It’s a challenging situation when your little one is eager to start the day in the early hours. Is 5 am acceptable? Should you just start your day? Should you put them to bed later? How can you encourage them to sleep later in the morning? Personally, I want to sleep later than 5 am!
In most household, 6 am is the earliest we accept as morning and time to start the day. If your little one wakes up before 6 am, here are a few tips to help extend their sleep in the morning:
Allow for things to adjust.
If your child has recently started sleeping through the night, wait a few weeks to see if their early waking naturally adjusts. Sometimes, it takes 2-3 weeks for them to start waking later.
Adjust Bedtime Feeding
Ensure any bedtime feeding is completed 10-15 minutes before putting your child to bed, and make sure they are fully awake when you do.
Block Out Light
Even a small amount of light can wake some children early, especially during brighter mornings. Use a blackout blind and an oversized curtain to minimize light in the room.
Manage External Noise
External noises like heating systems or rubbish trucks might be waking your child. Consider using a white noise machine to mask unwanted sounds throughout the night. Ensure it’s pure white, pink, or brown noise and runs consistently.
Keep Them Warm
Children often wake early because they are cold. Make sure your child is warm enough, as body temperature drops around 4 am. You can find more tips on maintaining a safe room temperature at The Lullaby Trust.
Use a Wake-Up Clock
A “Gro clock” or similar digital clock can be helpful. Children as young as 2 years can understand a clock indicating wake-up time. However, if it causes anxiety, wait until they are older to use it. Set the clock for no earlier than 6 am and adjust gradually as needed.
Treat Pre-6 am Waking as Nighttime
If your child wakes before 6 am, treat it like nighttime waking. Keep them in their room until 6 am and avoid making early morning interactions stimulating. If your presence excites them, check on them periodically every 10 minutes.
Avoid Overtiredness
Overtired children are more likely to wake up early. Counterintuitively, putting your child to bed up to 30 minutes earlier (but not before 6 pm) can help. Give it about a week to see if it works.
Monitor Daytime Naps
If your child is still napping, ensure they aren’t getting too much sleep during the day. If they are around 30 months old, you might need to start reducing nap time. Frequent night wakings may indicate it’s time to drop the nap.
If you need help implementing any strategies to achieve a later wake-up we would love to help.
