Early waking habit 2.5year old how to break, and any recommendations of a sleep consultant for a toddler

[Flower0503]

Hi,
My 2.5year old is on the habit of waking around 5am for the last few months. We broke it for a week or so a couple of months ago with earlier bedtimes but now it is back. We tried without a nap (he only has about 30mims) but that led to earlier waking. He has a gro clock he ignores. He has a solid bedtime routine. He isn't waking hungry as can go for 1-2houra after waking before breakfast.

Any suggestions how to break the habit?
Any recommendations of a sleep consultant specifically with experience for toddlers please?
I need him to sleep later for my sanity!

Some kids just wake early. Its a biological thing. You're not going to have any luck trying to get him to sleep later if he's a natural lark.

SO what you have to tackle is the behaviour. He needs to stop ignoring the groclock and learn to chill in his room until it wakes up!

I'd be giving an appropriate consequence for ignoring his groclock.

Interested as to what the consequences would be …

2.5 is too young for consequences for waking up.

Sleep consultants are snake oil salespeople.

I agree that biologically some kids wake up at 5:30. I had one. I started going to bed one hour earlier myself and this meant I wasn't knackered.

My 4 year old is like this and nothing has ever worked. Don't waste your money like we did. She gets consequences if she tries getting us up before 6 (screen ban etc).

How is the rest of his sleep @Flower0503 ? Does he go down relatively easily and sleep through until 5am? What time is bed time?

I agree with @carefulcalculator - some kids are just naturally early risers. My DS (just turned 2) wakes about the same time and has done for months. He’s bright and alert and happy, has a short nap at lunchtime, goes to bed relatively easily and mainly sleeps through. Like yours OP, hes not hungry first thing. He wakes, we do nappy change, he either plays or wants to read books etc, then usually about 7am he tells me his tummy is hungry and we go and pick what’s for breakfast 🤷🏻‍♀️ Is going to bed earlier yourself an option?

Could be no sticker on a reward chart, no screen time (as per another poster), no favourite brekkie - up to the OP what they would deem appropriate, but there's lots of options!

@Shemovesshemoves21 Fully prepared to be flamed here - but surely this is just really mean? 🙈 I absolutely believe in consequences for bad behaviour etc - children have to be taught right from wrong. But to punish a child for being a naturally early riser seems a bit off to me 🤔

Mine woke at 5 everyday until she turned 13.
We tried everything, just learned to live with it in the end.
No help I know, I think some kids just wake early.

I know where you're coming from! We went through months with 4 or 5 wake ups a night and very early mornings and I was on my knees and got quite depressed so for me, taking a harsher road was needed to keep me sane. Within a few weeks it worked for us, but we did give A LOT of praise for when she stayed in bed. I appreciate not everyone will agree, but we did what was right for us.

Mine is two next month and wouldn’t understand a sticker chart or no screen time or anything like that.

This is normal. My two started sleeping till 7 when teething ended/started going to pre school etc.

Consequences for waking early? Oh give over. Some people on this thread 🙄Kids wake up early. It’s an annoyance but either lean in or go to bed earlier. It sucks but it’ll pass - everything does. Just try and enjoy them when they’re little and cute.

Early waking isn’t ideal though. 6 is fine but when it’s 5 it throws the rest of the day into chaos.

What to do about it I don’t know but I don’t agree with enjoying DS at 5am!

We worked with Kerry at Care it out, lots of free resources on her insta, including for toddlers.

You won't be flamed by me!

Withholding a favourite breakfast is an insane suggestion. Anyone linking food to behaviour is risking big problems.

Forgot a link 😂
www.careitout.com/ Kerry

If he isn't waking hungry can he be persuaded to stay in his room? We got DD1 a gro clock at that age and she will stay in her room until it wakes up, but we don't expect her to stay in bed or stay asleep. She has a lamp she can turn on, and she reads her books, plays with toys etc and then comes through to us when the clock wakes up. Obviously if he's waking at 5 you won't get him to play in his room until 7, but you might get a little extra time out of him?

It only throws the day into chaos of you resist it. If you expect to get up at 5, then when it is 6 you've had a lie in.

All this battling with young children is futile, they grow put of it anyway.

@Isthatmcormac We don't give consequences for her waking early. We do give consequences for her banging on our door, shouting very loudly, and waking us all with said shouting and (including her 22 month old sister) up at 5am! She has to entertain herself til 6 (she's 4 though, so easier to do this than with toddler).

Consequences at age 4 is entirely different, that is very much older than 2.5.

@carefulcalculator bit it does throw the day into chaos because then you have a child who is ready for a nap at the point where you’re going somewhere.

Im well versed in this and I get on and I plough through the day as normal. It doesn’t mean I find deep joy in being up in the pitch black!

@Covidwoes four is a bit different to 2!

Both ours were early risers. Nothing we did helped. We used a gri clock when they were a bit older and more able to entertain themselves. When the were littler we just drank a lot of coffee.

Jesus.

One of mine woke at 5am for years. The others were always up by 6. It is the way they were wired. At around 9 years old the 5am waker moved to 6am waking.

The key is to teach them to play or read quietly until the rest of the house is up.