Bedtime Battles

[tash donohoe]

We have been going through major changes in the last month. Ethan is now just over 5 months old and seems to be getting worse in his transition. The biggest problem is after we put him to bed he usually sleeps for an hour and wakes wanting to get up, from then on we are just fighting to get him to sleep which can go on for up to 2 hours. I have tried putting him down at 6, 7, 8, 9pm, doesn't matter when, the guy will not stay down, so now he is usually up to 10.30, it's getting ridiculas! Then there is the night wakenings and his naps are still inconsistant. I haven't helped the guy with all the Christmas festivities lately but would like to buckle down now. Any ideas? We are so out of control right now. Because of his late nights he wakes at about 9.30am and that is usually when our day starts. Please help.

[Katet]

I only have a minute, but I will get back with a more lengthy response... But I think the "irregularity of routine is one of the problems.

You need to set an "ideal bedtime" & stick to that within 15mins every night & also have a set morning time - that would be on average about 11-11.5 hours after bedtime.

I might suggest looking in the EASY forum to get ideas for the "routines" that other babies around the 5mo mark are on & that might help.

The other thing is make sure you have a good "routine" to wind down before bedtime... ie feed/bath/cuddles/song etc... at bedtime this is normally about 30-45mins for my 7mo & has been about the same for his whole life.