anyone have any magic to get a toddler to sleep later?

thismuch

DS3 is 15 months and his internal clock wakes him up between 5-530 every morning. He has been this way for months. I can't think of a day that i've slept past 530 unless DH got up with him. He sleeps from 8pm-530am and has one afternoon nap from 1230-3ish. He previously had been on 2 naps but we thought that maybe dropping the morning nap would help. Hasn't. We've tried earlier bedtimes (as early as 630). While we have darkening shades his room still gets a little light when the sun comes up, but during the winter he woke up before the sun all the time. Sometimes he's happy and plays. Other times he cries. I tried just letting him cry for a week or so but it didn't change anything so we went back to getting up.

I need magic. Anyone? (Or maybe just a reality check that 530 is my semipermanent wake time until he gets the concept of the OK to wake clock.)  

dragon_chica

I'm sorry to say there's a big possibility that's just him.  But, have you tried cutting back on the nap?  Do nap from 12:30-2:30 (pretty much exactly 2 hours) and see if that helps.

bluejetta

Our DD has always been on the early side as well and sadly nothing but time made any difference.  She takes a shorter nap (no more than 2hrs but we don't wake her).  Since it is lighter in evening and am she has sort of shifted her own schedule and is falling asleep around 7:15 (instead of 6:30) and many days wakes at 6am (instead of 5:30) but it isn't consistent yet.  We also tried shifting her schedule but I just believe she has a strong internal clock.  

ETA: hang in there

tbmadeamistake

Pretty much since she started sleeping through the night, DD has been getting up right around 5:30.  Nothing changes it, so we gave up and we just get up.  We have found that sometimes if we can catch her before she's totally awake, she'll fall back to sleep snuggled in bed with us and we get an extra hour or so.  Doesn't always work and I don't want to encourage sleeping in our bed, so we don't do it terribly often.  This morning she woke up signing for food, so I think her stomach wakes her up!

Karen1998

Cutting the nap usually makes them sleep less at night.  At least it does here.  Sleep begets sleep.  I think you're stuck with an early wake up.  It's the way of toddlerhood.  There are many, many mommas who have tried desperately to modify their toddler's obscenely early wake up time with no luck.  I've tried everything I could think of and everything I could find in books and online, with no luck.  

Netty_3

What works for us...is if it's a weekday and he has to get up...otherwise on the weekend he's up at 5am. Sorry.

Maybe try some white noise, like a fan or a white noise machine.

unaveragejane

If it's just his internal clock waking him up, maybe you'll get lucky with the time change in the fall and at least get to sleep in until 6:30!

Socialworkgirl

No advice, but I feel your pain.  DD woke up at 4:30 this morning.

ilba2011

there's no magic but I do have some advice. How early your little guy wakes depends on how much sleep he is getting in a 24hr period. Toddlers need around 12-14hrs of total sleep, which your son is getting. His afternoon nap is almost 3hrs long, wake him after 2hrs and he should wake a little later the next morning. good luck

jld49

We've got one just like yours . Depressing that it doesn't really shift . Have you tried Brazilian or Vietnamese coffee? It does wonders . 

We tried many times to shift his sleep to no avail. I understand overtime they'll shift (over the years, that is, by 5/6/7 years old-- perhaps). Also I've been told shifting to one nap helps them sleep a little later. Dd that happen to you? It did to us. So that's good news for the "over time" shift too.

as you have heard already-- you are not alone!! Sigh!