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Original poster

A thread for my early waking friends who want a whinge

407 replies

fififrog · 13/03/2012 22:07

A few weeks back there were quite a few of us with DCs about a year old, too young for gro clocks etc waking up TOO BLOOMING EARLY. Where are you all at now? DD seems to be getting earlier. Cough not helping but we had 4.55 this morning. I hate to say it but I actually enjoyed her being ill last week as she slept til 6.30 once. Some mornings I think "just a long phase we can live with it" but this morning I was in total despair. Will I ever be able to make it to 10pm without thinking I will regret staying up this late??! I know some of you will say stick with the messing around with morning nap, it will fix it, but to be honest I don't believe it will and I just want to WHINGE to people who will understand!!

OP posts:
LittleMilla · 12/06/2012 08:36

Fifi we have been struggling a bit here, but last night he went down at 7:30pm without a squeek.

My new tactic is to not have him nap past 3pm. Aiming for one nap a aday but nursery said yesterday that he was shattered by 10:30am, so he had two short naps - but woke up at 2:50pm. Given how well he went down last night and the fact he slept until 5:50am, I am telling myself it's worth a shot Grin.

I cannot believe that after so many months we (well, me) are STILL clutching at straws like this!

Just got to take comfort in knowing we are not alone xx

Meggymoodle · 12/06/2012 14:31

Hi ladies, just back to give you hope. DD is still doing post-6am :)

Rather tragically from my point of DS - normally amazing - has started doing pre-6am - argggggghhhhh!! What is this? Tag-team sleep deprivation?! That said, this morning I had 6.10 from DD and 6.20 from DS so reasonable all round.

I have NO idea if anything makes any difference or not, but the night we did a later bedtime with DD, she woke up at 5am the next morning - but she did go back to sleep. For us it seems that it has to be 7pm bed. Also she is now consistently doing 2 hours nap at 1230 or thereabouts which is amazing. When she was younger she would literally only do 45 mins....sooooo frustrating.

Anyway, as I said, we've had this sort of respite before so I'm not counting on leaving this forum entirely.

thinkfast · 12/06/2012 23:22

Ds go back to sleep!!!!! I have work tomorrow and I know you will have me up at 5!!!

thinkfast · 13/06/2012 00:17

Argh!!! Awake again. Looks like I won't be getting any sleep before my first day back Angry

thinkfast · 13/06/2012 17:20

help help help. now I have wake ups at both ends of the night. so tired today. DS woke up every 30 mins or so between 10 and 1.30 last night til I brought him in bed with me. then up at 5am as per usual. Think the problem was a developmental leap. He suddenly discovered he can sit up from lying on his back and didnt seem to be able to stop practisining it.

any advice? I dont really want to sleep with DS every night - I dont get comfortable or in a really deep sleep and miss sleeping with dh...

LittleMilla · 13/06/2012 19:08

Think, I am no expert on the early waking (as you know!) but DH and I got tough re:nighttime wake ups.

At about 8/9 months we decided enough was enough and wnet down the (gentle) CC route. Soooo, although DS DOES wake up fricking early. He doesn't wake up unless really unwell - I can count on one hand the amount of times this has happened in the last 6 months.

Sorry, prob not what you want to hear. But esp when your mornings are so early, you need at least unbroken sleep.

thinkfast · 13/06/2012 19:28

Milla am not against cc but don't have the energy for it at the moment. Might start at weekend when dh can help. How long did it take to work for you and did u go in to check every couple of minutes or just leave your dc to it?

LittleMilla · 13/06/2012 19:58

Not sure if your BF but I was when we did it (not now) and it meant that I could hand it all over to DH Grin.

A few days to see a difference? Way we did it was leave DS for 5 or 10 mins (depends if crying vs shouting!) and then go in, 30 secs of cuddle or sing his bedtime song, then put him back down. Repeat until he goes to sleep. It can take a while (ahem), depends on how determined your LO is feeling!!

If I were you, I'd hand over as much as poss to DH if your LO is happy with them (hope that doesn't sound mean!?). Our DS always responds better to DH than me, and that's not because i'm utterly soft. Honest!

x

MrsTerryPratchett · 13/06/2012 23:44

I did CC after DD passed the year mark. I was very careful with it though. She never cried for more than three minutes using my made up method. The reason I did it was that I was cuddling/BFing to sleep and she would wake up if I tried to put her down or leave the room. All the patting in the world just used to make her want to be picked up. She was waking up a lot in the night and I felt that if I tried a bit of CC, she would get the idea that I was always there, but she wasn't getting picked up. It actually worked very quickly and well. I did one minute, go in and soothe, put down two minutes, go in and soothe. I stuck at two minutes for a while and only did three minutes if I was very sure that she wasn't too upset. The message I was trying for was, "mummy is always here and will always come but PLEASE GO TO SLEEP".

Original poster
fififrog · 14/06/2012 08:10

think sorry everything has gone to pot just as you least need it. W did gradual withdrawal at 5.5months and as part of this dealt with night wakings as follows:. Basically if DC wakes in night, sit next to them, no talking no eye contact, just a "back to sleep" and wait for them to do just that. An iPod helps. Always allow 10mins before going in to see if they will settle. DD wakes multiple times most nights but I never go in and she goes straight back to sleep 95% of the time.

OP posts:
Meggymoodle · 15/06/2012 12:45

think -we did CC with DD too - and DS come to think of it, when he was going through a development stage all those many moons ago - and it worked with both. It's never worked for early waking though and I can't face even trying it as it would wake DS as they generally come into a light sleep at that time in the morning, so then I'd have two knackered children.

I am very sad and despondent - after an absolutely blinding 2 weeks of post 6am wake-ups we're now back to 5.30am. ARRRRGGGGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH. There is no reason for it so I just have to assume that she is an early waker and always will be there and there is nothing I can do about it. That said, she was hanging by nap-time today. :(

thinkfast · 15/06/2012 21:46

We had 6am today Smile
But please can't they cancel the fucking football? Stupid men downstairs waking up Ds with their cheering. If it happens again I'm taking Ds down for them to deal with Angry

LittleMilla · 15/06/2012 21:49

We had a 6am-er too. Isn't it bloody mad what you consider to be good nowadays, pfft!?!?

But En=ger-land are winning!

In fairness, I am waiting for DH to get home for a business trip so flat is pretty quiet (upstair must be out).

x

Humania · 17/06/2012 05:47

Hello all I'm sorry to hear so many of you are suffering too with this awful affliction! Some of you might have seen my other early waking nightmare thread. Seems to be getting worse... We had 4.45 this morning, I'm really struggling and running out of ideas. Has anyone had any success with putting to bed later? and at 12mo should I really ditch the morning nap? I know I'm clutching at straws really... Hope most of you are still asleep!

tiddleypompom · 17/06/2012 05:59

Not asleep either - been lurking here as its one of the only live threads when I get up in the morning! DS is 9 months and wakes between 4.45 and 5.30 :(

Cbeebies needs to start earlier Wink

TheToadLessTravelled · 17/06/2012 06:48

Morning all, another one with an early waker. Ds usually wakes at 6 on the dot (which is bad enough) but this week has been throwing in the odd 430 and 5am start just to keep me in my toes. To add insult to injury this morning I realised we only have decaf in the house, gonna be a looooooong day :(

ledkr · 21/06/2012 19:31

Hello can i bump this thread as I too am up by 5 most mornings with dd2 16 months. Its ok to be cool and share it with dh and tick along coping and watching sky plussed stuff but I AM NOW FED UP. Me and dh look years older than we did,have grey skin and bags under our eyes. I have put on weight (tired snacking) and dh has lost it (too tired for gym)
I literally feel a shadow of my former self am on ad's which I missed a few of the other day and felt terribel (not cured then) no social or sex life and perfect marriage is now bickery and tense.

She is my 5th child,never had this before,the others all slept late if anything.

We have had various sucess with nap jiggling but cant always stick to it if at work or she falls asleep in car or pushchair and im dubious about if it works anyway.

The best we ever had was a few weekend ago when we came bnack form a weekend camping (5am in a camper van aint funny) the night we got back she went to bed about 9 and slept till 10 am Shock

Are you coming back or are you all sleeping.

MrsTerryPratchett · 21/06/2012 19:37

Welcome ledkr. Glad to know you can have this with a 5th child. At least that means it isn't something we are all doing wrong. Now I know why people have 5 children. DH insisted we stop after one, mainly because of lack of sleep.

There may be light at the end of the tunnel for us. 18 month old DD started going to 6 or 6.30am. I was so happy. Then she had her vaccinations and we well me, DH didn't play have had two nights of very little sleep. I am hoping this doesn't reset her back to 5am, or earlier.

Also, does anyone have nay tips on jetlag? I am flying with DD back to the UK from Canada where we live for a couple of weeks. How do I stop DD turning me into a zombie.

nellyjelly · 21/06/2012 19:41

Hi can I join you? Ds is 2 and gets up anytime from 5. DH and i take turns to 'lie in' til 7. Dd now 6 and also was an early riser. Now 6 and sleeps til 7.30 so there is hope!

thinkfast · 21/06/2012 20:10

Still suffering here. Ds woke up at 3 but went back to sleep then up for the day much later than usual - 5.45am!!!! It's making me so bad tempered and dh and I are trying hard not to bicker but its so hard when you're this tired.

ledkr · 21/06/2012 20:43

mrsp Yes she would have been a only child for sure.

As for jet lag I cant help but think can it get any worse??

DD wento bed at about 8 which is very late but we had a busy day and late tea,it wont make any difference though.

I may start to keep a record of her naps and the times she wakes just to compare.

Today she was up at 5 slept in car from about 8.45 till 9.30 then again from 2.10 till 4 which was probably too long but I had so much to do.

I do think her waking gets earlier if she is teething but dont get why they bother her more at 5am than any other time.

nelly We take it in turns to lie in too but find i feel worse when go back to sleep.

MrsTerryPratchett · 21/06/2012 21:40

The teething makes it worse but so do the lighter mornings and all sorts of other things. I could set off a bomb next to DD at 10pm but 4.45am a mouse would wake her. I think they sleep really lightly in the morning and so teething will wake them.

ledkr · 22/06/2012 06:50

Ok. 5.40 which is an improvement,god its still early though isnt it?

dh has work so I got up but we started the day with a bit of light bickering Hmm

Hes on earlies all weekend so no lie in's for me and then back to work Monday.It feels relentless.

Does anyne find that the tiredness builds up till you end up in near meltdown?I actually get physically tired and my ageing body aches.

I also live with an almost constant headache.

Ok moan over better start the long day Grin

Meggymoodle · 22/06/2012 12:09

I'm whispering this in case a. I pee you all off and b. I jinx it, but we are still having more post 6am than pre-6 at the moment. This morning, we got the magic number (7) from DD - I think this is the first time in her life - and a 6.30 from DS which is OK for him, bit early if anything but still. I woke up at 6am and it is the first time for eons I've slept for 7 hours straight, I felt amazing.

I am not saying this to rub it in but just to give you hope for a brief reprieve if nothing else. DD has been early waking (5.00 - 5.45) for nigh-on a year, in fact ever since she learned to sleep through the night. She is now 18 months. Is it possible they just grow out of it? I went to a cranial osteopath back along with her (ages ago) and he said anything after 5am was normal for small babies and anything after 6am was normal for toddlers. It's hideous but maybe there is light at the end of the tunnel. We'll see....I'll probably be back to my old pessimistic self tomorrow :)

thinkfast · 22/06/2012 19:00

We had 4am this morning Angry then Ds is ready for a nap as I'm heading off to work...