EARLY WIDE AWAKE CLUB!! WANT SUPPORT? JOIN US!

[jumblebox]

We are also in the midst of switching to a later bedtime, to hopefully move wakeup a little later.

After looking at all our EASY records, our DS is averaging the right amount of sleep. (I say averaging, because nothing is EVER the same with him! 13.5 hrs one day, 16.25 the next. grr) About once a month, everything seems to go haywire for a few days - weird eating (2-3oz/feeding, instead of usual 7oz), odd naptimes... so I'm trying to take advantage of that to reset his schedule. Two nights ago, I put him to bed at 8:30. He woke up around 5:30, I put him in bed with us, and he slept until 8am!! Yesterday, we just couldn't get him to eat (22oz all day, usually 30-32ish) and decided to not DF, just to wait until he woke up hungry. He didn't wake up until 5am. That gives me some hope that, once his eating improves again, he may just make it til 6-6:30.

I'd love it if we could do this gradually, but our LO just seems to be 2 steps ahead of us all the time! Practically forced us to jump from 3 hr EASY to 4 hr EASY, by refusing to eat before the 4 hr mark.

My biggest problem is that I'm hopeless at going to bed at a reasonable time. My eldest is taking forever to settle at night and I really value some grown up watching rubbish tv time!

ME TOO! By the end of the day, all I want is some brainless "me" time, be it computer game, tv, internet surfing. It's been especially hard with my DP working a combo of 2nd & 3rd shifts, so either he's coming home at midnight or leaving for work at 11pm. I keep thinking... "he'll be home in an hour, silly to go to bed now". But he just got a new job, with regular DAY hours, starting in a couple weeks. Another reason we're trying to make the change NOW... so I can still make him get up if there's middle-of-night issues.

[jumblebox]

So far, so good. We've been putting him to bed around 8pm, and he's waking up around 6am. Not sure what time he woke today, but I slept until 7am, when he started making "give me attention" noises. YAY! 

Since we're doing this rather abruptly, we're just letting him nap a little extra during the day, if he seems like he wants to sleep. Seems to be working, so far.

[¤ Efka ¤]

So what do you do, when LO is wide awake middle of night??

[rinajack]

Hi all

I have had a glimpse of what you all go through, and don't worry, mine is coming.  My 4mo dd sleeps from about 6:30-6:30.  Sometimes only 4:30 though, and is wide awake!

When I tried to leave a night light on for her, she woke at 4:30 every day, so now she is in complete blackness - but it is winter in Aus.  Soon the sun will come up earlier - even with bo curtains, some light gets in.  She is currently waking with the sun, in just a couple of months the first number on the clock will be 5, then for about 3 months in summer it will be 4.....OMG. Prob only about 3 months of the year where I live the sun comes up after 6.

[LyndaManus]

yep, I need to join too!!!  It's only been two weeks but getting up at 4:00 am is wearing  really thin

[james030405]

Well, we are back to having early wakings.  I thought 7:30pm was the magic time, but that only lasted a couple of days.   We have had about 2.5weeks of wakings between 4 and 4:30am most of the time we can get him back to sleep but this can take upto an hour.  I have found that if he has a night waking, even at around 11pm (whiche he has done the past 3 nights) he can get closer to 5.  Dh tried to get him back to sleep and after about 1/2hr he went back to sleep till 6:30am. 

We have put his bedtime back to 7pm as he has wanted to nap at 11am instead of closer to 12pm because he is waking so early.  I am at a loss as to what to do.  I am taking him to the child health clinic today to see if I can get some answers.

HOpe everyone is coping

Chat soon

Lisa

[Alison_3]

Count me in...unfortunately!  My ds is 21 months old and I think we've been dealing with early wakings since he was born!  The latest he ever slept in was today.  6:20 a.m.  Just my luck though, dh had to go to work early so I got up before he did so I could quickly shower.  Just think, I could have slept until 6:20! 

Some of you have mentioned how quiet you are in the early a.m.  I won't even flush the toilet because I think I'll wake my little guy up.  As I am now pregnant, those bathroom trips are way too frequent. 

We went through a stretch where Ben was waking at 4:45-5:15 every day no matter what.  It was so depressing!  I think we might be turning the corner, but I don't want to jinx it.  He is asleep by 7:30 and wakes lately anywhere from 5:45-6:15.  I know it still sounds early, but in comparison to 4:45, it's great!  He only naps for an hour from noon to 1 so I know he really needs his night sleep. 

Hang in there everyone.  Somehow it's refreshing knowing you're not alone!

[rinajack]

So much for saying she wakes with the sun - we are now waking between 5:45 and 6:15 most days, sometimes earlier - as early as 4:45.  Summer is going to be a big problem I think

[Alison_3]

Well, I did jinx us.  Ben woke up at 5:20 this morning.

[¤ Efka ¤]

5 o'clock again

[braydenMom]

Yes... I too am a member of the early riser club and the constantly wide awake baby (though still hopefully to leave the group eventually).  My son is 1 month today and while I am trying to schedule him to start his day at 6am, he likes 430 to 530 am as the time to start.  I have actually started thinking 530 is pretty good.  The real problem is like a few of the other LO he doesn't want to take naps during the day.  My husband and I joke that instead of the 16 to 18hrs he should sleep he will sleep 16 to 18 min because that is about how long we are usually successful at getting him to stay in his crib.   

[LyndaManus]

ok, I have to share 2 funny things DH did.  Thought they would help bring some amuzement to the Wide Awake Club.
1.  DH has probs getting back to sleep so I normally handle all night wakings    The other day dh came to me and said that he figured out how to get up, sooth ds with pu/pd and paci and get back to bed without a problem.  With excitement I asked him to share.  He said that he just keeps his eyes closed the whole time    Whatever works I guess - we are now taking turns but I am so worried dh is going to trip on something when he gets up that I still don't sleep.
2.  When DS wakes we normally hold him for a sec until he relaxes and then put him back down.  I go in the other morning at 5:00 (ds woke at 4:00) and DH is doing full activity time with DS.  He looks at me and says, oh, I didn't get much time with him yesterday so I figure I would make up for it now.  I let him know, although it is nice he wants to spend time with ds, that unless he wants to keep doing that every day not to do it again.

[andibig]

DH is doing full activity time with DS. He looks at me and says, oh, I didn't get much time with him yesterday so I figure I would make up for it now.

i'm not sure if i should laugh or cry with you LOL
we are back to early wakings again due to teething  . i jinxed myself by sying she was having a break from teething and shes decided to cut her bottom eye teeth
fortunately DH has got morning duty as i'm on night shifts at work

[rinajack]

5:00am every day now.....only way to not start our day at that time is bring her to bed and cuddle her to sleep - but that only works usually for another 45 mins.........and what a habit we are starting.   I don't mind, I wanted to co-sleep, but she sleeps better away from dh, but I wonder if dh or myself will mind in a few months.  I a, back at work 3 days, so right now we both enjoy the extra cuddle time.   

Plus since I started back at work, she is waking once every night to have her dummy put back in....even if dh gets up, I wake nd cant sleep til I know she is asleep, so now I just volunteer to get up.

We have tried altering bedtime, absolutely no impact!!! And doesn't make up the extra sleep time in her naps either, so bad idea.  I have a 30-45 min napper, who wakes every night and early in the morning - we hardly ever get any rest around her!!!   And now teething, so can't even get her to bed easy at night.... :-[I held her to sleep last night, after we spent an hour trying to get her to bed - it usually takes just a couple of minutes.

[The Drake]

For those of you who think you have it 'tough' when your kid wakes you up at 0530/0600.

I'm on duty at 0630, for a ten hour day.

waaaaahhh