4 year old waking at around 4am and talking until 6am

[supersonic]

This is now driving me and my Dp nuts and although we have been through the mill with DD and her sleep issues since she was born this is talking to herself is something I just cannot understand so have no idea how to stop it - that is why it is so frustrating and now driving us crazy!
She goes to sleep absolutely perfectly (after 3 years of trying to get it right) but around 4am or even around 2am on a really bad night she will wake up for the toilet or because she is hot whatever it is she may or may not come and wake me up to assist. I do this with no talking to her (because I am too tired to talk) and put her back to bed. At this stage I go back to bed with nighttime ritual - 'i love you mummy' 'have a nice sleep mummy' which I say back and I go to my room and I lay awake now beause I daredn't go to sleep to be woken in a few minutes with another call from her for no real reason at all or she will start talking to herself about her friends her nanny and I hear her sitting up in bed laughing so loudly it wakes my DP up it is like living in a nut house - the thing is this is now getting us down so much that it plays a big part as to whether we have another child yet as I don't know if I could cope with probably being up all night with both. I really really am desparate to knwo if anyone else has experienced anythign like this or has any tips or ideas. I apologise for this being so long
thanks

Have you tried going back into her telling her its time to sleep?
If she is at nursery, is she still waking in the night on a school night or is it something that has recently started?

Hi Kid, I go into her room and ask her to stop talking and go to sleep or shout through (I know this isn't the best way but when I've been up for two hours its the best I can do)and she ALWAYS says I will mummy and then within 5 of me being in bed she starts again - its as if she is on another planet it is so bizarre and she doesn't ever want to tell you what shes been talking about although I do hear it. It wasn't as bad when she was at nursery although it had been previously so there is no apparent pattern. I have to say it was quite disturbing the other day as last Thursday afternoon she was at her Nannies house as I was working and she absolutely adores being with her nanny however towards the end of the day DD wanted to go to her friends house and dwas bored at nannies house - I know this because my mil walked her home to me as a way of distracting her instead of me collecting her. That night or early morning my dd was in bed 'talking' to nanny saying she wanted to go to rachels house and she was bored and was telling nanny to turn the telly over and eventually she started crying - it broke my heart - now she didn't call me in she just stopped and all went quiet and she was asleep- I just don't get it at all!!!!!!!

Sorry Supersonic, but your daughter's antics really made me smile (although I have a 2yo who wakes me up frequently so I know how horrendous it really is).

How is she in the day, does she fall asleep?

mum2girls - I know what you mean and I can see how it is quite comical especially the comment she gives me every night 'have a nice sleep mummy' I mean that really takes biscuit!!!!!
Today for e.g she was awake from 4.10am to about 6.am so not too bad and was awake at 7am and wanted breakfast - most days since the school holidays I have been saying come into my bed and we have been sleeping in until about 9am so she cathes up then however today she was up and about at 7am so fell asleep on the living room floor at 12.15 until 1.30. Her dad dealt with the issue last night and bless him he was quite good he said if she didn't stop talking like she promised he woudl turn the landing light off she didn't stop so he turned it off and she wandered into him (at this point he moved to the spare room to try and give me a break from it all)and he pretneded to be asleep so she screamed and had a major tantrum - inc. hitting him cos he wouldn't turn the light back on for her (lucky my neighbours are deaf)eventually he casually said turned over and said go to your room lay quietly and I will turn it back on and she went off and done this shouting 'I'm in' so he turned it off all had gone quiet and then she started again but cannot say for definate if she had been asleep or not if so for hopw long as I was exhausted. The thing is by DP is a postman and has to be up at 4.30 so he really needs his sleep but also if DD is eveb slightly awake at this time by DP getting up and going down coudl wake her up even more -its just an ongoing nightmare!!!!!!!!!

mums2girls - just realise dI was rambling on so much I perhaps didn't answer the questions - 98% of the time I would try to keep her awake or her nanny would if I was at work so she doesn't usually have a sleep.

You're in a spiral - so knackered that you're letting her catch up on lost sleep either late into the morning or at lunch. I think you need to break it the habit, but not easy to do.

What about giving her a rollercoaster of a day one day, lodas going on so that she doesn't want to miss anything, so doesn't sleep during the day. Or at the very least allowing her to stay up very late so that when she does go to bed she's the one who's exhausted and less likely to wake in the night..?

bugger, my idea isn't going to work then. Tried star charts or a reward system?

mum2girls - you woudl think it would fairly easy to work out - don't let her sleep in the day and she will be shattered by night but oh no not my DD - she just keep going and going and when she does want to go to bed that is no problem it just seems she needs very little sleep - it appears that after 7 - 8 hours she wakes has her talking session for a few hours and then gets tired again. I have tried star charts and she has one on her door which we have abandoned because it stopped working so we bought her some scooby doo figures which she had wanted for ages and everytime she slept through without coming to my room to wake me up she got a figure this worked - but silly me said she got one if she dind't wake me up - this I can deal with becau she does do as she is told and doesn't always wake me up but the talking seems to be out of control hers and mine! I am going to call he HV tomorrow for advice she is aware of previous issues with DDs sleep but am worried about seeing GP incase they want to give medicine to make her sleepy (friend had it and although it worked I am not entirely happy about using it)

mum2girls - I have decided I am going ot try again with the reward chart but if anyone out there has experienced this type of thing or can suggest anything please help me!!!!

If she seems quite happy chatting to herself, I think I would just put her back to bed and then go back to bed with ear plugs in! I suspect that she might work this up into quite charade, given half the chance - hence tantrum last night. Maybe you and DH take it in turns with the ear plugs if you are anxious about not hearing anything serious?

If she seems quite happy chatting to herself, I think I would just put her back to bed and then go back to bed with ear plugs in! I suspect that she might work this up into quite charade, given half the chance - hence tantrum last night. Maybe you and DH take it in turns with the ear plugs if you are anxious about not hearing anything serious?

Blu - it is a good point and a suggestion that has been made by many but it is much easier said than done when I know everyday she is starting the day tired and irritable it then has a knock on effect the way she plays and her whole attitude which I hate to see because I want to see the happy little girl not the overtired and stroppy one!

I know Supersonic - it must be really hard. And if you are tired when she is also tired, it makes it that much harder. The thing is, kids can't train themselves NOT to wake up - but I guess they can train themelves not to go back to sleep.

It does sound like a hard one.

If you are still around Supersonic...how did this situation progress and turn out. We are having this same issue for three years with a girl named Lucy...

Is she sleep talking? I saw a programme about sleep disturbances and a child was doing just what your DD does for hours on end. She was sitting up chatting and almost acting out her dreams as she wasn't image deep enough sleep.

Zombie thread! Start a new one!