Early Wakeups
One question that seems to come up repeatedly with many of the families I work with is this:
Why is my child getting up so early?
We’ve all been there. Either we’re in bed sleeping soundly or we’ve gotten up early to get in a workout, do some work, or just have coffee in peace – and our little one wants to join us! I’m talking about those 4:30am, 5:00am, or 5:30am wakeups that we are just not ready for.
When looking at a child’s sleep needs, we usually shoot for around 12 hours of overnight sleep. All kids are different, so anything in the 10–12 hour range is pretty normal. If you are putting your kiddo to bed at 7pm and they are waking at 5am – that is still within the normal range.
There are some things that we can do to extend those overnight sleeps. Here are some questions to ask yourself:
Is my child going to bed too early? If you have a particularly early bedtime (say, around 6pm), your child should be waking anywhere between 4-6am. If you would prefer that they sleep later, you will want to gradually move bedtime later.
Is my child going to bed too late? While it sounds counterintuitive, a child is going to bed too late can result in those early wakeups. Play with bedtime a little bit to see if that makes a difference.
How is my child falling asleep initially at the beginning of the night? If your child needs help falling asleep at the beginning of the night (rocking, feeding, patting), they may be looking for that same comfort item to help them fall back asleep in the early morning. Helping your child learn to fall asleep independently may help with this.
Is my child’s room dark enough? A kid’s room should be completely dark. Like, if you put your hand in front of your face you shouldn’t be able to see it. Blackout blinds, blackout curtains, and no nightlight (at least for now) is what I always recommend. Even a little bit of light can impact sleep. Perhaps there is some sunlight coming in their window that is contributing to the early wakeups. Even lights from monitors or sound machines can be distracting. We’re super fancy in our house and use duct tape or dark blue painter’s tape to cover any lights on electronic devices.
Are they getting enough to eat? If they still have a night feeding, make sure to keep the room as dark and uninteresting as possible during that feed. If they are older, are they having a nutritious snack before bed?
Is their body used to waking up early? If your child wakes up early but is content in their space, let them be. Leave them in their crib or bed until as close to your desired wakeup time as possible. For older children (ages 2.5+) you can consider adding a clock that lights up or turns a color when it is appropriate for them to get up.
If you would like some help fine tuning your child’s schedule or need a full plan an support to help everyone get to sleep, I’m here to help. Send me an email at nikki@nikkinelsonsleepconsulting.com and we’ll get started!