Getting Son to Sleep a Little Later

Updated on December 03, 2008
I.O. asks from Bothell, WA
18 answers

My 14 month old normally sleeps from 6:30 pm to 6:30 am, but the last two weeks or so he's been waking up at 5 - 5:30. Could it be that he doesn't need to sleep as many hours? How can I get him to wake up later? I'm not quite ready to face the day at 5am.

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S.C.

answers from Houston on

Put him to bed later, 6:30 is pretty early and around this time they do start to sleep a little less. It was around 14 mos when I had to switch from 2 to 1 naps a day for my daughter to allow her to sleep all through the night.

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B.M.

answers from Laredo on

I have 17 mo old twins. They did this too around that age. Maybe it's a stage? They sleep from 7 until 7 now though. I didn't change anything, I just waited it out. Good luck!

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A.O.

answers from Sherman on

Try putting him to bed a little later, 7ish and he'll probably start sleeping a tad later

2 moms found this helpful
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V.B.

answers from Houston on

I would work on pushing his bedtime back a little, but you'll have to do it about 15 minutes at a time so that it won't backfire on you and all you will have is an overtired kid who is too wound up to sleep. Start him at 6:45pm for a few days, then move to 7pm for a few days and so on until you get him down at maybe 7:30 and try that bedtime for awhile and see if he starts sleeping a bit later in the morning. He may not need 12 hours at night anymore.

Good luck!

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T.Y.

answers from San Angelo on

HI! I don't really have any advice, but my son did this for a long time too. He was just ready to get up then and usually very happy and in a good mood. He loves books and music, so I would give him a little milk and a stack of books and turn on baby einstien music. He would stay in his crib for over an hour sometimes and I would go back to sleep and not worry about him. He has gotten a lot better (6:45 to 7:00 now), but it still feels early. Oh I forgot to add that no matter what time I put him to bed, he still woke up early, so I always put him to bed really early like 7 or 7:30. Sometimes even 6:30 if he was really tired. He has gotten a little better like I said, so hopefully your son will too!

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J.J.

answers from Austin on

how about putting him to bed at a later time? my 15 month old daughter does not go to sleep till 9:30 10 most nights and does not wake till 10 the next morning.

A.W.

answers from Houston on

6:30 pm bedtime seems pretty early to me. Maybe try pushing that back later. As they get older they do require less sleep. My son is 16 mos & only sleeps about 10 hrs at night with a 3 hour nap during the day. I'd like him to sleep later in the morning, and have tried moving his bedtime up & back, but either way he still gets up around 6:30 or 7 am. Good luck!

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P.J.

answers from Houston on

I think a lot of kids that age need about 11 hours of sleep per night and a nap of 1 1/2 to 3 hours. I always shoot for an 11 hour night, and I'm not a morning person, so I put my kids to bed at 9 and they get up on their own at 8.

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S.S.

answers from San Angelo on

Putting a child/baby to bed at 6:30 is a little to early in my books. I would try putting him to bed at a later time and see if that works. Good luck with your little one. God bless

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C.M.

answers from Houston on

How many naps is he taking a day? He may need to transition to one long nap if he hasn't already. Play with bedtime a bit. Try putting him down around 7pm or 7:30. If he is still waking up at 5-5:30, he needs less nap time during the day. Our twin boys (16 months) were doing the same thing, exacerbated by the time change, so we moved their 9am nap to 11 and ditched the afternoon nap. The first couple of days were really obnoxious around 5:30-6pm, but they are now sleeping until almost 7am now (with a 7-7:30pm bedtime).

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V.H.

answers from Houston on

Time change messes with everybody!! put him to bed later, he is getting older and doesn't require the sleep of a newborn.. I never had any child sleep 12 hours!!
He is changing!!!

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S.O.

answers from San Antonio on

Time change? How long is he napping? Put him to bed an hour or so later or shorten his naps a bit. He will need at least 11-12 hours of sleep total at this age including naps. Judge from that. Sleep patterns do change, you just have to adjust his schedule when you notice the difference. Most kids also need naps until age 3, some longer.

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J.S.

answers from San Antonio on

Put him to bed later - say 8pm and he'll sleep later in the AM.

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S.J.

answers from San Angelo on

Hello I.,
My kiddos are 3 & 4 now, and usually sleep 12 hours a night too. Though it took a lot of work to get there. There is always the occasional times they wake up early, based on time change, weather outside, or just a phase. I would give it a few more days and I bet he will get back on track. I know it is harder to explain to a 14 month old, but kids understand now that if it is dark still outside they cannot get out of their beds. They will typically go back to sleep. You might try leaving him in his crib for a few minutes and see if he goes back to sleep on his own. Hope this helps!
S.
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A.B.

answers from San Antonio on

How many naps is he taking?
By that time, my daughter had given up her morning nap, and then slept a little longer in the afternoon. Therefore, I was able to put her to bed a little later. She slept from 8-8!!
Good luck.

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P.Y.

answers from Houston on

It may just be a phase he is going through. Sometimes you can try an earlier bedtime, though 6:30pm seems okay. When I had my first child someone gave me "Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child" by Marc Weissbluth. It answered a lot of questions I had about children and sleep!

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A.B.

answers from Austin on

I'd try moving bedtime to about an hour or hour and a half later. I could never get mine to sleep much later than 6 or 7 BUT all of mine would play with a toy that made music or sounds in the morning for quite a while. Maybe this would help you get a little more time. If he takes naps then maybe you could shorten each nap by about 20-30 minutes. Any longer and he'll likely get cranky which will just be a different kind of problem. I agree with Valerie B. don't move bedtime all at once or it might be disastrous!

Mine also started waking up earlier when they had a growth spurt. Maybe an extra little snack about a half hour before bed might help too. But it should be small and nothing that will upset his stomach.

Good luck to you!
A.

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A.Z.

answers from Killeen on

I used to have the same problem with my son (now 2 1/2). I would decide on the absolute limit you are willing to wake up at (6 AM I would think would be the very earliest), and explain to him that it is still dark outside and it's "night night time - everyone is asleep". Do not pick him up, just use a reassuring voice & leave the room. Try not to go back in there and let him cry it out for a while. He may get the message in just a few days that it's too early & no one is coming to get him & go back to sleep.

It may also be time to make his bedtime a little later. My son used to go to sleep at 7 PM, now he sleeps from 8:00 PM - 7:00 AM with a 2 hour nap from 1 - 3 ish. I believe I made his bedtime later when he was around 18 months, but he never slept 12 hours at night like your son does. He used to wake me up at 5:00 AM on a regular basis until I weaned him at 17 months - I think he was wanting to nurse in the morning. After weaning, he slept until 6 - 6:30 AM. That time increased as he got a little older and started sleeping in a big boy bed at 2 years old (car bed). It is normal for sleep schedules to change a little as they are growing - and sometimes it's just a temporary thing & he will go back to his normal routine. As long as your son is getting 12 -14 hours of sleep a day (naps included), you are doing great. If you change his bedtime, be sure to do it in 15-30 minute increments weekly so he adjusts gradually. Obviously, his nap times will most likely change with the new schedule. Sometimes a little change does everyone good & maybe that will work out better for you.

I hope this helps & you get more sleep!

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