Hello,
My 13 month old has recently started waking up VERY early. Anywhere between 4:45 and 5:30, and this is only getting him about 9.5 hours of sleep a night. I know he is still tired, and ideally I would like to get him to be able to go back to sleep on his own. I think there are 2 problems:
1) Our bedtime routine ends with my husband or myself reading him books while he is in his crib. He typically falls asleep during the 3rd or 4th book. Then we turn off the light and leave the room. For the last 4 months or so this has been our routine, and hasn't really caused a problem in terms of the reading being a prop. But lately I feel like it has become a prop, and that we need to work our way out of the room so that he can go to sleep totally on his own.
2) When he wakes up in the morning, nothing will put him back to sleep except BF. I haven't intentionally BF him to put him back to sleep, but I've noticed since he started waking so early, it's almost impossible for him to stay awake during this morning BF. So a few monrings when I have been very tired myself, if he falls asleep I will put him back in his crib to sleep longer. I don't want this to become a habit, though, so mostly I try to make sure he stays awake and is up for the day after BF. I've tried other methods that have been successful in the past to get him back to sleep without taking him out of his crib. PU/PD... well, PD at this age... is totally unsuccessful, because he becomes hysterical when he realizes I am not taking him out of his crib. Then I can't even do PD because he is physically fighting it, and throwing himself around the crib. He bonks his head on the crib bars, which makes him even more upset, and I can't stand to watch him thrash around and hurt himself. So at times where I have attempted to pat his back or help him back to sleep to avoid a tantrum, it also doesn't work. The last couple nights I have tried W2S, but so far it hasn't helped him sleep longer than his 9.5 hours.
Due to this recent development, I am trying to come up with a plan to make sure he falls asleep w/o the help of my husband or myself. But I know from past experience, we have to make very gradual changes with him.
So my question is... in the meantime, what can I do to get him to sleep longer at night and/or put himself back to sleep if he wakes too early?? I don't want to create a worse habit of BF him at 5am every morning!!
