Author Topic: 3 am wakings and problem with settling down for another hour(s)  (Read 1197 times)

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Offline olivetshka

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I have wrote few days ago about my daughter Natalia. She's 2 and 3 months now and for 1,5 week she has been teaching how to sleep without me in her bed (she used to sleep with me for over 6 months). I try chair method and now she gets use to it - she goes down maybe not very easy but she can do it on her own - I only have to hug her from time to time.
At night, when she wakes up I go to a chair and stay there untill she falls asleep. She usually does it quite good - sometimes she wakes up and I have to tell her "it's ok, I'm here" and she's out again, but I have notice when she wakes up at 3 am she has big problems going down. Usually it takes an hour or - like last night - 2 hours (!) And I'm still on this chair - cold and sleepy...
Does anyone have an idea why is it this way?
She had this problems even before I started the chair method - why she's unable to fall asleep easily like she does when she's up at different time of the night?
How should I deal with it? Try Wake to Sleep method? And only for this one waking?
For last 2 days she's been up at:
- 9 pm (one hour after going to bed)
- 10.30 pm
- around midnight
- around 3 am (and up for hour(s)
And she starts her day at 6 am (!) - even when she falls asleep at 4 or 5 am.
Please, could anyone help me!

« Last Edit: April 29, 2006, 01:36:28 am by olivetshka »
Anna


Offline RachelC

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Re: 3 am wakings and problem with settling down for another hour(s)
« Reply #1 on: April 29, 2006, 14:04:34 pm »
Can you post your whole daily routine?  There may be more going on than what we can 'see' overnight.  How old is she?  What is your wind-down routine like?
Let's see if we can help.
~Rachel


Proud to have breastfed for a combined total of 35 months


Offline olivetshka

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Re: 3 am wakings and problem with settling down for another hour(s)
« Reply #2 on: April 30, 2006, 00:38:27 am »
Can you post your whole daily routine?  There may be more going on than what we can 'see' overnight.  How old is she?  What is your wind-down routine like?
Let's see if we can help.
~Rachel

Natalia is 2 years and 3 months old. Her day mostly looks like this:
6-7 am wake up
around 8 breakfast
activities till 11 when we usually getting ready for a nap (I noticed that she is tired around this hour, so we go to a bed and read few books, talk little bit and cuddle. Then I sit on a chair and she has to fall asleep. But lately she's up for an hour or more untill finally asleep - it looks like she doesn't want to nap, even when she's tired).
12.30-1.30 falling asleep
usually around 2 she's up (sometimes later - it depends when she went down)
3 pm dinner
activities
6 pm bath and supper
7 pm in bed (reading, talking, cuddling)
8 pm asleep

Can you tell me what is wind down routine? Is it that what we're doing right before going to bed?
Thanks a lot!

Oh, and I have to tell that last night wasn't like 2 others  before - she suddenly have changed her waking hours, but still were up for 1,5 hours at night.
Anna


Offline imsmum

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Re: 3 am wakings and problem with settling down for another hour(s)
« Reply #3 on: May 01, 2006, 17:32:12 pm »
With nightwaking I found with Margot she would return to sleep easier in the first  half of the night because toddlers are in a deeper sleep then.  When she woke after 1 am she would take a couple of hours to return to sleep.

Regarding her schedule she probably is getting sleepy around 11 because of her night sleep being broken.  Do you give her a snack around 10:30 or so.  That can really help them get more energy to last them through until nap time.  I think the 12:30 nap is also fine  and the big issue is just getting her comfortable to sleep on her own.  Have you tried moving the chair closer and closer to the door?.

Offline olivetshka

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Re: 3 am wakings and problem with settling down for another hour(s)
« Reply #4 on: May 02, 2006, 01:57:09 am »
With nightwaking I found with Margot she would return to sleep easier in the first  half of the night because toddlers are in a deeper sleep then.  When she woke after 1 am she would take a couple of hours to return to sleep.

Regarding her schedule she probably is getting sleepy around 11 because of her night sleep being broken.  Do you give her a snack around 10:30 or so.  That can really help them get more energy to last them through until nap time.  I think the 12:30 nap is also fine  and the big issue is just getting her comfortable to sleep on her own.  Have you tried moving the chair closer and closer to the door?.

Thanks for reply!
I think you're right about this night wakings - I'm observing her for a quite time now, and everything you said seems to be correct.
About snack - yes, she has one around 10-10.30. But do you think her nap time is too early? Maybe I should wait little bit longer...
And yes, I did the chair thing - I put the chair closer to the door 3 days ago. Today is day third and tomorrow I'm going to put it a foot closer. And she didn't scream :) Just asked me once for my hand while she was lying in her bed. I said "I know you can do it without my hand" and she did :)
I also thought about this night wakings - maybe it's too early to make Wake to Sleep method, maybe she just needs time to get use to it, maybe when I will be outside the room and after things get settled her sleeping will be better ? Or maybe not...
« Last Edit: May 02, 2006, 13:48:19 pm by olivetshka »
Anna