Toddler Waking at 5Am!!!

Hi... my kids are 21 & 23... you will get through it!
The best advice my mother gave me was pick at bedtime and stick to it, regardless of daylight savings time. My kids were in bed by 7pm every night and 6pm when the clocks changed. It's amazing how with routine, the body adjusts and they will yearn to get to bed at the time you've set. Naps of 3 hours is way too long! They need 1-2 tops to get them through the evening dinner, bath, reading and then bed. My kids always woke early as well, but with a shorter nap, they were ready for bed and it gave my husband and I time after 7pm to be together. He's almost 2, so if you've allowed him to go to bed at 'his' time, then you might be in for a bit of an adjustment... but I'm telling you, it was absolutely the best choice I made and the kids were great with the time routine.

i have no solution, but a couple ideas for you. 1) if he sleeps till 5 no matter what, put him down earlier so you can have more free time in the evenings. we did a 7 o'clock bedtime for awhile and i LOVED it! he goes down at 8 now, but is also sleeping later now. 2) i agree with cutting out the AM nursing. i noticed that DS started sleeping later shortly after cutting this feeding out at 17 months. i started giving him a banana for snack early in the morning. at first he always ate it and sometime went back to sleep sometimes not. now he generally sleeps later and only sometimes eats his banana.

good luck!

D. I feel your pain...I was in your shoes just 6 mos ago. My son was up five or six time a night at 21 mos I night weaned him and that helped with the constant night waking.

Which he soon replaced with waking up between 3-5am ready to start his day. My solution was simple and I kicked my self when it worked so well. I just gave him a high carb snack before bed (ex: crackers at 7:00, brush teeth and in bed by 7:30) We also took his night light out of his room. Now he wakes up sometime during the night and comes into our bed but we are sleeping. Some days until 7:30am!!!!

Turns out he was hungry and the light bothered him. So simple. I hope it works for you.
S.

Dark thick curtains may help.
If you left some toys or a snack out for him would he stay content in his room while you sleep a bit longer?
Other than that, I don't have any other suggestions.
This may be a blessing in disguise. I bet you will never have to drag him to the bus stop in his underwear. He is probably just naturally a morning person.

I agree with Jennifer. Normally I wouldn't advise waking a child when they are having a good nap during the day, but in your case I would wake him after an hour and a half. He'll likely be grouchy, but get him up, change him and give him a snack, then do something active (take him outside to play). Make sure he gets plenty of running and play in during the late afternoon/early evening hours so he is tired enough to need to sleep longer at night. Also, I would set up a fairly routine schedule for the day if you don't already have one. You decide his playtime, eating time, nap time, bed time etc. and stick to it as closely as possible for a while. This may be harder for you to do than it is for him, but it should help both of you adjust so he sleeps better and you don't get as frustrated. Don't expect this to work overnight or even just in the first week. It may take a little time to establish a good routine with him.

He is A lot like you, and gets his cues from you. You are still nursing him at 21 months old and, although highly commendable, it's something for him to look forward to each morning, and you are both creatures of habit. Habits, no matter what they are, die hard. If he knows he will be fed at 5, he will habitually wake for it. There's nothing wrong with this except for the lack of sleep.

I have a one year old and have the entire living room turned into a fenced and totally safe play area. I am also 40 (41 actually) and need more sleep these days. I will get him up, changed, dressed, and put him down to play and then promptly go back to sleep. He plays quietly for hours (or hour which also helps) while me and his 4 year old brother sleep till 7 ish. That's our habit, and it works for us... Sometimes if he's particularly needy I will just lay down on the couch in his area and "snooze". Kids are so non-judgemental. :}

As far as having no time for yourself/husband - welcome to parenthood. I dont want to sound mean, but this is it baby. And when number two comes along, you will realize that you actually DID have some time to yourself, and now that's gone too. It's great, and I wouldn't change it for the world or anything in it, but it's a job that doesn't end when the sun goes down (or even when we "GO-DOWN")

It seems some children just don't need as much sleep. My now 2 year old daughter has been the same way. I don't know what time his naps are but have you tried keeping his naps earlier and not too long ( no more than 2 hours)? This might be hard at first for you since I know how precious nap times are, but it might help him go to bed earlier, and perhaps longer. Also, try a room darkening shade in where he sleeps so it stays dark in the morning. Good luck!

2-3 hour naps. That is a lot! Cut that short!!

What a good dedicated mama you are! Most of us get to the point you are at (utter exhaustion) with the sleep issues much sooner. I was desperate by 9 mos. You must have amazing stamina.

The good news is that there are things you can try to improve your situation. First, I recommend reading Dr. M Weissbluth's Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child. In case you are too exhausted to do that, here are some "crib" notes.

A good schedule for this age (18 mos - 3 yrs) is bedtime 6:30 PM (actually in bed, not just getting into pjs), waking 6:30-7 AM, nap 11:30 or 12 to 2 or so. Don't ever wake him from a nap unless you absolutely must.

The bedtime sounds incredibly early and most people worry that it will mean an even earlier waking time, but it doesn't work that way. Going to sleep early means sleeping longer and better.

When I put my 23 mos (still breastfed) boy to sleep late (after 7) several nights in a row, he wakes up during the night and is up before six, but when I am consistent and put him to bed at 6:30 (or earlier if he has not had a good nap or is sick), he wakes at 6:45-7 AM like an alarm clock.

Until you get his schedule worked out, in the morning have a few board books near his bed and some water (in reach) and show him where they are the night before. He will read and entertain himself for at least 15 mins (if he is waking so early, even 15 mins are a godsend).

More sleep for him means that he will be less cranky, have fewer tantrums, and generally be more pleasant to be around. It also means more sleep for you, so you will be less cranky.... An early bedtime also means that you and your DH will have some evening time together. The only wrinkle is that people (especially grandmothers with vestigal memories of 70's parenting) will think you are crazy with the early bedtimes.

There is one other thing that makes a big difference in sleep: diet. Make sure he has balanced meals and snacks (every meal or snack should have carbs, proteins, and fats). This is especially important for dinner, because having some good proteins and fats will satisfy hunger longer and he won't be waking at 5 AM because he's hungry (except in a growth spurt). Throughout the day, he will be happier and less tired if he eats every 2-3 hours. Make sure his snacks are not solely carbs (only fruit is bad, but fruit and cheese is very good) because he will sugar crash and be tired and hungry much sooner.

Good luck!