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Behaviour/development

Talk to others about child development and behaviour stages here. You can find more information on our development calendar.

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Original poster

Please give me any tips on how to get DS to sleep beyond 5.30am

24 replies

uppsydaisyhereicome · 27/02/2009 13:07

I'm exhausted having to start the day so early - he gets tired and grumpy because he's got up so early but I just can't get him to sleep longer - every once in a while he can pull it out of the bag and make it to 6.45 but hardly ever. I've tried earlier to bed, later bed, bigger supper, smaller supper etc etc - any other tips pllllllllease!!!

OP posts:

TheBreastmilksOnMe · 27/02/2009 13:10

How old is he?

SuperMario · 27/02/2009 13:11

There is none.
i had it for 5 long years till he got up and put the tv on alone.
he is 10, he still gets up early.

Original poster

uppsydaisyhereicome · 27/02/2009 13:11

He's 19 months

OP posts:

Galava · 27/02/2009 13:12

Co sleep ?

SuperMario · 27/02/2009 13:13

god dont co sleep.
Are you mad?

TheBreastmilksOnMe · 27/02/2009 13:15

I would say to make sure he is getting at least 1 decent nap during the day, usually after lunch, for a couple of hours and in his cot. Don't let him nap anywhere else and don't put him to bed late it doesn't make them sleep later it just makes them overtired and disrupts their sleep cycle.

TheBreastmilksOnMe · 27/02/2009 13:16

Also make sure his room is dark enough in the morning and quiet enough. It's unlikely hunger is a problem.

booksgalore · 27/02/2009 13:23

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

Galava · 27/02/2009 13:26

Possibly a bit mad

But hey ho .... I get a decent nights sleep.

SuperMario · 27/02/2009 13:26

Yes make sure he is snug.

Original poster

uppsydaisyhereicome · 27/02/2009 13:34

Thank you for your tips - I've tried bringing him into our bed and he sits up and tries to open my eyes with his fingers and then when I refuse saying ' mummy is sleeping' he stands up and climbs all over us!! He has a 2 hour nap at lunch time in his cot which he loves.

OP posts:

naturelover · 27/02/2009 13:37

I posted about this same problem a couple of months ago. I bought the No Cry Sleep Solution for Toddlers and followed it to the letter and logged DD's sleep. It took about 5 weeks before things improved but they DID! OK they may get worse again as soon as she gets another tooth or catches a cold but now TOUCH WOOD she is sleeping consistently to 6.30am or later. Her bedtime is 7pm.

The main things I did were:
-moved her nap to after lunch and limited it to 1.5 hours
-made her nap time and bed time the same every day
-had strong bedtime and naptime cues (boring but we do exactly the same ritual each day)
-didn't give any milk before 6.30am to reset her hunger-waking signals
-made her room darker, quieter, warmer
-switched her meals around so that meat-based meal is at midday, and gave her stuff from the NCSS sleep-inducing foods list before bed

I'm not sure what helped - or if she grew out of it naturally - but I'm loathe to adjust anything now! She is 18months by the way. Her bad sleep lasted for 5 months in total by which time I was a zombie so I really sympathise. Going to bed early myself was no substitute for getting a longer sleep in the morning - plus I felt like I had no life going to bed at 9.

branflake81 · 27/02/2009 13:46

I'm 27 and still wake up at 5:30/6am - I have never grown out of it! Some people are just early birds.

Bubbaluv · 27/02/2009 14:01

My Ds is 18mo and wakes up at 5/5.30 every morning. I have a bottle (individual carton of milk next to my bed) waiting, pop in and hand it to him. He drinks it and goes back to sleep for another 2-3 hours.
Might be worth a try if your DS will take a bottle?

lisasimpson · 27/02/2009 14:02

we have had it for five years the max our ds wakes up is 6.30 and nothing has changed this over the years. However he was like this from a baby - if your ds has only just started it then it might be something you can change. Good luck!

charlie1000 · 02/03/2009 15:31

I agree with Supermario, my DS1 has always woken up early, he is now 5 and has learned to sit in bed quietly til about 6.30 reading books. He is quite happy with this and so are we! Tried everything including black out blinds, meal times, milk/no milk and let him go to bed later in holidays but didn't change a thing. Some people are early birds. DS2 wakes up at 7.30. Didn't do anything different!

TMD · 03/03/2009 08:58

Oh gosh I have just stumbled accross this page and I am not liking what I'm reading!!!! My Little on is three next month and wakes anywhere after 4.30 am! has always been an early riser and it's killing me and by hubby!It's like he runs on duracel batteries as soon as he wakes boom! I'm exhausted to the point i'm not sleeping and stressed out, panic attacks and anxiety. I had to go to doc for help and she put me on AD's and i've been on them a month only just starting to relax a bit. I wound my self up so badly about the whole situation, Why my child- everyone else I spoke to eg friends said their children were angels slept 12hrs night no trouble! So that made me worse!The health visitor has told me this might settle when he starts school??????

OrangeKnickers · 03/03/2009 11:51

OK I was just talking about this very subject. My boss, who has twins and three under three says that they tried the 'wake an hour before the morning wake up' plan. ie nudging their kids at say 4am. After four nights the kids were sleeping till 7am. He swears by it. I haven't tried it yet but an going to ask dh if he's up for it.

Anyone else tried this?

OrangeKnickers · 03/03/2009 11:52

ps I could have written the OP [groan]

Grammaticus · 03/03/2009 12:00

We had this at this age. We cut the afternoon nap to an hour. It passed in the end, but i remember it as a grim stage! it's common, I think. Do get blackout curtains, if you haven't already. And leave toys in the cot, you never know, he might play with them for a bit.

Joycey29 · 03/03/2009 13:01

We invested in a bunny clock (kidsleep) which lights up when its up time and gradually added 5 minutes each few days to get DD to 6.30 - Now if she wakes early she knows she wont see us til Bunny is awake!
Have to move fast when he does wake up so they get the idea of Bunny awake = Mum!
Just bought one for DS as have been so pleased with the results!

OrangeKnickers · 03/03/2009 13:41

Joycey - how old are your LOs? I thought the bunny clock only worked from three? Also does it have to be light to see the clock? Ds has black out blinds so his room is pretty dark.

hillbilly · 05/03/2009 09:31

This post could have been written by me!

DS 16m wakes at 5.30 and it's driving me insane bacause he also has at least one other wake up during the night too.

I think I may try the "wake to sleep" (waking an hour early to hopefully kick the 5.30 habit. Let's see....

Joycey29 · 05/03/2009 21:21

Hi OrangeKnickers! This Bunny Clock by Kidsleep is found at www.monkeyshine.co.uk/parent-and-child-36/at-home-44/kidsleep-toddler-alarm-clock-45902.html

Ours has been in use for a year and DD is nearly 3. She understood from the beginning what Bunny meant. It has also really helped when on holidays as it gives them something familiar and so we haven't had problems with waking early on holiday.
Clock lights up byitself and so does light the room a bit. We use black out blinds too but actually find the clock gives off enough light to see for wee stops etc! Don't advcate nightlights but I LOVE the bunny clock!

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