep on a very regular basis (like an asthma sufferer) for it to affect height.

Lack of growth might also be a sign of infection. What you should check is his growth curve to see if he has dropped off it.

Another one here with a sleep resistant whale-child. My DS's height is off the chart lines and he still rarely sleeps through at 2.1.

Who wrote this article, op?

I remember pondering this before when ds was younger and the upshot was no. Assuming your dc is getting even he minimum calories required the biggest factor are their genes and each child has their own growth curve to follow (gh deficiencies and other conditions excluded). Some shorter children grow for longer and catch up with their peers in their late teens. A few won't but then it will be their genes.

Both my Ds were great sleepers and both are short - like me and Dh.

My DD hasn't slept well for her whole 6 years and is on the 98th centile

I agree with sleepless DD1 stop growing between 3 and 4 due to a very bad bout of chicken pox but she has always been a good sleeper she is still tall.

DD2 has never been sick yet and she is a giant at 2.8 (growing into 5 yo clothes), she sleeps less.

DS2 is a rubbish sleeper and he's on the 99th centile and tallest in his nursery class.

There probably is a connection but my guess would be that it makes only a very small difference - millimeters rather than centimeters say.

Has your ds been sick? My ds' specialist said babies don't grow when they're fighting illness.

Nah, if that was true, my DS3 would not be anywhere near the 98th Centile for height. He is an utterly CRAP sleeper, even at 20mo.

He is also far taller than his older brother who slept 12 hours from a very young age was at the same age. We're talking 3 inches difference.

So my best sleeper was 3 inches shorter at 20mo than my not great sleeper.

My survey says this is not true.

How old is your DS?

Night waking is more common than you think e.g. 50% of toddlers and about 37% of preschoolers wake at least once a night and need parental help to return to sleep - the %s for more than 1 waking are lower but still significant.

I can't imagine that sleep is usually the determining factor (I also have a 99th centile non-sleeper); genetics must play a big role too.

DS2 is massive and a horrific sleeper, in 2.5 years I think he's once slept for 4 hours without waking! So that theory certainly doesn't work with us

DS ((6)was a terrible sleeper - he's the tallest in his class by a long way now

I agree with Sossiges and belmo. Both my ds's are terrible sleepers yet both are v tall for their ages so i don't think there is any connection.

My dd is beyond shit at sleeping and on the 99.8th centile so fraid I can't agree with that!

my mum maintains that I am 'only' 5'6'', not the predicted 5'8'' because I was such a lousy sleeper as a child. It's an explanation I've heard a lot <resolves never to go on about own children's sleep habits for 40 years...>

Mine are both excellent sleepers and always have been, dd1 is very tall for her age (6yo in 9-10 clothing) dd2 is smaller than dd1 as far as I can tell from clothes that fit dd1 at her age and are too big for dd2. <Very scientific research you understand>