Sleeping!!
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@Heather 18 weeks & 2 days x
OK so I'd look online for what the age appropriate Wake windows are got your little one. I always thought Huckleberry was accurate for my LO. You might need to slowly change bed time at 2am by 30 minutes each night to allow baby to adjust to a new 7pm bedtime. Continue doing the same bedtime routine of bath etc as this can help the association. This is just based on what I've researched myself.
You'll have to do it gradually, moving it a max of 15 mins per day earlier. And you have to start with waking him up from his last nap 15 mins earlier in order to bring the bedtime 15 mins earlier that night. Or you could wake him up at 1:45 pm one day and try to bring each nap forward by 15 mins so bedtime is 15 min earlier (it's not like that calculation works perfectly well so it will still take some trial and error). But basically you can't try to put him down earlier without waking him up earlier first. And then also having more light exposure as soon as he wakes up and making sure it's super bright for a bit before he wakes up, and dark for awhile before bedtime. And then being aware that not all babies will have the exact same timing needs to try to be flexible with the 7-7 time, for yours it might be a bit different but at least you'll shift earlier. And definitely agree with looking at huckleberry for specific age based recommendations for your target times.
Also, you're not a bad mom!!! I'm sure you've come to this pattern for lots of reasons that were best at the time.
Hey. Circadian rhythm is determined by the wake time, NOT the bed time. You need to consistently wake him at 7am every day and then expose him immediately to sunlight and keep him in sunlight during the day. That will establish his body clock. Do not do dark room for naps. Don’t turn out the lights until he is asleep for the big sleep!
So for instance the first time you will wake him at 7 am he will only have had 5 hrs sleep. He will probably want to nap pretty soon. That’s fine but keep all naps on his back, not contact (as he may oversleep!) and in a light room with normal daytime noise. You may want to wake him if he tries to nap a long Time during the day (say more than 1 hr).
Alternatively you can gradually bring forward the wake time. Eg by 1 hour a day.
Hey mama! What age is your LO?