To be horrified I used to wake at this time every day?

I totally agree with you OP. Our daughter's sleep seemed to go in stages and we had 5am wakings for around a year. We really struggled with it and found it a horrible time to start the day, especially in autumn/winter. I tried to just accept it but my body clock couldn't get used to it all, even with going to bed early. Very few of my friends had kids who woke so early so regularly. And it wasn't peaceful at all - she was awake and full of beans immediately. Glad it’s mainly behind you ❤️

My second child was diagnosed with T1 diabetes at age 3. Having to be up several times a night with him made the baby waking pale into insignificance.

I feel your pain! I remember when DS was very very young he used to wake around 4:30am day after day, full of beans! Then need a nap by 8am by which time I’d fully woken up and it was daylight and it was a real struggle to go back to sleep myself. Anything before 6am is a nightmare for me. 7am rare but civilised. We had a very very rare 8am the other day as he was ill and it was bloomin amazing. I must go to bed earlier, but after working all day you don’t get much time to yourself if you go early. And randomly I seem to get a resurgence of energy at 9pm. Can’t wait for the teenage years. And I’m banning him from being a swimmer! 🤣

5 is night time and my kids arnt allowed to get up at that time.

I'm always a bit wtf when people tell me they've been up since 5 with their toddlers..... who is in charge?

Was about 4 years of disturbed sleep (not no sleep) for our two children with another year of less than optimum sleep. So from when the oldest was born to when the youngest was 2-3.

Decades (so minimum 20 years) you'd have to either have a disabled child with severe sleep dysfunction (always possible but not the norm) or an awful lot of children (quite easily avoided).

If I’d stuck at 2 children I’d have had 12 months of sleep deprivation at most. It was only having my autistic child that has meant I’m long term sleep deprived.

God my 8 and 5 yr olds are still up at 5 every morning. I am used to being a haggard knackered mess atl

Okay…. 🤷‍♀️
wait and see!

@Lostinmusic22 ”we all decided” you were smug and wrong (decades of no sleep, oh please what BS)…..

@Lostinmusic22 well done you for being a much better more superior person to me 👍🏻

Nope, because we all accepted being tired was par for the course a very long time ago! Now we just crack on and enjoy the good bits! 💪🏻💪🏻

@Lostinmusic22 thanks for the advice, I'll bear that in mind. Any other gems of wisdom?
I'll make sure to never vent frustration or seek solidarity ever again because I should just expect and accept the tough parts of life.
I hope you're more supportive to your friends in real life?

Oh, is this the Breaking News board? I thought it was AIBU but I’m very sleep-deprived.

Surely between 5 and 6 is the early side of normal? Lots of people get up at that time to get to work etc. we have a pony and it’s the 4-4.30 am starts that seem too early when we need to do it, especially in winter!

So best to avoid having children. It is what it is. Decades of no sleep. It’s not breaking news is it…

Yes!! Mine is 330 ish til 530ishm.i then drop off into a lovely sleep 😴 and then my alarm goes off at 7 :(

We're getting our children back on track before school starts again as they've been going to sleep later and were not waking naturally until 11 am (we have a plan and will be OK for 7.30 am wake up on the first day back).

I found it intolerable when they were little and wanted to get up before 7 (never as early as 5!!) but luckily genetics won out and by the time they were 3 or so we could all sleep until 8 or 9 at the weekends. I don't function before 7 am or really after 1 am.

Some people are just not set up to be early risers. I do believe we all have a natural rhythm that our bodies prefer if we are allowed to find it. I prefer to sleep from midnight to 8 am and I can tell my children will be the same or even more extreme night owls like their father.

Smug 5 am risers - stay up until 3 am and see how chirpy you feel. It's so peaceful because most other people are asleep so I'm sure you'll love it.

Aaah, sympathies. That's gotta be hard, even though you know it's an accepted feature of lots of kids with autism and/or ADHD, it doesn't help you to know that when you're going through it. Hope you get some respite occasionally.

I remember years ago when I was living away as a student my mum moaning to me on the phone one Sunday evening that her sister had turned up for a planned visit that day, only it was at 8am or something instead of a more usual 10am like you might expect. My aunty had a child with severe autism who didn't ever sleep a full night and was up daily from 4.30am. I was shocked that mum didn't have any imagination over what that must be like day in day out, and the desperation she must have felt to turn up on their doorstep that morning, poor auntie. She worked full time as well, my auntie, and her husband who stayed at home was so stressed as the full time carer. My mum didn't work!!! She just didn't get it.