Resettle in the early wake up

[rachelgz]

DD is in 2-1 transition and has been waking up between 5-5:40 every morning in the last couple of months.  She always cries straight away when she wakes up.   She is having between 10 - 10.5 hrs night time sleep at the moment and I know that's not enough for her.  However, I just couldn't resettle her back to sleep again.  I often picked her up after trying to resettle with PD for 20 minutes.  Is it not long enough for resettling?   I pick her up and bring her to my bed to BF at 6am, then she will start the day and play.  Is it a bad habit to bring her to my bed and feed her?

What do you do to resettle your LO when they wake up in the early morning?  I read from the forum that it seems lots of babies are happy to stay in the cot babbling for another 30 minutes or so after they wake up, but that didn't to my DD.  She used to wake up happy when she had enough sleep, but since the early waking, she always wakes up crying. 

[anna*]

How old is she? It does sound like she is overtired. What is her routine like? It's hard to resettle at 5am, PUPD is just too stimulating for them at that time. With my daughter I would lie on the floor next to her cot and just repeat very calmly/softly that it's sleep time.

[rachelgz]

She is 13 month old.  I know she needs more sleep, but I just couldn't get her to sleep longer.  I have been trying all kind of things, e.g.  cap am nap to aim for long pm nap, long am nap and short pm nap, early bedtime, late bedtime, nothing seems to get us over the 10 - 10.5 hours mark. 

Take today for example:
5am WU
10:45am Nap for 1 hour 15 mins
4:10 Nap (I will cap it to 20 mins)
I expect BT around 7 - 7:30pm

With my daughter I would lie on the floor next to her cot and just repeat very calmly/softly that it's sleep time.

I have been sitting next to her cot, saying 'it's sleep time', she just ignores me and keeps crying.

[anna*]

I know, EWs are so hard to deal with. It does sound like it's fall-out from the 2-1 transition. Does she ever tack on sleep when you give her an early night? If she can manage 5hrs awake time maybe it would be best to push through to 1 nap, with an early bedtime.

[rachelgz]

Does she ever tack on sleep when you give her an early night?

Yes, when she had EBT, she normally catches up on sleep and wakes at her normal time, i.e between 5 - 5:30am.

I was thinking to push for 1 nap, but don't really know how to proceed when she wakes so early.  I was hoping for a one nap day today, but her am nap is just not long enough to keep her going.  So for WU before 5:30, when will be the earlier nap time that I should set for a one nap day?

[anna*]

I guess you would do it like for adjusting for daylight savings. When you make the jump to one nap, it often starts out short (so you need early bed) but as the days go by it lengthens out. That has certainly been my experience, anyway.

Usually I would say 4.5hrs after wake up but I think for a 5am wake up that is too early. So if I were you I would probably do ANYTHING I could do to resettle her at 5am... definitely keep her in her cot until 6am, then turn on the lights/open the curtains and make a big deal about 'morning' and BF. Which makes me wonder - a) is the room totally dark, it's not these early/light mornings waking her? and b) if you rushed in there at 5am and BFed her back to sleep (and back in her cot) at 5am, do you think that would buy you another hour or two? I am mortally afraid of EWs, so if I could get her back to sleep with a 5am feed I would totally do that. Even a 4am dreamfeed.

OK so ideally you would be able to get her back to sleep for at least a little while, and then you would do 4.5hrs A time - nap (as long as possible, try to resettle as soon as you hear her) - then 4.5hrs A time to bed.

If you absolutely can't resettle and the day starts at 5am, I would do a 10.30am nap - again as long as possible try to resettle if you can), then 5.30pm bed. Obviously this route is more likely to continue the OT, so if you can APOP her back to sleep at all in the morning, do so.

[rachelgz]

a) is the room totally dark, it's not these early/light mornings waking her?

We have blackout curtains, however, the room is not totally dark as there's still a little bit of light comes in.  I have been wondering about that as well.

b) if you rushed in there at 5am and BFed her back to sleep (and back in her cot) at 5am, do you think that would buy you another hour or two?

I have passed that stage.  I did that in the past.  However, when it reached to the point that I couldn't get her back to sleep any more after the BF, I decided to wean her off the 5am feed.  And I don't want to go back to that feed again.

DD is a spirit/touch baby.  I am not sure how well she can cope with OT.  I hope that I am not jumping too quickly for her.

Currently, the only thing that I can settle her in 5am, i.e. stop crying, is to pick her up and hold her in my arm.  However, I haven't been successful to get her back to sleep.  Do you think I should continue to do that so that she is at least calm and resting in a way?  DH has been very frustrated that I let DD cry for a long time before I got her out from bed.  Pressure is definitely on. 

[anna*]

I would definitely try one of the blackout blinds that adhere to the window frame. Or even cardboard or foil. It is so light in the morning and I know the blackout curtains at my mums don't really make the room dark. Darker, but not dark.

[rachelgz]

Surprisingly, DD woke up at 6:30 this morning after BT at 7:30pm last night.  I was amazed as I haven't done anything differently.  She went down for her nap at 11:30am after an activity class.  I will try to extend her nap as long as possible if she wakes early.  Fingers crossed this will be a long nap.

[anna*]

Ooh fingers crossed for you!

[rachelgz]

She woke up after 1.5hrs from her nap, babbling in the cot.  I guess she has had enough rest as she seems to be happy to wake up.  I suppose BT around 6 - 6:30pm tonight?

[anna*]

What time was her nap? I'd aim for 4.5hrs A time, probably, but whattime does that bring you to?

[rachelgz]

She napped from 11:35 to 1:05pm.  It was only 1.5hrs nap.  If I do 4.5hrs A time before bed, it will take me to 5:30pm.  I thought that's a bit early, isn't it?  I worry that it might bring in another EWU if she goes to be so early.

[anna*]

6pm will be fine I'm sure.

[rachelgz]

Oh dear... I put DD down at 6:15 and she didn't settle until 7:25pm.  She was very chatty and energetic when I put her down.  No sign of tiredness between 5:30pm - 6pm.  She kept popping up and standing in the cot.  I have been in the room to either put her down again or pat the mattress to ask her to go down.  She was so restless for about an hour.

That's 6.5 hrs A time before bedtime. Feel like OT will kick in tomorrow.