To punch all parenting websites in the face?

[MaddingCrowd]

DD 7mo always bloody always wakes between 4.30 and 5, clearly exhausted and won't go back to sleep.

It's the only parenting issue where I have never seen one bit of advice that I think might help. Often go on mumsnet etc about other things and usually see something where I think hmm that's interesting, hadn't thought of that etc. (although that is among the myriad of super irritating 'have you tried shh pat?' And the like).

Want to tear my hair out every morning when I try and Google tips and I see 'you may feel like 7am is too early to start the day but really this is quite normal for a baby' or 'make sure the room is dark'.

Bastarding bastards.

Have you tried blackout blinds

Seriously, if you have one of these nothing fucking works. Except time. Time works.

I have a theory that when people say Michelle Obama gets up every morning at crazy o'clock to go to the gym it's just because her kids woke so bloody early every day for years and now it's hard wired into her so she thinks she might as well have killer arms to show for it!

When we were fostering a baby who couldn't sleep, but was so noisy about his sleep refusal that he would regularly wake the other baby and toddler in the house, I often took advantage of 24 hour opening hours at Tesco, Yarp.

I used to be there, with him in his car seat in the trolley, in the early hours. I wondered what the shelf packers made of me and baby casually doing our weekly shop at 2am.

I feel your pain!

DS1 literally slept like a baby from 5 months, straight through, no messing.

Then DS2 came along, hmmmm lets just say I wake up most mornings clinging to the edge of my bed whilst he is fast asleep, stretched out in the marital bed. He is now 8. Basically I gave up, I tried everything but the only thing he wants is me lucky lucky me!. So I brought him into our bed, I figured it was the only way we could all sleep, now he just potters in on his own. DH is clinging to the fact it won't be forever - we hope

People who's children sleep through have no clue and by law should be walloped with a wet fish.

Relentless early starts are a killer. DS is nearly 5 and I have tried EVERYTHING.

I have resigned myself to it now and try to not get too fucking pissed off annoyed every morning

Niknak- my cousin stopped at 9. you might be nearly there!

I nearly cried when I turned to MN for advice about this. And got nothing. Nothing that hadn't been tried, consistently (you bastards) and failed. And then I looked back at older threads and it was the same story, over and over again. A hopeful OP about an early waking child needing to sleep later and then despondency.

I agree about the wet fish NickNack. It's the least they deserve. The same should be done to anyone who uses the phrases "You've just got to be consistent", "treat it like night time waking" or "blackout blinds".

None of these would stop my son waking up, declaring it playtime, running round the room and then sitting on my head in his wet nappy.

Here we go a bloody gain. Trying to ignore since five. I'm too scared to try wake to sleep I'm pretty confident it would just mean a 4am start but I guess I should just give it a try.

My 5 month old wakes at 5am currently. We co-sleep though so I just give her some toys to look at before getting up for the day around 5.45am.

Clearly this is no help, but you're not alone. Keep the faith. It will pass!

DS is 5 now and has us well trained to start the day at stupid o'clock. We've tried everything over the years. He used to wake every hour until he was 2, but I can't remember the details now as my brain has suppressed it as too hideous to recall.

The only progress we made was when he turned 4 and we paid him to stay in bed until 5.15am. He got 5p if he left us alone until his groclock changed at 5.15. We then got confident and tried creeping the groclock to 6am. No luck. And I doubt a toddler would give a rat's arse about 5p so that won't help you.

Mum tells me I was the same. She says this with quite a grin on her face. It is karma according to her.

I will join in the wet fish slapping of anyone whose child sleeps through or sleeps past 5.30am. And anyone who suggests a later bedtime. Or suggests shush patting. Or suggests that book (can't remember the name now) who categorises parents and put me in the "accidental parenting" category . I threw the book across the room.

DD did this until she wS about 6 - I think school tired her out. Nothing I tried worked.

She is now 10 and gets up at 0630 in the week (9pm bedtime), and on Saturdays 0800 (1030 bedtime).

Me? I still wake up at fucking 0530. I think this is it until the day I die.

When Dd is an obnoxious teen (not bloody far off) I am going to consistently run into her bedroom at 0500 and start screaming and crying. Then I'm going to turn on her TV and demand she watches Peppa Pig with me. I may poke her in the eye a couple of times. My thoughts of revenge are the only thing keeping me going.

I tried everything except CC. Like a pp DS1's sleep problems kept changing. The Only consistent thing was very hard to get to sleep and to Stay asleep.

He started sleeping through aged 3, when his reflux meds were doubled and he stopped napping. Even now he wakes frequently with nightmares and 10 hours is a good night.

DS2 is easier to get to sleep but still wakes frequently aged 12 months. We haven't attempted sleep training as it was so useless with DS1 plus it would wake DS1 and I deal with both of them awake at the same time in the night already. I Am not adding to it!

I am not having a third!

Strange question and don't want to high jack but how much sleep do babies need? For example, for me waking at 4.30 or 5 is absolutely normal for an adult but presumably babies need more than 6 or 7 hours a night plus a daytime nap.

I was an early riser (tho I slept through very early). I Was trained to tell the time '7am' very young and stayed in my room til then. I can remember being bored and lonely and waving to the postman every day! This was at 5.30 everyday. My parents didn't know until they changed my room to the back of the house and the next time they paid him he asked after me cos he was worried and missed me

Madding crowd - I tried wake to sleep for an early morning riser. It didn't work. Well it did - he woke precisely 10 minutes later than he previously had. I couldn't get back to sleep after getting up to do it though! I did stick at it as well.

My DS1 was a terrible sleeper and early riser. My husband is away for long periods so it was just me. It was a grim time. Worst bit was he wouldn't even sleep if I brought him into to my bed! What worked in the end was a clock that turned green when he could get up - once he was 2 1/2 he got the concept and started at least staying in bed until 6.45/7 ( although is often still hear him before)

I can't deal with no sleep so it actually put me off having another child. DS2 was an accident but so far a completely different sleeper. Funny thing is I can't relax and enjoy it as each day I wait for him to change and stop sleeping .

In retrospect I wish I had just given up and accepted DS1s early wakings, rather than getting even more frustrated trying to fix it. Last few weeks with the summer coming he has actually started waking earlier again! At least I can bribe him with sweets now

Depends on the baby. DS1 has never had what he should according to sleep books (is out by several hours even as a newborn) but is happy as larry

I think try wake to sleep too.

If it helps, I was a smug advocate of CC after I used it with DD1 and it worked in 3 days with no more than a couple of mins crying. You probably would have wanted to punch me.

My actual punishment was my darling DD2, who didn't sleep for more than 2 hours at a time for a year and then woke at least twice a night until she was 3. Words cannot express my exhaustion.

So, y'know, what goes around comes around...

Feel for all of you as I'm in the same boat. Dd2 tricked me by initially being really good but after 6 weeks it went to shit.

I survive by going to bed when the kids do.
Have no life anymore which sucks especially at Christmas and the summer but it's the only way for me to get through and be a mum

We had this for ages. DS is now 3 and only sleeps till 6ish so wakes anytime between 5.45 and 6.15. So much better than the days when he was up at 4 or 5 and dh and I took turns to sleep. It gets better with time.

I think it's just the way se children are. Luckily at this age he can get up and walk across the landing to come to our room and climb into bed.

Se = some

Same here. You need to ... Buy a super king size bed. Son is ten and still gets into bed with us when he wakes at 4am but at least he goes back to sleep and doesn't wake us up ... Until 5:30 am. My friends are aghast at the early hour but hey I take it as a lie in. On the weekends we get a blissful extra hour by allowing him to go straight on the iPad if he goes downstairs on his own. I know, babysitting by iPad ...

I wish I could punch every person in the face who tells me to just put him to bed later. I don't even set his bed time - he's been 8pm his whole life. Any earlier and you spend the time trying to get an awake child to sleep until 8pm anyway. Any later and I have a foul, over tired boy at 5:30am the next day.

Ha ha ha just laughing to myself as I realise that the thread is full of people in the same boat ... Because it is still only 7:30am. We should form a group so we have company at 5am :)