To ask for your tips on how to get a toddler to sleep longer in the mornings

[ER1992]

Re posting in a different place as no response on original post. Sorry.

I have a 17 month old DS who is a good sleeper but up until about 3 months ago he was sleeping from 7pm to 7am which worked well for us.
For the last 3ish months he's been waking up earlier and earlier. This morning it was 5.30am and I really don't want it getting any earlier than this, it's starting to take it toll, I'm knackered and the days seem so long.

Have you got any tips on how we can get him to go back to sleeping 7 till 7 again?

I've read up about gro clocks but I think he's too young for this yet.

He has 1 nap in the day at about 11am for between 1 and 2 hours. He used to have his nap in the afternoon but because he is now waking earlier he's needing to nap earlier.

We have black out blinds and curtains in his bedroom so that isn't the problem.

Any advice? I would be really greatful

When did he drop the second nap? Weirdly, he might need to sleep more in the day to sleep better at night.

He dropped the 2nd nap just after he turned 1 in October. I have tried many times to get him to have 2 naps but he just won't go down a 2nd time, not even if I put him in the buggy for a walk or the car he just doesn't seem to go off a 2nd time

Shorten his nap to absolutely no more than 90 mins and try to keep it to no earlier than 12 noon put him to bed (30 mins) earlier (sounds counter-intuitive but seems to work IME)
If he's in this pattern now you'll have to change it gradually and make sure all child care follows the routine

OK I'll try pushing his nap back gradually and shortening is if he sleeps for too long. Maybe I should have tried to stick with the afternoon nap rather than bringing it forward because he's awake earlier but he just gets so miserable when he gets tired and is needing it 🙈

Do you put him back to bed?

5.30am isn't too early if he sleeps from 7pm and also when we move to BST in a couple of weeks 5.30Am will become 6.30am

Not sure if it'll help as I know all are different but I've found that if my DD (18 mths) naps earlier rather than later then she sleeps better.

She's up by 6am (always been an early bird)
Goes down for her nap at about half 10-11 for 1.5-2hrs
Bed at 7.30pm

As long as there's nothing wrong she sleeps through

My SIL plays audio books for her DD in the morning, so still involves getting up briefly but gives her an extra 30 mins ish 👍

Lousielouie we don't get him up straight away, leave him for as long as we can but he just stands in his cot shouting 'mumma dadda' continually, getting louder and louder. He never wakes up crying it's always happy and ready to go for the day. If he does ever wake crying it usually means he has been woken up and isn't ready to get up and tends to go back to sleep again

My early rising toddlers are now early rising 8&9 year olds. No combination of naps/black out blinds/earlier/later bedtimes have ever changed it.
At least now they go downstairs quietly, pop the TV on and have cereal as opposed to making a noise upstairs! They are up by 6:30 most days. Perhaps once every 6 months, one will sleep til 7:30.
Sorry!

I think that’s a really good length of overnight sleep, our youngest goes to sleep much later and wakes between 5 and 6. My eldest didn’t sleep longer until he dropped his naps completely.

CatFace haha thanks for that 😂 I will look forward to the days when he can go downstairs and sort himself out haha.

Also to anyone who suggests putting him to bed later. It doesn't work. We've tried it and he sitll wakes at the same time plus it isn't worth the tantrums and grumpiness of keeping him up later when he's tired... And then won't sleep because he is over tired 🤦‍♀️

We were in exactly the same situation with my now 21 month old, 5.30am starts most mornings. Someone suggested she could be getting hungry and to give her a snack before bedtime so we tried this and it worked (or it’s been a massive coincidence!) She now sleeps through til 6.30-7ish, so maybe worth a go?

My early rising toddler is now an early rising 5 year old. Sleep is far too boring apparently.

My 2 were both early risers and I suspect that the dawn chorus is giving your little bird the wake up call. We just had to grit our teeth and get through it. Took turns, put tv on and lie under a rug trying to stay half asleep.

It was brutal and no amount of sleep adjustment or blackout blinds made any difference. Sorry.

When the clocks change, make his final meal an hour later, put him to bed at 8, and hope that keeps you going til 6.30.

Mine still wakes at 6 most mornings. He's about to leave prinary school......

It's based on food times. I'm currently fucked because my son keeps waking at 11am because he won't eat breakfast and only wants lunch. Which means he will refuse to sleep until late at night so I'm really struggling. And trying to feed him lunch food at breakfast time is just not cutting it! We're stuck

Following because I've just spent over 2 hours getting my 11mo back to sleep and he will still be up for the day somewhere between 0430-0530 as he always is

This phase passes on its own.

Just get up, take them for a walk in the buggy, that's your morning started. Lots of people get up at 5.30am - use the time for exercise.

If I knew the answer to this, I’d be a millionaire.

It's likely developmental. And probably a phase. Some kids are just early risers. He's a baby, you've just got to ride it out.

It’s a normal phase, all 3 of mine went through it, we just got up and watched a bit of tv until I was more awake then got on with our day. These days I have to wake mine up!

DS (20 months) wakes up at 5-6. 6 is when I feel like I can reasonably accept waking up. Before 6 is depressing.

We have tried EVERYTHING. More naps. Less naps. Earlier bed. Later bed. Blackout room. Nightlight.

There seems to be 0 correlation between anything and we have just had to accept “wake up roulette”. Roll on the clocks changing!

Gro clock. I introduced it when DS was 19 months old - I thought he might be too young but it worked a treat. I think it's actually best to introduce them when they're about that age as opposed to too much later when they get into the more stubborn 2/3 yo phase

We had this and tried everything but nothing worked and gradually it stopped. Think as everything is its just a phase!