calling all fellow parents of early risers - i hardly dare say i, but i THINK this wake-to-sleep thing MAY work...! <<crosses fingers>>

[Tutter]

ds2 (1yo next week!) has always been an early riser - just as his brother was

generally it's between 4:50 and 5:10

we tried everything - blackouts, white noise, cc, milk, later bedtime, earlier bedtime, shorter naps in day, earlier naps in day

etc etc

the last two nights we have set the alarm for 4am and have gone in and gently roused him

he's gone straight back off each time

yday morning he woke at 5:25

this morning 5:45

so, not exactly miraculous, but a huge improvement

(but how sad that i should view 5:45 as a good time to start the day )

[nappyaddict]

bumping for SGK

[autodidact]

Reviving this thread as read it with great interest last week and trying wake to sleep with my 5.25am riser. She tends to be in a bit of a foul mood in the early morning and it's if she wants/needs to be asleep still but can't. Perhaps I'm projecting- I certainly don't want to be up at that hour! I haven't pushed any changes on her since doing wimps controlled crying at about 9 months though as it still feels like a minor miracle that she's sleeping through till 5.25 after her previous wake every hour malarkey. But now feel ready to push my luck and get her waking a bit later

Anyway, day 1 was not too promising! Went up and roused her a bit at 4.25 only for her to wake happily but even EARLIER than usual at 5am and then babble away until 5.25 when she started crying for us as usual... hmm. Shall persevere and hope for a miracle a la SOLO on this thread despite the poor start. Anyone else doing this?

[autodidact]

6am today... Mind you, she was unusually restless during the night and I was worried about teething pain so gave her calpol at around 12, so could have been that. Will keep going and see what happens!

[autodidact]

Hmmm 5.40am today. I realise I'm talking to myself here but that's somehow soothing and maybe someone will search on this in the future and can assess my ultimate failure or success along with the other stories on this thread and that will help them with their decision. Today is the don't stir her and see what happens night. Then, assuming she still wakes at crack of dawn, it's 3 more nights of 4.25am alarms...

[Suchanamateur]

Autodictat- I'm reading/ watching with interest. Hoping you succeed although that then means I may have to set my alarm for an ungodly hour to rouse my early riser! X

[autodidact]

Hi Suchanamateur. Thanks for posting.:) Nice to know I'm not alone! Unfortuately my bad baby chose to wake up at 4.55am today... Not sure where this leaves things! I think it might be because she has been very erratic with her daytime naps over the last few days as we've been out and about and she's found it hard to settle. Bit discouraging for her to be up half an hour earlier than usual on the night I didn't wake her though. Anyway, I guess I'll just try and see it out and hope for the best. Looks like some of the previous posters had a few ups and downs too so probably worth persevering but if the outcome of all this is that I've reset her bodyclock to before 5am I will be v v v sad!

[Raejj]

You're not talking to yourself:) I'm following with interest but don't have any advice I'm afraid so didn't post earlier!

[gowest]

Watching with interest!

[autodidact]

Hi Raejj and gowest.:) Thanks for posting.

Back to the 4.25am rousings and she woke at 5.35am this morning. I'm trying to be pleased that this is 40mins later than yesterday rather than focussing on it being only 10 mins later than her original wake up time! 2 more days to go...

[Raejj]

Oh that's annoying. Let us know how yo get on in two days time!

[autodidact]

Oh dear. We're looking strongly likely to be joining the wake to sleep abject failure camp, sadly. 5.30am wake up this morning. She had done the most enormous shite, which probably didn't help her desire to stay asleep, but even so with only one more day of the waking technique left it ain't looking too good, frankly. Only the 2nd and 3rd nights have been anything approaching promising. It does seem like the "clockwork" waking has been disrupted a bit but anytime between 4.55 - 6 is not a better outcome than a predictable 5.25 in my view, especially as I've had only one 6am "lie-in". I suppose it's not quite finished yet and maybe it'll all settle more positively over the next few nights but at the moment I'm feeling rather despondent about it and wishing I'd not put myself through the 4.25am alarm calls, tbh. [self-pity emoticon]

[autodidact]

I decided to stop the 4.25am wake ups for the moment yesterday with a view to re-starting when/if she settles back into a regular wake up time again. I was feeling a bit like the whole thing had been a waste of time yesterday but then today she unexpectedly went through till 6.25. I suddenly feel a lot more positive!

[Raejj]

Ooh so might be working, or does she sometimes sleep a little later anyway?

[autodidact]

Hi Raejj. She has been waking 5.25am on the dot for the last 3 months or so at least, so the wake to sleep is definitely doing something, I think, in that she's waking up at different times each day now. It's just that until this morning the majority of the times had still been excruciatingly early, some even well before 5.25. Really hope that today was the breakthrough! How old is your baby, btw? What time is s/he waking?

[Raejj]

She's 22 months but I must confess she's a good sleeper. A very good friend of mine is having a nightmare with her child (same age) which is why I have an interest. Her dc wakes any time between 2 and 6 and she's desperate now to stop it....

[Tweetinat]

Marking my place on this thread as DS has started to wake earlier and earlier... Not had chance to read the whole thread yet (just page 1 and 7) but will read tomorrow and then add my verdict if we decide to give it a go. Not sure if it'll work for us as occassionally DS is up for a feed about 1 hr before he wakes for the day and it makes no difference anyway...

[anyabanya]

watching!

[autodidact]

yay- we had another 6.30 wake up this morning.:) So nice and civilised compared to 5.25. I'm hoping we've turned a corner...

Good luck to your friend, raejj, and to you tweetinat if you decide to give it a go. The only thing I wonder is when you'd rouse them if they have quite variable wake times?

[Raejj]

I am pleased to hear that autodidact!! Well done. I will pass the goodness ontomyfriend :)

[Raejj]

Good news even!

[autodidact]

Well, things seem to have settled at 6.30am for the past few mornings so [touch wood], most unexpectedly, I'd have to declare wake to sleep a success.:)

[OneTwoBuckleMyShoe]

Just found this thread and we will be starting WTS tonight with DD (1).

She has been waking between 4-5am for a while now and it is a killer because she then naps at the wrong times (or not at all like yesterday).

[belindarose]

I've been contemplating this for a while too. DD is 13 mo. Until the last week or so, she's been waking VERY frequently in the night and often needing BF to get back to sleep. For a few nights now she's woken less but has decided that the 5 or 5.30am wake up is for good. Previously she'd slept till 6.30am, which we considered okay (although always wished for later!). She can't possibly 'need' her 5am feed (or her 1am one for that matter - but it gets her to sleep quickly!) so I might try WTS. It's just hard to get going because you always desperately hope at 4am that this is going to be the night they sleep!

[roslily]

This is spooky- I am starting tonight with ds and I know you two- buckle and belinda!

I have to do something about this as it is getting earlier and earlier.

Good luck ladies

[roslily]

Right it didn't go exactly to plan. His 5am had become 4am on the dot. So I set alarm for 3am (shudder). I woke up anyway at 2.20. And then the next thing I know was him waking at 4am. Somehow I had slept through alarm. Although he did settle at 4 and slept til 6.15.

Will tr again tonight and change tone of my alarm.