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Original poster

waking very, very early indeed

12 replies

cockles · 28/05/2007 20:52

Just moving out of lurking into posting here - please forgive me for starting with a very tedious and probably insoluble sleep question. DS (18 months)was finally persuaded to sleep through at 12 months- until 5ish. Then it got earlier and earlier and now it is 3ish. He's breastfeeding and I pathetically bring him in with us, where he feeds/dozes til 6-7. Would really like to stop this but he wakes shrieking and now of course absolutely nothing else dp or I do comforts him. Have blackout, etc etc. Anyone else managed to change this? Thanks...

OP posts:
Desiderata · 28/05/2007 20:55

I shall not comment deeply for fear of having head bitten off .... but more food?

I'm assuming he's weaned ...

(nothing pathetic about having him in bed with you, btw. It's lovely )

Original poster
cockles · 28/05/2007 21:00

porridge potato & pasta injected into his mouth all day long. no visible effects. But yeah - if i ate dinner at 5 i'd be hungry at 3am!

OP posts:
tribpot · 28/05/2007 21:08

This isn't very helpful but I find the waking at 3 easier than the waking at 5. At 3 they will go back to sleep with food/co-sleeping, at 5 they insist on Teletubbies and Thomas (despite being denied it on grounds of 'they are still asleep, this is sleeping time'.

Can't think what to suggest except food (maybe more milk?) but you don't have a flight coming in to land at 3 or anything do you?

hebetalbot · 28/05/2007 21:09

You must be exhausted, poor you. I have had similar probs with DS (11.8 months) so I know what it is like. He now will regularly sleep through to 6am but I have now discovered if I put him down at 7.30-7.45 I can get him to go through to 6.30-7am. Have you tried putting down for the night a little later? When DS woke for a b/f at 5am I would feed him and then put him back into his own cot. He did cry and fuss but he would go back to sleep. Have you tried seeing if he will settle himself after an early morning b/f. It could be that he has got into the habit of waking and expecting a feed and a cuddle at that time. When he wakes could you try settling him and offer him reassurance by staying in his room with him and then gradually withdraw? TBH I did have to resort to controlled crying in the end because I was so tired because I couldn't catch up with my sleep during the day as I also have a DD. It was distressing but it worked for me. (I used this technique after I exhausted all other methods.) HTH

hebetalbot · 28/05/2007 21:09

You must be exhausted, poor you. I have had similar probs with DS (11.8 months) so I know what it is like. He now will regularly sleep through to 6am but I have now discovered if I put him down at 7.30-7.45 I can get him to go through to 6.30-7am. Have you tried putting down for the night a little later? When DS woke for a b/f at 5am I would feed him and then put him back into his own cot. He did cry and fuss but he would go back to sleep. Have you tried seeing if he will settle himself after an early morning b/f. It could be that he has got into the habit of waking and expecting a feed and a cuddle at that time. When he wakes could you try settling him and offer him reassurance by staying in his room with him and then gradually withdraw? TBH I did have to resort to controlled crying in the end because I was so tired because I couldn't catch up with my sleep during the day as I also have a DD. It was distressing but it worked for me. (I used this technique after I exhausted all other methods.) HTH

bobsyouruncle · 28/05/2007 21:11

Ds is almost 3 and still does this. Down at 7ish, up at 4/5ish asking for milk then dozes in with us until 7ish. Sorry

Bensonbluebird · 28/05/2007 21:14

My DS1 was a very early waker(and still is sometimes, woke at 4.30 this morning with sore teeth, the only thing I found that really worked was to gradually leave him longer and longer before going in. Once we had got to half an hour, the next day he would sleep for at least half an hour longer. I think it is habit as much as hunger. DS1 would demand breakfast as soon as he woke, and I found that delaying that helped too, so that he wasn't expecting food as soon as he woke up. It all sounds a bit cruel now, but I thought my sanity was at stake!

Psychobabble · 28/05/2007 21:15

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

Original poster
cockles · 29/05/2007 07:33

Thank you, that's all helpful - I have always avoided later bedtimes because he is so so tired by 6.30 (has just dropped first nap so having one nap 1.5 hours middayish) He won't go back to sleep in his cot after feeding, no - and nothing but feeding stops him crying, sitting by cot drives him bonkers. ignoring him likewise. I do like having the snugglesin the morning but it's not worth the bitings, twiddlings and general agony! Thanks again...

OP posts:
popsycal · 29/05/2007 07:55

when you find the answer, let me know

nailpolish · 29/05/2007 08:03

could yu try to change his nap to later in the day - 2pm even 230/3pm?

then he might not need/want tea til 6pm, and bedtime could be 730/8pm.

if he is struggling with the later nap, do something active after lunch to keep him on the go, then put him down at 2pm

hth

MegBusset · 29/05/2007 09:02

I have been awake since 3am so you have my sympathy! Brought DS into bed around 4.30, he fell back to sleep on the boob but I couldn't settle

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