10 Month Daughter Waking up in the Morning

T.,
I'm not sure I have an answer for you (though I do have an idea), but I do know (based on what the child sleep experts say -- see "Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child") that you absolutely do not want to put down your baby later in the hopes that she will sleep later. First of all, you want her to sleep about five hours later. Second, waiting to put baby down will cause her adrenaline to kick in to keep her awake when she's really tired enough to sleep. You don't want to create a problem putting her down, too, and that's what supposedly happens. The saying goes, sleep begets sleep. Technically your baby is sleeping through the night (for what that's worth!). What our pediatrician (and the book I referenced) always told me was to keep middle of the night interactions as low-key and perfunctory as possible. Keep the lights off, feed or change diapers as necessary, do not speak, bounce, rock, or otherwise stimulate the baby. She might just be more prone to stimulation than your other kids were or she might think that you and her dad are signalling that it's playtime. Instead of bring your daughter to your bed, which is probably stimulating for her, you might want to try feeding her in her room. If you are breastfeeding, will she take a bottle of expressed breastmilk from dad? I know lots of families, ours included, that did that. It's important not to coo to the baby, etc., as that signals playtime. Perhaps with less stimulation and no cues saying that it might be playtime, your baby will fall back asleep more quickly. Final thought -- is she getting to a developmental milestone or possibly teething? Either can cause disruptions to sleep patterns. I hope you're able to get more sleep soon!

Hi T.,

I have 3 children myself. Each one of them is a unique individual and different in their own ways.
I think it sounds like you may have put her to bed a bit early. Try moving it up to about 8:30-9ish and see if she will sleep until 6-7am. Check to see if she's hungry. Most times, babies wake up for a reason. Is she sensitive to noise? Look back to see if anything was different before she started to wake up early. Again she is still little, so her sleeping hours might not be straight through the night until she gets about one. I think you're lucky that she wakes up after 4-5 hours, I used to wake up every 2-3 hours. Good luck! :-)

Hi T.
Just a shot in the dark...do you think she might be hungry? My daughter used to wake up like this until I realised that she was having a growth spurt and needed a bigger snack in the evening before bedtime. Those tiny tummies seem to get empty pretty quickly!
Failing that, it might just be a bit of a habit, since your bed + company = fun times. Not fun for you, but great for her!

It seems she may be going to bed a bit early so maybe try to keep her up just a little later. If you start putting her in your bed you will have great difficulty getting her out later. It may take a week or two but just let her be so she can learn that you are not coming to get her. Maybe put on some soft music and give her a toy to self soothe with.

Hi T.
I would try to keep the same sleep pattern that you have established with your daughter by putting her to bed between 7-8pm. I did that with my son. He almost always went to bed between 7-8pm and slept through the night (since he was about 6 months) unless of course he was sick or teething and would sleep 11 to 12hrs. If he did wake up I would give him some milk in his room and would not do anything to where he would think it was time to get up, like talking to him etc. She is probably going through something right now and trust me her sleep pattern will come back. I use to always think that when my son woke up that he would not go back to sleeping 11-12hrs but he always did. :) He is 21 months now and still has the same sleep pattern, sleeping 11 to 12hrs each night and going to bed between 7-8pm. Be patient, she is still young

I would put her down a little later. 7-8pm seems early, especially when it seems like her sleep pattern may be changing. All toddlers/babies go through this and it will pass soon. Try putting her down at 8:30-9pm and see if that helps. I would also look at her nap schedule and possibly put her down earlier if she naps in the afternoon. If she naps at 2pm, I would put her down at 1pm. It is amazing what 1 hour either way will do. Good luck.

Hi T.,

Do you have a monitor by her bed? She may not be getting enough nutrients. I had put my granddaughter on a magnetic petpad when she was a couple of days old. It made a big difference. It helped to relax her.

If you would like more info let me know and I will send it to you.

Good luck.

N. Marie
____@____.com

I have an idea you may want to try but it might be hard. When i worked in an infant center I did this and it worked. When your duaghter wakes up and stands up in her crib go in there and lay her back down and then walk away. If you dont have a video monitor peek in her room but dont let her see you. Just keep on doing this it might work it did for me. What ever you do try not to look into her eyes. It makes it a lot harder to walk away.

Could she be teething?? My son (16 months) is usually a great sleeper unless he is teething in which case we wakes up once or twice during the night... Then would go back to his usual sleep pattern of sleeping thru the night..

Just a thought!